Deadline: April 13, 2023
New Frontiers: The South Caucasus Amidst New Challenges
Date: June 22-23, 2023
Concept note:
Russia’s unjustified war against Ukraine has altered the geopolitical, economic, and demographic state of the South Caucasus. The war amplified uneasy discussions in the region regarding geopolitical allegiances. Hundreds of thousands of migrants flocking to Armenia and Georgia created new challenges to the fragile economies of these countries, as well as potential opportunities. While the situation between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains tense, the region enters yet another potentially turbulent year.
With these themes in mind, the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRCs) seek proposals for the 9th Annual CRRC Conference and welcome methodologically driven, substantive contributions. We invite panel and paper proposals investigating the profound sociopolitical, cultural, and economic changes occurring in the South Caucasus through a comparative, empirical lens. We welcome quality scholarly contributions from emerging and established academics exploring the following broader topics:
Conflicts, displacement, and reconciliation;
Politics, power, and democracy;
Culture, values, and identity;
Economic development, digitalization, and energy;
Human migration and displacement,
Urban and environmental issues;
Civil society and activism.
As CRRC offices are committed to promoting innovative research methods, this year’s conference will host two keynote talks and panels focused on methodological innovations in social sciences and policy analysis.
In addition to methodological keynotes and panels, we also invite other authors who explore methodological innovations and address challenges to data collection, analysis, visualization, and dissemination. With a particular focus on approaches pertinent to research during the COVID-19 pandemic, prospective participants are encouraged to submit their proposals for panels and workshops oriented on methodological innovations in social science and policy analysis.
We welcome contributions using original data, but authors who plan to present scholarly work based on the Caucasus Barometer, are especially encouraged to apply.
Conference structure
All scheduled events will take place in a hybrid format, from CRRC-Georgia’s office in Tbilisi and online. Panel presentations, roundtables, and keynote speeches will be broadcast via CRRC offices’ Facebook and Youtube pages.
The working language of the conference is English.
How to apply?
Initial proposals, including an extended abstract (max. 500 words) and a CV, can be submitted via this form by April 13, 2023. CRRC offices will notify successful participants via email. Final notification of acceptance will be issued in mid-May. If you would like to propose a panel, please email a title, an abstract, and of the suggested panel to applications@crrccenters.org and n.edilashvili@crrccenters.org.
Important dates:
Submission of initial proposals (extended abstract and a CV) – April 13, 2023
Confirmation of final acceptance – May 19, 2022
About CRRC
The Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC) is a network of research and research support centers in the capital cities of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. CRRC’s goal is to strengthen social science research and public policy analysis in the South Caucasus. Over the past seventeen years, the CRRC offices have become a nexus of activity for the social science community in the South Caucasus by providing open access to data, scholarly literature, and professional training for social science researchers. For more information about CRRC and the upcoming conference, please visit the respective country websites at crrc.am, crrc.az and crrc.ge.
About Caucasus Barometer
The Caucasus Barometer is a bi-annual nationwide household survey conducted by the CRRC offices in the South Caucasus. Since 2004, CRRC has interviewed around 50,000 residents of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia on socio-economic issues, values, beliefs, and political attitudes. Since 2015, Caucasus Barometer has been administered in Armenia and Georgia only. To find more about the survey and access the dataset, please visit caucasusbarometer.org