5TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
ON LANGUAGE DOCUMENTATION & CONSERVATION
CALL FOR PROPOSALS:
General papers, posters, electronic posters
and
NSF-Supported Workshops and Talk Story roundtable discussions (pending final approval of funding)
PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AS SOME INFORMATION HAS CHANGED SINCE OUR LAST CONFERENCE.
INTRODUCTION
The 5th International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (ICLDC), “Vital Voices: Linking Language & Wellbeing,” will be held March 2-5, 2017, at the Hawaiʻi Imin International Conference Center on the campus of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. The 5th ICLDC is hosted by the Department of Linguistics and the National Foreign Language Resource Center at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
The conference program will feature two keynote talks, Talk Story roundtable discussions, and Workshops (pending final approval of funding). An optional Hilo Field Study (on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi) to visit Hawaiian language revitalization programs in action will immediately precede the conference (February 28-March 1).
The theme of the 5th ICLDC is “Vital Voices: Linking Language & Wellbeing.” Wellbeing is a state of the body and mind that encompasses the presence of positive moods and emotions, life satisfaction, fulfillment and positive functioning, and the absence of negative emotions like anxiety. Increasingly, researchers in several fields have noted a positive correlation between language maintenance and wellbeing in endangered language communities. While the nature of the connection between language and wellbeing remains the subject of much debate, the existence of a connection is not entirely unexpected, given the range of outcomes associated with wellbeing.
In addition, languages encode knowledge systems, so language loss represents not only the loss of a communicative system, but also the loss of traditional knowledge systems. Importantly, traditional knowledge systems encode cultural practices related to well-being. Understanding the connections between language and wellbeing will potentially have implications for public health and policy and beyond, but also for language researchers, since traditional knowledge systems are among the most threatened domains of endangered language. Knowledge of esoteric domains such as botanical classification and traditional medicines is forgotten well before basic vocabulary and language structure. Hence, these areas of traditional knowledge are precisely the areas which need to be prioritized by language documenters.
Exploring the connections between language and wellbeing is potentially transformational for language documentation and conservation, and thus it will be the theme for the 5th ICLDC. We aim to build on the strong momentum created by the 1st–4th ICLDCs to discuss research and revitalization approaches yielding rich records that can benefit both the field of language documentation and speech communities. We hope you will join us.
1. CALL FOR PROPOSALS: GENERAL CONFERENCE TALKS, POSTERS, AND ELECTRONIC POSTERS
Proposal deadline: August 31, 2016
Topics
We especially welcome abstracts that address the conference theme, “Vital Voices: Linking Language and Wellbeing” (see description above). In addition, we warmly welcome abstracts on other subjects in language documentation and conservation, which may include but are not limited to:
- Archiving matters
- Assessing success in documentation and revitalization strategies
- Community experiences of revitalization
- Data management
- Ethical issues
- Language planning
- Lexicography and grammar design
- Methods of assessing ethnolinguistic vitality
- Orthography design
- Teaching/learning small languages
- Technology in documentation – methods and pitfalls
- Topics in areal language documentation
- Training in documentation methods – beyond the university
Presentation formats
Papers will be allowed 20 minutes for presentation with 10 minutes of question time.
Posters will be on display throughout the day of presentation. Poster presentations will run during the lunch. Poster presentations are recommended for authors who wish to present smaller, more specific topics, or descriptions of particular projects.
Electronic posters (e-posters) are opportunities for presentations of software, websites, and other computer-based projects, in an environment that allows face-to-face interaction with the audience. Similar to a traditional poster session, e-poster presenters will use their own laptop computers to display their projects while the audience walks around, watching demonstrations and asking questions. E-poster sessions will take place during lunch in a room with tables and internet access.
2. CALL FOR PROPOSALS: NSF-SUPPORTED WORKSHOPS AND TALK STORY ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONS (pending final approval of funding)
Proposal deadline: June 30, 2016
As a special addition to our program this year, we are including a 90-minute block on Thursday, Friday and Saturday to be dedicated to two alternative conference activities: Workshops and Talk Story roundtable discussions. These activities will run concurrently, and participants will pre-register for Workshops and Talk Story roundtable attendance on a first-come, first-served basis.
We invite submissions for Workshops and Talk Story roundtable discussions topics/facilitators addressing the conference theme of “Vital Voices: Linking Language and Wellbeing.” These are described below, as well as the nature of the travel support from the NSF.
Talk Story roundtable discussions
In response to feedback from attendees of previous ICLDCs, this year we are providing a forum for small facilitated discussions about topics related to the conference theme. We invite proposals for 90-minute “Talk Story” (a Hawai‘i Creole English term referring to the sharing and preservation of culturally relevant stories) roundtable discussions. These discussions will be led by an expert discussant and limited to 20-30 attendees per session. Each Talk Story roundtable will be repeated on three days of the conference, allowing ample opportunity for conference attendees to participate in the Talk Story Sessions of their choice. Talk Story sessions are meant to be fully interactive for participants, rather than a one-directional presentation of information. We feel this format is particularly appropriate for more sensitive topics dealing with wellbeing, as well as for intragroup sharing of past successes.
Workshops
We also welcome proposals for Workshops on topics broadly relating to language revitalization and wellbeing. Each 90-minute workshop will be held twice over three days of the conference, allowing multiple opportunities for interested attendees to participate. Workshops will accommodate 60–100 participants and are intended to be more presentational and instructional in style than the Talk Story sessions. Appropriate workshop topics will be related to the conference theme and may include instruction in techniques or methods, hands-on activities, etc.
NSF support details - Pending final approval of funding
Thanks to generous support from the US National Science Foundation Documenting Endangered Languages Program, we are able to offer travel assistance up to US$2000 for each selected Workshop and Talk Story Session. Funds will be provided as (partial) flight reimbursements, hotel nights, or per diem payments, to be determined by the ICLDC Executive Committee. In the event that a Workshop or Talk Story Session is jointly presented by more than one individual, the presenter team will inform the ICLDC Executive Committee how to divide the award across the presenters.
AS A CONDITION OF ACCEPTANCE, WORKSHOP AND TALK STORY ROUNDTABLE PRESENTERS MUST ACKNOWLEDGE SUPPORT OF THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION IN THEIR PRESENTATIONS AND FUTURE ITERATIONS OF THEIR RESEARCH.
3. ABSTRACT SUBMISSION
Rules for submission in all categories:
- Abstracts should be submitted in English, but presentations can be in any language. We particularly welcome presentations in languages of the region discussed.
- Authors may submit no more than one individual and one co-authored proposal (including participation in a Workshop or Talk Story Session proposal), or no more than two co-authored proposals. In no case may an author submit more than one individually-authored proposal.
- Proposals for the NSF-sponsored Workshops and Talk Story Sessions are due by June 30, 2016, with notification of acceptance by July 31, 2016.
- Proposals for general papers, posters, and electronic posters are due by August 31, 2016, with notification of acceptance by October 1, 2016.
- We will not be accepting any proposals for panel presentations or colloquia.
- Because of limited space, please note that the Abstract Review Committee may ask that some general abstracts submitted as papers be presented as posters or electronic posters instead.
- Selected authors will be invited to submit their conference papers to the journal Language Documentation & Conservation for publication.
How to prepare your proposal:
- For Workshop and Talk Story proposals: We ask for proposals, no more than 400 words in length, describing the content of the Workshop or Talk Story including how it relates to the conference theme. In addition, we ask for a 100-word biography describing the qualifications of each presenter.
- For proposals for general papers, posters, and electronic posters: We ask for abstracts of no more than 400 words for online publication so that conference participants will have a good idea of the content of your paper, and a 50-word summary for inclusion in the conference program. All abstracts will be submitted to blind peer review by international experts on the topic.
- To facilitate blind peer review, please DO NOT INCLUDE YOUR NAME OR AFFILIATION in your abstract or filename. Your proposal should only include your presentation title, abstract, and list of references (if applicable).
- If you are including references/citations to your own work in your abstract, please be sure to replace your name(s) with "Author". For example, if you are Ted Smith and you wrote an article in 2009, which you are citing in your file (i.e., Smith (2009) ), you would change it to "Author (2009)." If you are including a list of references at the end, also make sure to anonymize any of your publications similarly as well.
- Please note that your reference list is not counted in your 400-word abstract maximum, only the main abstract text.
- Please save your abstract as an MS WORD DOCUMENT or PDF FILE. MS Word is preferred. However, if you are using special fonts, special characters, or diagrams in your abstract, a PDF file is recommended to make sure it displays as you intend.
- For a FILE NAME, use an abbreviated version of your title. For example, if your presentation title is "Revitalizing Hawaiian for the next generation: Social media tools," your filename might be "Revitalizing_Hawaiian.doc" or “Revitalizing_Hawaiian_social_media.pdf"
- Please follow the guidelines above when preparing your abstract. Submitted proposals that ignore them may be returned.
Proposal review criteria:
- Appropriateness of the topic: Does the proposal address the themes of the conference?
- Presentation: Is the abstract well-written? Does it suggest that the paper/poster/Workshop/Talk Story Session will be well organized and clearly presented?
- Importance of the topic: Is this an important topic within the area? Is the paper/poster/Workshop/Talk Story Session likely to make an original contribution to knowledge in the field? Will it stimulate discussion?
- Contribution to the discipline: For talks, does the presentation make a methodological or theoretical contribution to the discipline? If not (e.g., project descriptions), could the presentation be submitted as a poster or electronic poster?
4. TIMELINE
- April 2016: Call for Proposals announced
- June 30, 2016: Proposals for Workshops and Talk Story Sessions deadline
- July 31, 2016: Notification of acceptance to Workshops and Talk Story Sessions
- August 31, 2016: Proposals for general papers, posters, and electronic posters deadline
- October 1, 2016: Notification of acceptance for general papers, posters, and electronic posters
- October 1, 2016: Early registration opens
- December 15, 2016: Early registration deadline. Regular registration continues until full.
- March 2-5, 2017: 5th ICLDC
5. SCHOLARSHIPS (pending final approval of funding)
To help defray travel expenses to come and present at the conference, scholarships of up to US$1,500 will be awarded to the six best abstracts by (i) students and/or (ii) members of an endangered language community who are actively working to document their heritage language and who are not employed by a college or university. If you are eligible and wish to be considered for a scholarship, please select the appropriate "Yes" button on the proposal submission form. This is applicable to regular conference papers only (not the Workshops or Talk Story Sessions). The scholarships are funded by support from the National Science Foundation Documenting Endangered Languages Program.
AS A CONDITION OF ACCEPTANCE, SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS MUST ACKNOWLEDGE SUPPORT OF THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION IN THEIR PRESENTATIONS AND FUTURE ITERATIONS OF THEIR RESEARCH.
NOTE: Please be advised that these scholarships are considered taxable income under U.S. tax laws. U.S. citizens and permanent residents can expect to receive a 1099 form to figure into their annual tax return for 2017. Non-U.S. citizens/residents may have the applicable taxable amount (typically 30%) deducted from the scholarship check prior to receipt.
6. IMPORTANT UPDATES & NEWS
IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION ABOUT REGISTRATION FOR THE 5TH ICLDC
- Due to space constraints at the Imin International Conference Center, we are limiting registration to 400 participants.
- There will be NO ON-SITE REGISTRATION allowed. All participants at the ICLDC must register before the conference online.
- Registration will begin on our website on OCTOBER 1, 2016 and will continue until full.
NEW ICLDC LISTSERV
We have set up an ICLDC listserv, which will be the official announcements email list for the biennial International Conference on Language Documentation & Conservation (ICLDC). Please subscribe to it if you wish to get announcements and reminders related to the ICLDC Conference. We may occasionally also post announcements of other news and events of interest to our listserv subscribers, but in generally, posts will be kept to a minimum. (If you prefer social media, you can also just follow us on Facebook and Twitter. The same key announcements will be posted there as well.)
Andrea L. Berez-Kroeker, Gary Holton, and Jim Yoshioka
5th ICLDC Executive Committee