The Centre for Research into the Education of Marginalised Children and Young Adults (CREMCYA) and the Bakhita Centre for Research on Slavery, Exploitation and Abuse (BCRSEA) at St Mary’s University present:
Towards decolonised futures: An interdisciplinary conference challenging the politics of knowing and being
27th May 2021, Online (Zoom)
Among scholars, postcolonialism and decolonisation have attracted great interest. From the earlier writings of Fanon and Said, to more recent contributions by scholars such as Quijano, Mignolo or Spivak, academic research has challenged Western dominance over knowledge production and its devaluation of indigenous ways of knowing and being.
This has great relevance for practitioners working in a variety of fields, including education, social work, international development and humanitarian assistance.
This conference aims to further deconstruct and unravel the notion of one universal way of knowing and being, focusing on the different ways of knowing (epistemic plurality) of those who are traditionally silenced and excluded from power – in academic terms often referred to as the ‘sub-altern’ or ‘the historically muted subject of the non-elite’ (Spivak 1999).
We are interested in critical theoretical and/or empirical research that examines how colonial and eurocentric practices and worldviews are reproduced; that decenters the politics of knowing and being; or that explores decolonised futures. We also welcome examples of decolonisation in contemporary practice.
Themes include, but are not limited to, decolonising the curriculum, legacies of slavery, settlerism and colonialism, justice in a postcolonial world, social movements for decolonisation, and the politics of knowledge production.
The conference explicitly welcomes research and good practices from across all disciplines and sectors, encouraging interdisciplinary and nontraditional (presentations of) research and practice.
In brief, we encourage people from all walks of life and identities to submit abstracts, including:
- Academics from all disciplines
- Government
- Practitioners
- Civil society
- Global citizens
Call for abstracts
Deadline for submissions: 31st January 2021
Abstracts should be no more than 400 words for papers and alternative formats (800 words for symposia) including references.
Please save your abstract as follows: author’s name_name of the conference (EG: Johnson_DecolonisedFutures), and send it to along with a brief biography and your contact details.