Upcoming conference and call for papers
ISAC/ISSS ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2010
14-16 October 2010
Providence, Rhode Island

The 2010 annual conference of the International Security Studies Section of ISA and the International Security and Arms Control Section of APSA will be held at The Providence Biltmore Hotel from October 14-16. This call for papers describes the theme of the conference and requests proposals for papers and panels.

International Security Beyond 9/11.

The fall of the Soviet Union inaugurated the post-Cold War era in international security studies, in which scholars debated whether long-held ideas and institutions could withstand the emergence of a unipolar international system. To many observers, the focus on great power politics seemed anachronistic in a world with only one superpower, so scholars also broadened the definition of security to include a host of non-traditional issues, including migration, disease, globalization, and environmental concerns. It was unclear which of these problems, if any, would dominate the analytical agenda as had US-Soviet competition had during the Cold War.

The terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 seemed to clarify the issue. Policymakers of all stripes declared that terrorist groups like al Qaeda constituted the greatest threat to international security, especially if they were able to acquire nuclear or biological weapons. Scholars with different areas of specialization also tailored their work around the problem of terrorism. Specialists on civil war asked whether ethnic and sectarian conflicts were breeding grounds for terrorists; deterrence theorists asked whether deterrent threats would be useful against groups preaching martyrdom; and students of strategy tried to formulate ideas for confronting transnational enemies, unbound by territory and driven by religious extremism. The “global war on terrorism” also led scholars to revisit related questions about military doctrine, organizational innovation, human rights, intelligence sharing, foreign aid, and state-building. For the better part of a decade, terrorism was the hub around which the field revolved.

While the issue of terrorism still occupies a great deal of attention, the threat posed by terrorist groups seems more diffuse today. Some analysts contend that counterterrorist efforts in Afghanistan and elsewhere have forced al Qaeda to become more of an ideological movement than a capable organization. Others have argued that the threat in general has been inflated, especially given the massive investment in the war on terrorism and the paucity of spectacular attacks since 9/11. These arguments have led to intense debates about the logic of US grand strategy, the resilience of traditional alliances, and the question of whether terrorism should remain the focal point of contemporary international security concerns.

This year’s conference gives participants the opportunity to assess the post-9/11 era. Is it over? If so, what other issues have replaced terrorism as the focus of scholarly attention, and what issues are being ignored? Do recent controversies over issues like climate change and humanitarian disaster suggest a return to the debates that dominated the 1990s? Or do ongoing conflicts with emerging nuclear powers, along with the rise of countries like Brazil, Russia, India, and China (the so-called BRICs), foreshadow a return the traditional business of great power politics?

We invite proposals for panels and papers on these and other topics. Early submissions are especially welcome. The regular deadline for proposals is July 31, 2010; submissions after this date will be accepted on a space-available basis until September 4, 2010. Until the conference web site is set up, proposals (including your name, institutional affiliation, working title, and a short paragraph summarizing the paper or panel) may be sent to the conference program chair:

Joshua Rovner

Dept. of Strategy and Policy

US Naval War College

joshua.rovner@usnwc.edu

Please click on this link for details.

APSA Convention, Washington D.C., September 1-5

If you have been accepted to serve in some capacity at the APSA convention in Washington this fall, remember to pre-register on the APSA website so that your name shows up in the on-line version of the draft program. You may also want to book your hotel room through the APSA conference site to get the best rates and ensure you have a place to sleep. The conference hotels typically sell out rather quickly

We have requested our normal times for the annual section business meeting and reception (Friday evening), and are waiting to hear confirmation from APSA. We will be honoring a leading scholar in the field of international relations this year with the Joseph Kruzel Award, so please plan on attending the reception.

OUTSTANDING SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS