Island Cultures
Island Economies
Island Studies
© Maria Teresa Agozzino
2nd Island Dynamics Conference
Taking Malta out of the Box
Island Cultures, Economies, and Identities
11—15 May 2011, Valletta, Malta
Malta may be small, but with a history featuring the Greeks, Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Knights of St John, and British, its heritage is monumental.
Located at the heart of the Mediterranean, the Maltese archipelago is a bustling microstate. The islands’ official languages are English and Maltese, a descendent of Medieval Arabic. Malta’s package tourism industry thrives on the islands’ sunny, beautiful scenery, which forms the backdrop to countless heritage attractions, including three UNESCO World Heritage Sites. From megalithic temples to Baroque bastions, from paleochristian catacombs to Medieval cityscapes, Malta is a culture lover’s paradise.
At the 2nd Island Dynamics Conference, academics, politicians, civil servants, and businesspeople will cross sectors and disciplines to explore islands, past and present, in Northern Europe, the Mediterranean, and worldwide. The theme of this island studies event addresses how the identities of maritime communities and geographical and cultural islands develop alongside their cultures and economies. Henry Glassie, Godfrey Baldacchino, and David Lowenthal are keynote speakers.
The conference will be held at Hotel Phoenicia, just outside the city of Valletta. If you would like to make a presentation at the 2nd Island Dynamics Conference, see the call for papers. Papers on all island, coastal, and maritime topics are welcome, particularly on comparative island studies. The deadline for abstracts is 15 October 2010. Accepted presenters will be encouraged to submit written versions of their papers for inclusion in the conference proceedings.
The Elphinstone Institute, University of Aberdeen
Center for Cyprus Studies, Eastern Mediterranean University
Small States & Islands Research Center, Isle of Man International Business School
