Frank Church Symposium 2023

Europe at a Crossroads: Progression or Regression?

March 9-10, 2023

(To be hosted HYBRID - Virtual and In-person)

On March 9-10, 2023, the Idaho State University International Affairs Council (IAC) will be hosting the 52nd Annual Frank Church Symposium on International Affairs. Named in honor of the late Senator Frank Church, the symposium has grown over the years, offering the university and the community opportunities to discuss global issues and expand their perspectives. We invite scholars, experts, government agencies, political leaders, and practitioners with multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives to address topics related to the theme: Europe at a Crossroads: Progression or Regression? We are particularly interested in participants who would present multifaceted approaches to European leadership changes, the human toll of the Russia-Ukraine war, energy transitions in the coming years, and effects on the global market.


Panel Format: The panels will address pre-determined questions posed by a moderator. These questions will be sent to the participants by February 9, 2023.


The IAC invites academics and other interest groups to submit a short bio, paper titles, and abstracts of about 150 words describing a discussion topic and their specific area of research specialization. The IAC will use these abstracts to tailor questions to our speakers’ specialties. Multiple abstracts are encouraged for participation on different panels.


Panel 1: Politics and Leadership in Europe

Topics include recent elections, political movements, ideologies, and the European Union.


Panel 2: The Human Toll: War, Migration, and the Future of Europe

Topics include refugee movements, global supply chains, weapons usage, and human rights.


Panel 3: Energy Dependencies & Transitions

Topics include oil & gas supplies, renewable energy futures, and European-Russian energy dependency, US energy reserves politics.


Panel 4: Europe and the Global Market

Topics include effects of Brexit, global supply chain issues, food security, and inflation.


Panel 5: Ethics and Weapons of Warfare in Europe

Topics include war crimes, the legitimacy of war, cyberwarfare, banned weapons usage and directed energy weapons, and nuclear proliferation.



Selection of Participants:

This call for abstracts will close on October 16, 2022. The International Affairs

Council will review all proposals and materials received, and participants will be officially notified by email by the IAC President in mid-November 2022 about the status of their abstracts.


Contact Information:

Please send all application materials and questions by email to the International Affairs Council at iac@isu.edu. The Chair of the Department of Global Studies and Languages, Dr. Raphael Njoku, advises the International Affairs Council at Idaho State University. For any further information or questions, he can be reached by email at njokraph@isu.edu.



General Information:

Panel Format:

Panels typically have five to six pre-written questions. Depending on the number of panel participants, each question will have a time budget of about 10-15 minutes. There will then be time for questions from the audience (about 10 minutes). Panels will occur in the order they appear in the schedule, which will be finalized by December 2022. Delegates are expected to attend the entire panel in which their presentation is given and are encouraged to attend all other discussions and lectures.


Lectures and Keynote Presentation:

In addition to panels, the Frank Church Symposium also hosts two lectures and one keynote presentation. The International Affairs Council will invite and host one lecture each on Thursday and Friday. The keynote address will take place on Thursday evening.


Honorariums:

Each participant will receive an honorarium of about $250- $500 based on available funding and will be made known to each delegate individually as the program is finalized in mid-December. The honorariums for the lectures and keynote will be communicated to the selected individuals.


Virtual, Travel and Hotel Accommodations:

We are accepting virtual and in-person delegates.


In addition to the honorarium, the International Affairs Council will provide some travel awards to qualifying participants - thanks to donations from the Associated Students of Idaho State University, collaborating departments, individuals, and businesses. We will provide travel awards to selected participants within the United States. Due to limited funding, we may not have enough funds to cover airfares for all participants, especially those from outside the country. We strongly encourage potential delegates to look for funding from within their institutions and other sponsors.