People respond in accordance to how you relate to them. If you approach them on the basis of violence, that's how they'll react. But if you say, 'We want peace, we want stability,' we can then do a lot of things that will contribute to the progress of our society.
Nelson Mandela******

Organization: Benedictine University
Event: Interdisciplinary Conference “Achieving Stability during Unstable Times”
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Fernando Romero, Professor and Psychology Department Lead, Chandler-Gilbert Community Colleges, Maricopa Community Colleges
Keynote Address Title: “Socio-Emotional Intelligence as Integration: Applied Principles of Positive Psychology to Promote Individual, Social, and Institutional Stability”
Event date: May 23-25, 2023
Event location: Benedictine University Mesa, Gillett Hall, 225 E. Main Street, Mesa Arizona, 85201, U.S.A.
Conference abstracts submission deadline: March 15, 2023.

This interdisciplinary conference invites scholars to explore the topic of achieving stability during unstable times. A significant aspect of society, stability impacts the reliability and predictability of institutions and of human interaction, and therefore the degree of individual and social well-being. Since the global community has experienced challenges to stability, an examination of stability from various perspectives feels necessary. We hope to bring together discourses drawing from various narratives, be they political, economic, environmental, cultural, historical, medical, philosophical, or literary. The goal of this conference is to foster dialog on the mechanisms of stability; its relation to balance and causation; its effect on policies, social norms, and the environment; the social processes serving to provide legitimate explanations for stabilizing or destabilizing policies; forms of instability; achieving stability during unstable times; achieving professional stability when rapid technological advances and automatization result in the replacement of workers around the globe; maintaining a stable view of subjectivity, citizenship, and rights of individuals with the advance of sentient androids such as Sophia, who received Saudi Arabian citizenship in 2017 and has been an Innovation Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program; parenting challenges during unstable times; and ways to promote personal and social stability. We encourage particularly scholars to reflect on ways in which various institutions of higher education have sought to achieve stability throughout and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as to set directions for the future with regard to maintaining stability through challenging times. With great pleasure, we invite scholars from across disciplines to join stimulating conversations on the importance of stability, ways in which to achieve or work toward stability, the effects of instability, the ethics of achieving/striving for stability in stable or unstable times, and more.
Benedictine University Mesa welcomes proposals for presentations on topics that include but are not limited to:
- theoretical approaches to stability
- stability and/in religion; practical approaches to the Benedictine Hallmark of Stability
- in/stability in academia
- in/stability and creativity: art, fashion, performance
- stability and lack of/progress
- challenges of stability
- stability reflected in literature: genres, literary movements, fictional in/stability
- linguistic in/stability
- social instability, displacement, migration, and emplacement
- in/stability and policies
-in/stability in the economy and industry
- in/stability and social norms
-in/stability in physical and mental health
-in/stability in nutrition and food security
- in/stability and A.I.
All presentations are to be delivered in English.
The conference will take place in Mesa, Arizona, the United States of America on May 23-25.
Proposals for individual papers should include the following:
- a title and an abstract of 150-300 words for a 20-minute presentation;
- on a separate page, the author’s name, institutional affiliation, and email address;
- A-V equipment and any form of special accommodation.
Please note: only one proposal per conference participant may be submitted.
Those working in a visual or performance medium should submit:
- A C.V.
- An artist’s statement
- 20 images of the artist’s work (can include stills or installation shots)
- Abstract outlining the specific focus of the exhibition
- A-V equipment and any form of special accommodation.
Panel proposals, as well as undergraduate student proposals, should include the above information for all proposed individual papers.
The accepted submissions will be clustered around their common topics and areas of interest. As is typical of multidisciplinary conferences, the final program, released about three weeks before the conference, will mirror the research agendas of the delegates rather than a pre-conceived list of arbitrary topics.
We invite submissions for 20-minute presentations, circa 300 words (excluding references) no later than March 15, 2023. Your name and affiliation should be included in the body of your email.
Note to Graduate Students
Graduate students are encouraged to submit their full papers for the Benedictine University Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award. The papers will be read blindly by a group of scholars who will rank them. The winner of the award will receive a diploma and a small prize.
Graduate students who would like to be considered for the Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award are asked to identify themselves as such in their proposal so we can email them the information about the Benedictine University Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award deadline.
Deadline for submission of proposals:
Early bird registration (if registration is completed before April 15, 2023) fees:
- Professors and Independent Scholars: $120
- Graduate Students: $ 60
- Undergraduate Students $: 10
Registration fees after April 15, 2023:
Presenters:
- Professors and Independent Scholars: $ 140
- Graduate Students $: 75
- Undergraduate Students: $ 20

Revised and expanded versions of selected papers will be published in a blindly peer-reviewed volume.
Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions.
Send your proposal to Maria Granic, mgranic@ben.edu.