Over the past decades in Australia and internationally we have witnessed major cultural, political and economic changes which have impacted on the nature and delivery of Italian Studies: the aging of first and second generation post-war Italian migrants, the retreat from more advanced multicultural policy positions, the refocussing of Australian international relations towards Asia; the arrival of increasing numbers of highly mobile Italian professionals. Recognising the changing profile and affiliations of learners of Italian in our universities and the profound contemporary cultural and technological transformations, it is timely to re-imagine Italian Studies into the 21st century.

A particular theme of the ACIS 7th Biennial Conference is therefore to consider how we can best conceptualise Italian Studies in the dynamic context of globalization. Participants are invited to address the broad theme of re-imagining Italian Studies taking account (inter alia) of the changing profile of Italian-Australian communities, Italian and Australian identities in the Asian century, the Italian diaspora, Italian as a post-colonial language and culture, the Italian cultural sphere of influence in the world, changing patterns of mobility and settlement, new technologies and engaging creatively with new generations of students across the tiers of education. Contemporary societal transformations require innovative responses.

At the same time, the organisers welcome papers from other traditionally strong fields in Italian studies, such as Renaissance literature, history and culture, where the illustration of shifts in theoretical, methodological or substantial concerns may be linked in a variety of ways to the conference theme. Proposals for Panel Sessions and/or Papers (20 minutes) within the broad areas of Italian History, Literature, Cinema, Language Teaching and Acquisition, Linguistics and Socio-Linguistics, Sociology and Anthropology including Italian Migration Studies, Italians in Australia, History of Art, Politics, Economics and Business are welcome.

Proposal forms for panels and papers, along with the details and dates for submission, are available via the Conference page.