Istanbul – Center for Intercultural Dialogue

CFP Global Conference on Science Communication (Istanbul)

Call for proposals
14th International Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST) Conference: The Global Conference on Science communication

PCST: the global network for science communication and the Turkish hosts of the 2016 PCST conference in Istanbul remind you that the deadline for proposals for the conference is 12 noon GMT on 1 September 2015.

If you are active in science communication research, practice, training or education do consider submitting proposals for the 14th International PCST (Public Communication of Science and Technology) Conference to be held in Istanbul, Turkey, on 26–28 April 2016.

PCST 2016 is organized by the PCST International Network and hosted by Hacettepe University, Ankara. PCST conferences are a forum for discussing a wide range of issues in science communication but proposals for PCST 2016 are especially welcome on the conference’s main theme, Science communication in a digital age. Issues and questions associated with this main theme are discussed on the conference web site.

Proposals are also invited on the following themes:
• Trends in public communication of science and technology
• Science communication policies
• Evaluating public communication of science and technology
• Ethics and aesthetics of science communication
• Science communication in science centres and museums
• Science communication for social inclusion and political engagement
• Gender and diversity in science communication
• Social networks for science communication.

Proposals should include a summary description (maximum 300 words) of the proposed paper or session and the conference theme or themes with which the proposal is associated.

Proposers will be asked to select a presentation format from this menu:
Panel sessions: statements and discussion with 3–4 contributors on a single theme, preferably with an international dimension and international participation. The panel participants should NOT submit their individual contributions separately.
Individual papers: presentations of research or reflection that will be delivered in parallel sessions. Preference will be given to proposals based on original research that will be completed at the time of the conference.Posters: these will be presented orally as well as being displayed.
Workshops: demonstrations and descriptions of science communication practices with commentary and discussion on their application and effectiveness.
Performance: short dramatization, or screening of video, on issues or controversies relevant to science communication, followed by discussion.

Proposers should take care to ensure that their proposals
• emphasise the key questions, aims and findings of the project described
• can be understood by readers who are not specialists in the relevant field of research or practice
• are as clear and coherent as they can be (allowing for various levels of competence in English)
• specify the stage of the research or practice project they are addressing – Is it complete? Will it be complete by the time of the conference?
• state what is new or original about the work or what contribution it might make to science communication research or practice.

If a proposal for a paper is intended to be presented alongside another paper or papers from the same project, or on a closely related topic, this should be indicated in the text of the proposal.

In order to submit a proposal, participants must pre-register at the conference website, and create a login and password. The participant will then need to login to his/her restricted area and access the space where abstracts will be posted directly using the specified form.

Submitted proposals will be reviewed by members of the PCST Scientific Committee. All successful proposers will be notified by 15 November 2015.

Each individual will have, as lead author or organizer, no more than one proposal for a paper, one proposal for a panel and one proposal for a poster approved, that is, a maximum of three contributions in total. It is assumed that the lead author is also the intended presenter. An individual may be associated as co-author with additional contributions to the conference.

It is not necessary to pay the conference fee at the time of submission of the abstracts for proposals. However, papers will only be confirmed in the programme when the speakers have registered for the conference and paid the fee. The presenting author will be required to make the payment by a date that will be given in the notification of acceptance.

The official language of the conference is English: all the proposals should be submitted in English. The presentations will also be in English. Proposals must be submitted here up to 12 noon (GMT) on 1 September 2015. Authors can also revise abstracts up to that deadline.

Internet Policy Research Methods in the MENA region

Call for Applications: Internet Policy in the MENA Region: Research Methods for Advocates
September 1-4, Kadir Has University, Istanbul
Application Deadline: May 15, 2015

As activists and researchers around the world endeavor to influence internet policymaking processes and raise awareness about the importance of protecting the open internet, the need for relevant, advanced internet policy research methods among advocates is brought into stark relief. This need is particularly great in the broader MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region, where observers are witnessing increasing levels of government control online, inadequate legislation supportive of a robust and secure cyberspace, as well as increasingly sophisticated security risks to journalists, researchers, and activists. These issues are further complicated by the political, economic, and cultural dynamics that are specific to the region.

Recognizing the importance of advocacy and policy efforts that make use of methodologically rigorous and contextually appropriate research as well as the need for a deeper engagement with the local environments that shape internet policy issues, the Annenberg School for Communication‘s Internet Policy Observatory has teamed up with Citizen Lab, ASL19, Ranking Digital Rights, and Kadir Has University‘s New Media Department to develop an Internet Policy Research Methods Workshop. This program will bring together young scholars and activists working in digital rights and the internet policy space in an intensive four day practicum that provides a survey of both qualitative and quantitative, online and offline research methods with the goal of enhancing and advancing their advocacy efforts.

The Internet Policy Research Methods program seeks applications from activists, advocates and those working at NGOs, and early career researchers working and studying in the Middle East and North Africa. Prospective applicants should have a particular area of interest related to internet governance and policymaking, censorship, surveillance, internet access, political engagement online, protection of human rights online, or corporate governance in the ICT sector. Applicants will be asked to bring a specific research question to the program to be developed and operationalized through trainings and one-on-one mentorship with top researchers and experts from around the world.

The program will provide skill-building tutorials on the following topics:
– defining the problems and framing research questions
– conducting desk and archival research
– policy mapping
– questionnaire/interview design and techniques
– conducting surveys and public opinion research
– network measurement
– social network analysis
– data visualization
– maximizing influence: research dissemination and promotional strategies
– developing proposals for funding, creating actionable research agendas and evaluating project impact

We encourage individuals from the MENA region in the academic (early career), NGO, and public policy sectors to apply. The course will be conducted in English and applicants should have high proficiency in English in order to interact with experts, lecturers and other participants who will come from diverse backgrounds. Apply for the 2015 Summer Research Institute online. A limited pool of funding in the form of travel support is available and will be allocated based on the strength of the application, fit with the workshop, and demonstrated need. If you require funding support, please indicate as such in the online form.

For more information about the program, please contact Emad Khazraee.

Nazan Haydari Profile

Nazan Haydari is Associate Professor of Media School at Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey. Her research and teaching areas consist of alternative media, feminist media, critical pedagogy, intercultural communication, and radio studies.

Nazan Haydari During her work years at Maltepe University, she was involved in the organization of NCA Summer Conference on Intercultural Dialogue with Wendy Leeds-Hurwitz. Among many outcomes of that Conference was the establishment of this Center for Intercultural Dialogue in 2010. Since the founding, she has served on the CID Advisory Board. In addition, she served as co-editor, with Prue Holmes, of the collection, Case Studies in Intercultural Dialogue published by Kendall Hunt in 2014. She is particularly interested in collaborative research on the practices of critical media pedagogy in various contexts and the relationship between radio, gender and identity, has participated in the development of various media projects with street-involved children and youngsters, and serves as a Board Member of the Research and Implementation Center on Street Children (SOYAÇ) at Maltepe University as well as a member of Women’s Radio in Europe Network (WREN).

Currently, she has been working towards the completion of an oral history project with women radio producers of TRT (Turkish Radio and Television) from 1960s to 1990s. Her recent publications appear in Transnationalizing Radio Research: New Approaches to Old Media (edited by Golo Föllmer and Alexander Badenoch, Transcript Verlag Publications, 2018), The Wiley Blackwell-ICA International Encyclopedia of Intercultural Communication and Feminist Media Histories Journal. Haydari holds a Ph.D. in Communications and MAIA in Communication and Development from Ohio University, USA.

Contact her by email if you share interests.

Work for CID:

Nazan Haydari served on the Organizing Committee, and then was the Local Arrangements Chair for the National Communication Association’s Summer Conference on Intercultural Dialogue in Istanbul, Turkey, which led to the creation of CID. She co-edited the book resulting from that event, Case Studies in Intercultural Dialogue. She is a member of the CID Advisory Board.

In addition, she served as a reviewer of micro-grants distributed by CID (funded by the National Communication Association), and has been a reviewer for translations into Turkish. She also helped to organize and moderate the CID/UNESCO focus groups for the Futures of Education Initiative.