The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) has announced that a project led by Prof. Roger Keil, Director of CCGES and the CITY Institute at York University, will receive $2.5 million in funding through its Major Collaborative Research Initiatives (MCRI) program, the largest award competition which SSHRC currently runs. (CONTINUE READING)
CCGES is pleased to be co-sponsoring the conference “Landscapes and Societies in Medieval Europe East of the Elbe: Interactions Between Environmental Transformations and Cultural Settings” on March 26/27, 2010 in the Conference Room on the 5th floor of the York Research Tower (Building #95 on this map).
Ancient and medieval Europe east of the Elbe presents a fascinating field for the investigation of landscape transformations. The area is characterized by many features that clearly distinguishes it from the Mediterranean regions throughout the period – absence of Roman traditions, late appearance of Latin culture, colonization movement, chartered towns, independent developments concerning society, economy, and religion. The conference will bring together a group of scholars from North America and Europe working in the fields of archaeology, history, palaeobotany and palaeozoology. A strong emphasis will be put on aspects of methodologies, interdisciplinary approaches and reflections overlapping areas and periods.
On Monday, March 22nd, CCGES is pleased to present a talk by Temenuga Trifonova, Assistant Professor of Film Studies in York’s Department of Film and a Centre Faculty Affiliate.
Her presentation will examine the relevance of Gianni Vattimo’s concept of pensiero debole (weak or post-foundationalist thought) to the debate around national and post-national European Cinema. The notion of pensiero debole refers to the exhaustion—but not the vanishing—of the project of modernity (the belief in reason, progress, history, the nation-state etc.) In European Cinema after 1989 Luisa Rivi relies on Vattimo’s ideas to make the argument that rather than discarding the concept of ‘national cinema’ in favor of ‘post-national cinema’ we should approach post-1989 European cinema as ‘weak’ or ‘declined’ national cinema, one that acknowledges the different ways in which transnational forces and supranational bodies are altering the borders of the nation-states in Europe. Trifonova will examine recent European films in light of Rivi’s idea of ‘weak national cinema’ in order to draw attention to some important shifts in the ways contemporary European films engage with history, national identity, and ‘European’ identity.” (CONTINUE READING)
As part of the CCGES Film Series, we are pleased to present a free screening of Summer in Berlin, an enchanting comedy, full of human warmth, sincerity and delightful humor – a film about life. The film will be shown on Monday, March 22nd at 2:30 pm in room 749, York Research Tower (building #95 on the map found here).
Written by Wolfgang Kohlhaase, who this year won the Live Time Achievement Award at the Berlinale, and directed by Andreas Dresen, Summer in Berlin is the story of two girlfriends, who, from their balcony – between heaven and earth – gaze down at their turbulent and difficult universe. Nike has a job as nurse, Katrin has a son, Ronald drives a truck, Tina’s a waitress, Oskar and Helene are old and alone. At the beginning, middle or end of their lives – they all ask the same question: Can love last through the seasons? Or is it something affecting the brain that just comes and goes?
All are welcome and the film will be shown in German with English subtitles.
Time: 2:30-4:30 pm
Location: 749 York Research Tower
The new European Union Centre of Excellence at York University is hosting its first graduate conference, “Ever Closer Union?/Union sans cesse plus étroite?” on March 11/12, 2010 in Toronto. The purpose is to showcase graduate student work and promote debate on topics relating to the European Union and EU-Canada relations.
The conference will be opened at noon on March 11th with a lecture by Maurizio Cellini, Chef, affaires économiques et commerciales, Délégation de l’Union européenne au Canada / Head, Economic and commercial affairs, Delegation of the European Union to Canada. Mr Cellini will speak on “Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement Negotiations”. The lecture will take place in room 519, York Research Tower on York’s Keele campus (building #95 on the map found here) and all are welcome.
The remainder of the conference program can be found at the bottom of this post.
This bilingual conference is organized by York graduate students and faculty and aims to include contributions from graduate students in various disciplines such as law, political science, public & international affairs, gender studies, economics, public administration, geography, history and sociology, among others, and from universities across Canada and beyond.
For more information, please contact <euconf@yorku.ca> (CONTINUE READING)
