Message from the President Dear ABS Members: in This Issue: Dr
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Vol. 31 · Issue 1 · Fall 2010 La Frontera ABS Executive Secretariat ∙ School of Public Administration, University of Victoria Association for Borderlands Studies Newsletter PO Box 1700 STN CSC ∙ Victoria British Columbia V8W 2Y2 Canada ∙ Fax (250) 721‐8849 ∙ E‐mail [email protected] Message from the President Dear ABS members: In this issue: Dr. Thomas Sheridan (University of Arizona) and the 2010 has been a very challenging, complex, tense, and ensuing reception was also a success and it gathered Message from the yet interesting year in the field of border and immigra‐ a substantial number of past ABS presidents and for‐ President tion studies. There are a number of political, economi‐ mer officers. cal, legal and socio‐cultural developments, in particular Teaching Border at my home state of Arizona that, I am sure, will inform Please join me in thanking our diligent Executive Sec‐ Studies our research and teaching agendas in the years to retary Emmanuel Brunet‐Jailly for his dedication, en‐ come. As we prepare for our upcoming conference in ergy and true commitment to make ABS a first class ABS Meeting 2011 Salt Lake City, allow me to reflect briefly on this year’s organization. Many of you know that we have come accomplishments and successes. This process also in‐ a long way in the last 5 years and Emmanuel’s hard Book Award 2010 volves acknowledging the extraordinary work under‐ work has been at the center of this revival. taken by many of I want to thank Tony Of Interest... our members. Payan for his excel‐ First, let us recog‐ lent performance as Member News nize our successful past President. Tony conference in provided great guid‐ Publications Reno, Nevada ance and leadership ‐ Books where we had during his tenure. I ‐ Articles & twenty nine ses‐ also want to thank Book Chapters sions and panels. WSSA, in particular Larry Gould and Gil Conferences The film exhibit 369 Miles: Living Fowler for their help and support to JBS the Border by Luis Carlos Romero make the Reno con‐ Davis drew a full ference memorable. house. Our Book Our Board of Direc‐ Award and Key‐ tors deserves special note Address by thanks for having Published by the ABS Secretariat..All rights reserved. Design and Coding © Copyright 2010 All rights reserved. 1 of 11 Web About Register E-mail Print Close Vol. 31 · Issue 1 · Fall 2010 La Frontera ABS Executive Secretariat ∙ School of Public Administration, University of Victoria Association for Borderlands Studies Newsletter PO Box 1700 STN CSC ∙ Victoria British Columbia V8W 2Y2 Canada ∙ Fax (250) 721‐8849 ∙ E‐mail [email protected] Message from the President continued been attentive to many issues during the process of organiz‐ ganization: Who are we? Who do we want to be? Where do ing the program. Our leadership will greatly benefit from the we want to go? Second, I also want us to think about new input of our new board members Sonia Bass, Jose Villalobos ways to expedite decision making, voting procedures and new and Ethan Ward. Our President elect Heather Nicol is al‐ organizational models through a careful revision of our By‐ ready working hard on next year’s program. We are confi‐ laws. And finally, I ask us to think about new ways to meet dent that it will be another success. and interact as a professional organization. Is the way we As our organization grows demographically and intellectu‐ have been doing this the right way? Can we think of other ally, the fate of our journal will be instrumental in this ex‐ modes and models of meeting and interacting? I invite you to pansion. Thus, I am happy to inform you that thanks to the bring your ideas to our listserve and to our next conference. extraordinary efforts and vision of our Board of Directors I want to close by thanking all of you again for making last and in particular of our Executive Secretary and JBS Editors, year a successful year, and by encouraging you to participate the production and publication process of our excellent in the 2011 conference. I look forward to seeing you in Salt journal will undergo a great transformation. We have re‐ Lake City. cently signed an agreement with the Taylor & Francis Group Warm regards and best wishes for a good and productive under the imprint of Routledge to publish and distribute the 2011, Journal of Borderlands Studies. This agreement will be of tremendous benefit for ABS. it will not only provide a quality Javier Duran product, but it will also boost distribution while maximizing ABS President 2010‐11 resources for our association. This is a much welcome change. Thank you Emmanuel for your leadership in this re‐ gard. Now, what about the future? I believe this is a good time to look at ABS in the 21st Cen‐ tury and to the emerging opportunities and challenges we will face. First, let us reflect about the place of our changing demographics in our collective identity. As a scholarly or‐ Published by the ABS Secretariat..All rights reserved. Design and Coding © Copyright 2010 All rights reserved. 2 of 11 Web About Register E-mail Print Close Vol. 31 · Issue 1 · Fall 2010 La Frontera ABS Executive Secretariat ∙ School of Public Administration, University of Victoria Association for Borderlands Studies Newsletter PO Box 1700 STN CSC ∙ Victoria British Columbia V8W 2Y2 Canada ∙ Fax (250) 721‐8849 ∙ E‐mail [email protected] Symposium on and US Mexican borders, but also uses examples from Euro‐ “Teaching Border Studies” pean border regions. Border‐regions are a world where pol‐ at the ABS 2010 Conference icy makers increasingly deal with the multiple activities of other governments, both intergovernmental and interna‐ Reno, Nevada, April 2010 tional relations, which intervene in the processes of produc‐ Early in 2010 Martin Klatt (University of Southern Denmark) tion of public policies. The course takes place within a Master suggested the organization of a panel on Teaching Border of Political Science program. Most units of this course include Studies at the April 2010 ABS conference in Reno, Nevada. The a short lecture, a short power point presentation, and/or a session was chaired by Oscar Martinez (University of Arizona), short video clip and sometimes a voice recoding. and papers were given by Emmanuel Brunet‐Jailly (University of Victoria, Canada) Martin Klatt and James Loucky (Western Martin Klatt continued with presenting his course “European Washington University). Border Region Development”, taught in the Master of Sci‐ ence European Studies program offered by University of Basis for the workshop and the three papers was the specific Southern Denmark in cooperation with University of Flens‐ challenge to border researchers that our interdisciplinary field burg. The approach of this course is comprehensive with in‐ of research usually does not fit into traditional university cur‐ troduction into different border theories, the history of bor‐ ricula, most of which still follow a mono‐disciplinary approach. ders, European Union border related programs and border The panel addressed how border studies researchers coming studies’ research. Student activity is assured by presentations from a wide field of disciplines within the social sciences, the and oppositions, as well as the development of Interreg pro‐ humanities and natural sciences, integrate their field of re‐ jects (simulation) as well as case studies. This special border search in university curricula at bachelor and graduate school focus is rather unique compared to other typical, EU‐centre‐ levels. Result of the workshop were ideas and inspirations to oriented, programs of European Studies, but the usability strengthen border studies in university teaching, as well as the considering employment qualification is not easy to assess. establishment of a database on the ABS web pages, were it would be possible to share curricula and other teaching‐ James Loucky’s presentation had a comprehensive approach relevant material with colleagues. using border studies and the anthropology of borders to move away from the traditional state‐centred teaching com‐ Emmanuel Brunet‐Jailly presented his course “The Politics and mon to most university programs. Here, Border Studies Policies of Borders and Borderlanders”, introducing students to represents a promising arena for challenging established the various complexities of public policy making in an increas‐ thinking and practice not just with respect to nation‐state ingly borderless world, with a specific focus on the Canada‐US Published by the ABS Secretariat..All rights reserved. Design and Coding © Copyright 2010 All rights reserved. 3 of 11 Web About Register E-mail Print Close Vol. 31 · Issue 1 · Fall 2010 La Frontera ABS Executive Secretariat ∙ School of Public Administration, University of Victoria Association for Borderlands Studies Newsletter PO Box 1700 STN CSC ∙ Victoria British Columbia V8W 2Y2 Canada ∙ Fax (250) 721‐8849 ∙ E‐mail [email protected] Symposium on “Teaching Border Studies” Other topics of discussion included issues of (1) student continued motivation, (2) bringing border realities to become bor‐ der study material, and (3) questions regarding the use‐ borders but also as regards intellectual, disciplinary and institu‐ fulness of a layered approach. Indeed, layers could be tional configurations. Borders tend to be perceived, by people interdisciplinary and multi‐method (toolbox could include as well as states, as essentially fixed and linear. But they are market forces, politics, cultures, linguistics …), varied the‐ better conceptualized as complex amalgams of flows and inte‐ matic and regional foci as well as (collective) policy pro‐ gration, as well as divisions and exclusion. jects, such as water management, immigrants and society were also discussed. Here, the border lens allows for in‐ An anthropological perspective encourages a comparative, ho‐ sight on multiple levels in multiple disciplines. Perspec‐ listic, and prospective approach to borders of many kinds, along tives can range from broader and conceptual, to micro with border crossings in areas like gender, generation, and disci‐ and policy level.