Glasgow Human Rights Network Bulletin 5 October 2011

Please send any items for the next e-bulletin to ghrnadmin@glasgow.ac.uk by Thursday 20 October

1. Events

We are in the process of finalising the GHRN Seminar Series for 2011/12.  More information, including times and venues will be posted on our events website in due course. In the meantime, please note the following in your diaries!

  • 5 Oct: GHRN Seminar - From Tunis to Tripoli: Analysing the Arab Spring
  • 3 Nov:  Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought Panel Discussion
  • 24 Nov:  Jennifer Welsh (Co-director, ELAC and Professor of International Relations, University of Oxford)
  • 29 Nov: Helena Kennedy (barrister and an expert in human rights law, civil liberties and constitutional issues)
  • 1 Mar 2012:  Hugo Slim (Visiting Fellow, ELAC, University of Oxford)

GHRN Seminar - From Tunis to Tripoli: Analysing the Arab Spring
Wednesday 5 October 2011, 17.15 – 19.00, University of Glasgow, Wolfson Medical School Building, Seminar Room 2 (Hugh Fraser)
C8 on campus map: http://www.gla.ac.uk/media/media_1887_en.pdf

2011 has witnessed an amazing series of events in the Middle East which will have widespread, global repercussions for decades to come.

Authoritarian regimes have been overthrown in some countries, violent repression has increased in others, and the international community has invoked both the International Criminal Court and the evolving responsibility to protect norm and militarily intervened in Libya. These ongoing situations do not have clear outcomes but will, nonetheless, have a significant impact on regional and global dynamics. The scholars on this panel will draw on their expertise to help us understand what has happened in this volatile part of the world and what the possible implications might be.

All are welcome – event is free of charge.
Download: 111005 Arab Spring Flyer

This discussion is sponsored by the Glasgow Human Rights Network.  Please direct any questions to GHRNadmin@glasgow.ac.uk

Document 9 - International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival: 2011 A Year of Protest
For full details please download: Document 9 Brochure    or visit the website: http://documentfilmfestival.org/

Document 9 - International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival: 2011 A Year of Protest
For full details please download: Document 9 Brochure    or visit the website: http://documentfilmfestival.org/

Launch Event: Thursday 20th October, 7pm onwards, CCA - with live music from Andrea Marini & opening film: Soy Libre – I am free

This year the festival opens with...
Learning Through Film: Human Rights in Scotland
Thursday 6 October 4.30pm - 6.00pm  Cost: £5.00 per teacher.
Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street

In this workshop for secondary school teachers, the authors of Learning Through Film, Dr Nick Higgins and Alastair Cole will introduce education package material and demonstrate its use. This education package will support a variety of subject areas, including Religious and Moral Education, Media Studies and Modern Studies.  You can read more about the project on the Learning Through Film website at www.learningthroughfilm.co.uk 
Presented in association with Document 9, International Human Rights Film Festival.
To sign up please go to: http://www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre/schools/teachers_cpds

BEMIS Conference: Human Rights Education And Active Citizenship in Scotland
27 October 2011, Glasgow City Chambers

A few key aims of this event:

  • Broaden Scotland’s horizons in terms of Human Rights and global citizenship 
  • Promote the importance of Human Rights Education and Active Citizenship in making a more equal, more dignified more tolerant and just society
  • Initiate a sensitization campaign and raise awareness at all levels and in all settings about HRE and DAC

For more information, please see the draft conference proposal: http://www.bemis.org.uk/PDF/HRE%20Conference%20Outline%20Draft%20Proposal.pdf

GCID and CR&DALL Public Lecture: “Leprosy – challenges for public health policy and social justice”
5.30pm Tuesday 1 November 2011, Wolfson Medical School Building, Seminar room 1 (Yudowitz),  University of Glasgow (C8 on Campus Map) 

Speaker:  W Cairns S Smith, OBE (Emeritus Professor of Public Health, University of Aberdeen)

Professor Cairns will talk on the broad subject of social justice in relation to leprosy and his work, in that context, with the World Health Organisation.
Further details to follow.  Event organised in collaboration between Glasgow Centre for International Development (GCID) and Centre for Research and Development in Adult and Lifelong Learning (CR&DALL)

The event will conclude with a reception in the Atrium.  Free and open to the public.
For catering purposes please email Lauren Roberts at gcidadmin@glasgow.ac.uk or call 0141 330 1989 if you plan to attend.

Re-forging Rwanda’s Identity: The Case of the Rwandan Government’s Ingando Camps
Mon 7 Nov 2011, 17.30 – 19.00, University of Glasgow, Lecture Room (209), 2 University Gardens
D15 on campus map: http://www.gla.ac.uk/media/media_1887_en.pdf

Joint Seminar of the Glasgow Human Rights Network (GHRN) and Glasgow University Global Security Roundtable:
Speaker: James Kearney (United Nations Association for the UK)

James Kearney is UNA-UK’s Peace and Security Programme Coordinator.  James has a breadth of experience in the peace and security area, having worked for the Africa Educational Trust in London, Nairobi and Rumbek, southern Sudan; for John Grogan MP as a parliamentary researcher; and in the Office of the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict for nearly two years.  During his time at the UN he wrote the first report on the feasibility of forming a ‘watchlist for children and armed conflict’, which has now been established.  Prior to this, he was a volunteer teacher in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

After studying history at Oxford, James attained a Masters degree in international relations from Cambridge University.  His PhD (Edinburgh University) examined Ingando camps in Rwanda using them as a case study in forging collective identity in post-ethnic-conflict environments.  James’ research acknowledges that while Rwanda’s Ingando camps address the place of education as a fundamental right and use it to promote social cohesion it is done so at all costs with no room for questioning and debate among those being educated and he suggests that this may lead to longer-term resentment despite short-term successes.  James is currently writing a report for the World Bank on the conclusions of his Rwanda research and this will form the basis of the seminar discussions.

This is an open event and all are welcome – the event is free of charge.
This seminar is sponsored by the University of Glasgow Global Security Roundtable (GSR) and the Glasgow Human Rights Network.  Please direct any questions to eamonn.butler@glasgow.ac.uk or GHRNadmin@glasgow.ac.uk

Theoretical and Philosophical Approaches to Human Rights Cluster Meeting
Tues 11 October 2011 11.30-13.00 
This cluster meeting will begin by creating some common ground, in a way that challenges both 'old' and 'new' researchers in this area alike.  Cluster members should read at least one of the four articles that appear in the recent Ethics (vol. 120, no. 4, July 2010) symposium on James Griffin's book On Human Rights.  Of course, feel feel to read more than one, or even to read all four, articles.  After a brief recap of the conclusions of the scoping meeting, we will spend most of the time in this meeting asking members to share (a) members' thoughts on the pieces that they read, and (b) members' thoughts on whether and how those thoughts can be plugged into their own research projects and/or professional careers.  The articles can be accessed here http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/603567 through most university libraries, but please contact us if you have any trouble.  A working sandwich lunch, tea and coffee will be provided. 
Should you wish to attend please email ben.colburn@glasgow.ac.uk and david.karp@glasgow.ac.uk who will advise of the venue and further details.
 
3rd Annual International Symposium on Preventing Human Trafficking: Integrating the European Knowledge
Thursday 24 November 2011, The Silken Berlaymont Hotel, Brussels

The problem of human trafficking is an increasingly disturbing phenomenon in Europe with terrible consequences for victims, the majority of which are forced into prostitution, street crime, domestic servitude or other forms of labour exploitation. With a new directive on trafficking in human beings adopted by the European Council in March this year, the 3rd Annual International Symposium on Preventing Human Trafficking offers a timely opportunity for local, regional and national authorities to gather comparative knowledge, discuss the latest challenges and share examples of cross-border best practices.
For further details, please see the event website: http://publicpolicyexchange.co.uk/events/BK24-PPE2.php

Workshop: Interrogation in war and conflict: between liberty, security and justice
 Tuesday, 29 November 2011, at the University of Reading

Professor Hilary Footitt and Dr Simona Tobia.

After recent revelations of a ‘UK Abu Ghraib’, with allegations of systematic mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners of war at a British military interrogation centre, and the opening of a formal inquiry, the role of military interrogations has once again been under scrutiny. This seems a particularly opportune time to discuss ‘interrogation’ both as a military event and as a cultural phenomenon. Interrogation raises moral questions, especially for states that see themselves as ‘liberal’, but it can also be approached from many other angles. It is often, for example, a ‘first contact’ between actors who come from different cultures and speak different languages. It sets out to elicit information, but the absorption of that information depends on the conceptual scheme of the interrogator. There are important differences between interrogations done by ordinary soldiers, debriefings by professional intelligence operatives, and interviews that generate forensic evidence.

For full details please visit http://www.reading.ac.uk/spirs/Leverhulme/spirs-leverhulmeevents1.aspx 
If you wish to register, please send your name, institution and contact details to: s.tobia@reading.ac.uk

A Workshop supported by the Leverhulme Major Research Programme: The Liberal Way of War: http://www.reading.ac.uk/spirs/Leverhulme/spirs-leverhulme_home.aspx

The British Institute of Human Rights: National Human Rights Tour 
‘Making Human Rights Happen’ 16 Rights | 16 Cities | 16 Weeks 

"The Scottish Human Rights Commission is delighted to be co-hosting the ‘Making Human Rights Happen’ Tour events in Scotland. The first of these events on 30th November will be taking place in Glasgow, with the second event on 1st December planned for Dundee. Raising awareness of human rights underpins all of the Commission’s work. The workshops will help participants understand the practical implications of human rights in policy and practice, and help to build the capacity of civil society groups in Scotland." Chair of the Scottish Human Rights Commission, Professor Alan Miller

During the events, we will celebrate the Human Rights Act, look at how human rights relate to the Coalition's plans, and address human rights issues both throughout the UK and specific to each region that we visit. 

For further details, and to book onto an event, please visit: http://www.bihr.org.uk/events/bihr-national-human-rights-tour-information-page



2. Opportunities & Funding

Centres and Large Grants competition
ESRC are pleased to announce the first call for outline proposals for the newly integrated Centres and Large Grant Competition 2011-12. This competition is for experienced researchers requiring longer term or extended support for research groups, inter-institutional research networks, linked-project programmes, medium-to-large surveys, other infrastructure or methodological developments, or any related larger scale projects. The Competition is for applications ranging from £2 million to £5 million (at 100 per cent full economic cost). 
Deadline: 13 October 2011.

ESRC: Follow on Funding Scheme
This scheme offers awards of up to £100,000 (at 80 per cent fEC) for a maximum of 12 months. Provides the opportunity to apply for knowledge exchange and impact generating activities that follow on from a specific piece of research. The scheme is designed to be flexible, applications for either a single activity or a combination of activities are welcomed, and applicants are encouraged to think creatively about the format of the knowledge exchange. Follow on funding should be thought of as an extension and complement to the 'Pathways to Impact' section of a research grant and should involve research users from the earliest stages of proposal development.
Deadline: 27 October 2011

ESRC: Knowledge Exchange Opportunities scheme
 Applicants can apply for any amount between £2,000 - £100,000 (non fEC-full economic cost) per application for knowledge exchange and impact generating activities.  The scheme provides the opportunity to apply for funding for knowledge exchange activities at any stage of the research lifecycle, and is aimed at maximising the impact of social science research outside academia. The flexibility built into the scheme is intended to encourage applicants to think creatively about knowledge exchange, and applications are welcomed for either a single activity or a combination of activities; be it setting up a network to help inform the development of a research proposal, arranging an academic placement with a voluntary or business organisation, or developing tools such as podcasts and videos aimed at communicating the results of research to non-academic audiences. Some examples of knowledge exchange activities can be found on the website.
Deadline: 27 October 2011


3. Call for papers

International Society for Third Sector Research (ISTR) 10th International Conference: Democratization, Marketization and the Third Sector
Conference Hosts: Fondazione Scuola di Alta Formazione per il Terzo Settore (ForTeS)
Siena, Italy, 10-13 July, 2012
Submission Deadline – 24 October 2011
For further information, please see the website: http://eng.fondazionefortes.it/

Protecting Human Rights: Duties and Responsibilities of States and Non-State Actors
University of Glasgow 18-19 June 2012
The Steering Committee of the American Political Science Association (APSA) Human Rights Section, the Council of the International Political Science Association (IPSA) Human Rights Research Committee, and the Executive Council of the International Studies Association (ISA) Human Rights Section announce their second joint international conference on the theme “Protecting Human Rights: Duties and Responsibilities of States and Non-State Actors” to take place on 18-19 June 2012 at the University of Glasgow, hosted by the Glasgow Human Rights Network.  This conference is timed to coincide with the joint International Studies Association-British International Studies Association conference to be held immediately after in Edinburgh (20-22 June).

The conference format will be a mixture of small panels (no more than 3 papers) with plenary keynote sessions.  We hope that small panels will facilitate discussion and interchange among the participants, and the overall conference format will contribute to an intimate and relaxed two days.  Confirmed keynote speakers to date include:

  • Henry Shue, Professor of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford
  • David Mepham, UK Director, Human Rights Watch

Submission information: Full details can be found on the ISA website - please note you will need to create a MyISA account if you do not already have one. 

For questions about paper submissions and other aspects of the program please contact the Program Chair, Clair Apodaca, at HR@isanet.org 
For all other queries related to the conference, please contact the Conference Chair, Kurt Mills, at ResponsibilityConference@glasgow.ac.uk

Deadline for submission of papers: 1 November.
Notification of acceptance will be sent by e-mail by 1 December. 
Registration, accommodation and facilities: Please see the Conference section of the GHRN website 

Undergraduate Journal: Righting Wrongs: A Journal of Human Rights
The Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies at Webster University is pleased to introduce the inaugural issue of Righting Wrongs: A Journal of Human Rights. Published online in August 2011, Righting Wrongs is a peer-reviewed academic journal that provides space for undergraduate students to explore human rights issues, challenge current actions and frameworks, and engage in problem-solving aimed at tackling some of the world's most pressing issues. Please visit the Righting Wrongs web site at www.webster.edu/rightingwrongs.  We hope you find the journal a useful resource for your human rights-related classes, and we invite you to use the journal to enhance student learning and promote dialogue.

Righting Wrongs is also currently soliciting undergraduate research papers and book reviews for possible publication in its second issue, which will be published online in August 2012. The blind peer-review process will be conducted by student editors and reviewers at Webster University, under the supervision of faculty advisors.  Submissions are accepted from undergraduate students at universities around the world. We ask that you encourage your undergraduate students to submit their human rights research for possible publication. To submit a paper or book review for possible publication in Righting Wrongs, students may e-mail submissions as Word document attachments to humanrights@webster.edu. Research papers should include a full paper, bibliography, a 100-word abstract, and a brief author(s) biography. Also, papers must be formatted according to American Psychological Association (APA) style guidelines. Reviews should focus on books about human rights issues and debates. Please note that submissions are not accepted from graduate students, and papers must be written in English.

Deadline for submissions is January 9, 2012. Authors should receive a decision no later than March 1, 2012. For more information and writing resources, please visit the Righting Wrongs web site at www.webster.edu/rightingwrongs.