PEC members and other educators and researchers interested in presenting a paper or workshop to the IPRA 2008 PEC sessions are requested to send your proposals and abstracts to the IPRA conference secretariat at sgipra@soc.kuleuven.be as soon as possible (please also send a copy to the PEC Convenor at s.toh@griffith.edu.au).
As detailed on the IPRA website, the 2008 Conference at the university of Leuven in Belgium, July 15-19th, will be on the timely theme of TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT, which "focuses on the dis-synergetic interaction between economic development, environmental change and conflict prevention and peace building efforts in the 21st century. Sustainable development cannot succeed without adequate efforts to build sustainable peace at local, national, regional and global levels. A great deal of peace interventions do not address the root causes or sources of violence." As in past Conferences, proposals for papers, panels and roundtables are to be submitted to the IPRA Secretariat indicating the Commission preferred.
The deadline for submission of proposals is 15 FEBRUARY 2008, and the forms are now open on IPRA's website http://soc.kuleuven.be/pol/ipra/leuven08.html. ADDRESS FOR SUBMISSIONS: sgipra@soc.kuleuven.be.
In the context of this overall Conference theme, PEC will be able to provide more specific opportunities for peace educators to share their insights and experiences under several possible areas, including, for example:
While there will be sessions featuring panels of individual papers, an effort will be made in IPRA 2008 to organize a number of key panels focusing on a common sub-theme or area of interest related to the overall conference theme. It is further hoped that the structuring of the Leuven conference program will also enable workshops to be also offered in which presenters will share their creative pedagogical strategies. Please write to the PEC Convener, Toh Swee-Hin (S.H.Toh) at s.toh@griffith.edu.au to explore possible panels or areas of focusing, including suggestions for speakers and workshop facilitators.