CFP: Communicating Balkan Liminalities

“Publication

Call for book chapters: Communicating Balkan Liminalities: Theorizing Communication, Meanings, and Relations. Deadlines: Abstract: 1 September 2026; Chapter: 15 December 2026.

Book to be edited by:
Liliana Herakova (University of Maine), Jennifer A. Zenovich (California State University, East Bay), and Marta N. Lukacovic (Clemson University).

There is a growing recognition that to strengthen communication studies’ practical utility and contributions in the face of the poly-crises characterizing the present, we need varied metamodels and ways of knowing that are both of global relevance and grounded in locality. While critical efforts to de-westernize and diversify communication studies have gained momentum, the Balkans remain conceptually peripheral: sometimes analyzed and studied, but rarely valued as active, place-based knowledge producers within the field. Positioned between East and West, socialisms and capitalisms, empires and independence, the region is characterized by multilayered liminalities that resist straightforward inclusion in standard post-, decolonial, or western frameworks.

In this context, editors are inviting chapter proposals for an upcoming edited volume featuring both academic and creative works, provisionally titled Communicating Balkan Liminalities: Theorizing Communication, Meanings, and Relations to be published by Peter Lang. The book will be part of the Critical Intercultural Communication Studies series (recently renamed Possibilities), with series editors Bernadette Marie Calafell (University of Oregon) and Shane T. Moreman (California State University, Fresno). Proposed contributions to the book should align with a conceptualization of Balkan theorizing not as an exportable commodity or regional case study, but as an open, dialectic movement toward knowledge-making that reflects the following orienting commitments:

● Engaging history as integral to analysis: Treating history as polyvocal, messy, and co-temporal, troubling linear chronologies and western overvaluations of “novelty” in favor of deeply situated complexities.
● Performing generative in-betweenness: Sitting within the dialectic of being in Europe but not fully of Europe; reclaiming “balkanization” as a generative stance that disrupts western linearities, stage-based (pre-, post-) transitologies, and rigid categorical binaries.
● Listening to polyvocal storytelling and personal narratives: Centering lived experiences, folklore, and counter-narratives—in their discord and multiplicities—to resist both western universalizing tendencies and essentialist traps.

ICA Regional Chapters: Six Made Permanent, Two New Added

Professional Opportunities

Regional chapters update, International Communication Association.

ICA regional chaptersAt its 3 June, 2026 meeting in Cape Town, the ICA Board of Directors voted to make the ICA Regional Chapters program permanent, cementing the place of the six founding pilot Chapters (China, France, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria) as a lasting part of the ICA family. This milestone reflects three years of hard work by Chapter leaders and members who built local scholarly communities, mentored emerging researchers, and proved that meaningful engagement with ICA’s mission can thrive beyond the annual conference. Special thanks are due to the REACH Committee – and especially its immediate past chair, Noshir Contractor – for their tireless efforts in support of the ICA Chapters program.

The founding Chapters will now be joined by two new Regional Chapters whose proposals were selected by REACH: ICA Egypt and ICA Pakistan. Congratulations to all the Chapter Leaders, past and present, whose dedication made this achievement possible!

U Birmingham: Cadbury Postdoctoral Fellowship in African Studies (UK)

PostdocsCadbury Postdoctoral Fellowship in African Studies,  School of History and Cultures, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK. Deadline: 1 September 2026.

The School of History and Cultures seeks to appoint a Postdoctoral Fellow in African History for an 18-month fellowship contributing to the University’s research environment and teaching provision. The Fellow will engage in a programme of research agreed with their mentor. They will also support the delivery of African Studies and History programmes in the School of History and Cultures. This post is funded by an endowment that enables members of staff at sub-Saharan African Universities to spend a period of time at the University of Birmingham. The post is therefore limited to applicants currently based on the African continent and affiliated with an African Higher Education Institution

CID Poster 13: The Blind Men and the Elephant Translated into Catalan

CID Posters

This poster, designed by Linda J. de Wit, has now been translated into Catalan. It demonstrates visually the common expression ““the blind men and the elephant” used to describe what can happen when only parts of something are examined, rather than the whole.

Here we present the Spanish translation, CID Poster 13: Els cecs i l’elefant, provided by Neus Crous-Costa, with additional graphic design work by Yan Qiu.

CID Poster 13 translated into Catalan

The image was originally prepared to illustrate In Dialogue: CID Occasional Papers 1: Intercultural Dialogue as the Elephant in the Room: Moving from Assumptions to Research Investigations, by Wendy Leeds-Hurwitz. The quote integrated into the poster comes from that paper, and says:

The different approaches to intercultural dialogue might be described as a set of blind men studying individual aspects of the elephant, never realizing there is an entire beast. Those who have stepped back to see the entire animal deserve special attention.

Just in case anyone wants to cite this poster, the following would be the recommended format:

Center for Intercultural Dialogue. (2026). Els cecs i l’elefant [N. Crous-Costa, trans.]. CID Posters, 13. Available from: https://centerforinterculturaldialogue.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/cid-poster-13-the-blind-men-and-the-elephant-catalan.png

As with other series, CID Posters are available for free on the site; just click on the thumbnail to download a printable version. They may be downloaded, printed, and shared as is, without changes, without cost, so long as there is acknowledgment of the source.

As with other CID Publications, if you wish to prepare an original contribution, please send an email before starting any work to receive approval, to minimize inadvertent duplication, and to learn about technical requirements. As is the case any series, posters should be created initially in English. If you want to volunteer to translate a poster into a language in which you are fluent, send in a note before starting, to receive approval and to confirm no one else is working on the same one.

Wendy Leeds-Hurwitz
Director, Center for Intercultural Dialogue
intercult.dialogue AT gmail.com

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Sheffield Hallam U: Spanish & International Business (UK)

“JobLecturer in Spanish and International Business, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, England, UK. Deadline: 13 September 2026.

The College of Business, Technology, and Engineering is seeking a Spanish lecturer with a background in higher education to teach in both Spanish and English, helping students develop the language skills, business knowledge and international outlook to succeed in their studies and future careers.

You will play a central role in the International Business with Spanish course as well as teaching Spanish electives across the School. Through inclusive and engaging teaching, you will help students develop their language proficiency, cultural awareness and ability to use Spanish confidently within professional and international business contexts.

You will also draw on your experience of business education to contribute in English across the undergraduate curriculum. This will include supporting teaching and learning on introductory modules covering academic and professional development, international business, and people and organisational culture.

Informed by current scholarship and practice, you will use a range of teaching approaches and digital tools to create effective learning activities and resources. As a module leader, you will oversee teaching, assessment and feedback, maintain academic standards and contribute to curriculum development, quality assurance and continuous improvement.

UTS: Assistant/Associate Professor World Religions and Intercultural Studies (USA)

“JobAssistant / Associate Professor of World Religions and Intercultural Studies, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, MN, USA. Posted: 11 August 2026.

United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities invites applications for an endowed tenure-track position: Assistant/Associate Professor of World Religions and Intercultural Studies. Responsibilities include: teaching six courses per academic year at the graduate (seminary) level. Regular faculty expectations include engaging in scholarly activity (research, conferences, publications), advising students, and serving on seminary committees. Faculty are also expected to teach up to five special studies (individualized directed studies) per year.

WZB Berlin Social Science Center: Director for the Study of International Relations (Germany)

“JobDirector for the Study of International Relations, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin [WZB Berlin Social Science Center], Germany. Deadline: 20 September 2026.

The Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung (WZB Berlin Social Science Center) is one of the leading global research institutions in the field of social sciences. It unites the social sciences to address society’s biggest challenges. The WZB conducts world-class problem-oriented basic research in the social sciences and connects research and society by engaging with decision-makers in the public and private sectors, civil society and the general public. By bringing together scholars from all over the world with their various methodological and disciplinary backgrounds – including sociology, political science, economics, and law -, the WZB fosters a vibrant and stimulating research environment that promotes interdisciplinary collaboration. Research at the WZB is characterized by long-term projects based on multidisciplinary cooperation and transnational perspectives. The current cross-cutting research topics at the WZB are: Climate, Democracy, Digitalization, Education, Gender, Health, International Orders, Migration, and Work. The WZB is a publicly funded non-university research institute and a member of the Leibniz Association.

The WZB seeks to establish a new research department and to fill a permanent full-time position of Director (f/m/x) for the study of international relations, broadly understood. They aim to appoint a world-class scholar in political science, sociology, or economics who will establish and lead a team to implement an ambitious research agenda focused on theory-driven empirical research on transformations of the international order and shifting power relations. Specializations might include conflict and war, international security, contestation and legitimacy of international institutions and norms, transnational politics, international political economy, and global governance challenges, such as climate change, migration, trade, or development.

Seeking Participants for a Study: Chinese Americans Raised in Immigrant Families

“Collaborative

Call for participants: Chinese Americans raised in immigrant families. Deadline: 18 December 2026.

“Have you heard stories about your parents’ immigration experiences?

I am Jinwen Yue, a PhD candidate studying family communication at the University of Missouri. I am recruiting Chinese Americans to participate in a study about Chinese family immigration stories. You may be eligible to participate if you:

  • Identify as Chinese American
  • Are 18 years of age or older
  • Were born in the United States or have lived here since age five or younger
  • Have at least one parent who immigrated from China

If you meet these criteria, I would love to hear your story through a Zoom interview!

During the 60-minute interview, you will be invited to share stories you have heard about your parents’ immigration experiences (e.g., their decision to move to the US, the challenges they once faced, and how they built their lives here) and reflect on what these stories mean to you and your family.

Participation is voluntary and uncompensated. All the information you share will be kept confidential. Your participation will contribute to communication research on immigrant families.

If you are interested in sharing your story, please use this link to sign up.

If If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.”

U Edinburgh: Postdoctoral Research Associate: Muslim Societies in Latin America and the Caribbean (UK)

Postdocs

Postdoctoral research associate: Muslim Societies in Latin America and the Caribbean, School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures – Alwaleed Centre, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. Deadline: 26 August 2026.

They are seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate (0.8 FTE, fixed term for 24 months) to join the internationally funded research project ‘The Global Landscapes of Muslim Lives: Latin American and Caribbean Intersections’, led by Dr Kholoud Al-Ajarma (University of Edinburgh) and Dr Kenneth Chitwood (University of Bayreuth), and funded by the AHRC and DFG.

This is an exciting opportunity to develop and deliver an independent programme of ethnographic and qualitative research on contemporary Muslim communities in Latin America and/or the Caribbean. Working within the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World, you will undertake original fieldwork, contribute to high-quality publications, collaborate with an international research team, and play a key role in shaping new understandings of Muslim lives, networks and institutions in an under-researched global context.

The postholder will also contribute to knowledge exchange and public engagement activities, and help organise international workshops and symposia that bring together scholars and stakeholders from across the globe.

This post is part-time (28 hours per week); however, they are open to considering alternative part-time or flexible working patterns. They are also open to considering requests for hybrid working (on a non-contractual basis) that combines a mix of remote and regular on-campus working.

CFP CMM Institute: 2026-7 Fellows

FellowshipsCall for proposals, 2026-27 Fellowship program, Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM) Institute, Oracle, AZ, USA. Deadline: 28 August 2026.

The CMM Institute has a history of partnering with Scholar-Practitioners to further explore the ways that the social construction paradigm in communication (in general) and the Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM) theory (specifically) may continue to play an expanding role in “making better social worlds.” For 2026-2027, they envision the continuance of the Fellows program with an open invitation for proposals that further increase the scope and range of the ways that CMM is applied as a “practical theory” to lead social innovation and break down barriers to change.

To this end, they are open to considering applications reflecting a wide range of social phenomena that can be seen as being “made in communication,” and exploring the intersectionality with CMM and other conceptual frameworks as part of re-imagining the way we live, work, and interact.