2023: Movement(s)
5- 9 June 2023, University of Lucerne
Movement(s)
Movement is a key marker and maker of twenty-first century life. From travel to communication, in social and political life, technological developments have nurtured ever-quickening and ever-intensifying flows of bodies, materials, ideas and commodities. But the challenges of migration, climate change and political violence are turning mobility, as freedom and as control, into one of the key frontiers of contemporary politics. The experience of covid-19 has, moreover, forced us to look again at the dynamics of mobility and immobility, and at the deep flows of inequality and uneven accessibility around us. What can we do to address these perilous exigencies? Which spaces might be claimed for enabling the emergence of transformative social movements for change? How can we harness the power of art and creativity to such movements? What will be the role(s) of law and politics in shaping the imaginaries of the future?
This year’s Critical Times summer school will take the form of a week-long research-led intensive that engages with contemporary questions around movement – as a technology that connects spaces, places, ideas, bodies and the law. Organised by a consortium of partner institutions from leading universities on five continents, the workshop presents an opportunity to think critically and creatively about the relations between im/mobilities and justice, about the entanglements of movement with questions of meaning and power, and about law’s own patterns of motion – across multiple contexts, scales and situations.
The summer school carves out a distinct interdisciplinary space where law, the humanities, and critical theory come together in illuminating new ways. Like the Möbius strip, it is a form that expresses mobility, potential, and surprising juxtapositions.
Specific topics that may be addressed include:
- law in/as movement
- concepts of im/mobility justice
- regimes of mobility and immobility
- political and social movements
- protests, dissent and artistic mobilisations
- constituent moments and constituted power
- (non-)movement and public space
- processes of de- and re-territorialisation
- material and immaterial spatialities
- movement and performativity
The summer school forms part of the network-based project Critical Times: Law, Humanities and Critique, which is supported by a funding grant from Movetia. Movetia promotes exchange, mobility and cooperation within the fields of education, training and youth work – in Switzerland, Europe and worldwide. Further details at www.movetia.ch.
Organisation
The 2023 summer school was organised by
- Institute for Interdisciplinary Legal Studies - lucernaiuris, University of Lucerne
- Centre for Law, Arts and Humanities, The Australian National University
in association with
- Institute of the Humanities and Global Cultures, University of Virginia
- Wits Institute for Social and Economic Research, University of Witwatersrand
- Faculty of Law, University of Roma Tre
- Faculty of Law, University of Hong Kong
Contact
Please direct all enquiries to lucernaiuris@unilu.ch
Testimonials
Below is a selection of feedback from participants in the 2023 Critical Times workshop on Movement(s):
"I found the experience very rewarding – and as is often the case, the conversation in between sessions offered a lot of opportunity to delve further into ideas about research and collaboration. I have made relationships I will draw on in coming years."
"It was such a successful event from my perspective as participant! The seminar leaders and guest speakers were accomplished scholars in their own fields -- in the critical humanities, law and humanities, legal sociology, and other interdisciplinary fields -- who patiently shared with us their research, urged us to consider their implications on our own work, and generously responded to our working papers."
"I had a wonderful time at the Critical Times 2023 workshop and really appreciate all the efforts of the organizers and presenters in putting together such a compelling program."
"The composition of the participant group was fantastic. We had a really exceptional cohort of young academics, I made a lot of valuable connections over the week and just generally had a great time."
"This event truly inspired me, and I came back to my home university with hope and passion to continue my academic journey. The sense of community that permeated throughout the workshop played a vital role in fostering this hopeful atmosphere."
"The organisation of the week of lectures and seminars was almost perfect. I personally really appreciated the division of the days: in the morning the seminar, in the afternoon the presentation sessions. Having the opportunity to present my paper and being able to discuss it for an hour with colleagues from the most diverse legal cultures was a truly enriching opportunity."
