2023 Dress and Body Association Conference

CALL FOR PAPERS

The Dress and Body Association invites submissions for the organization’s fourth annual conference, which will be held on November 4-5, 2023. Consistent with our long-term goals for inclusivity and sustainability, all activities will be 100% online, including keynote speaker(s), research presentations, and opportunities for virtual networking.

Visit the DBA website—www.dress-body-association.org—to learn more about this organization and consider becoming a member.

Climate Change: Implications for Dress and the Body

For English speakers, there are two major definitions of “climate” as a noun:

The characteristic weather conditions of a country or region

The attitudes or conditions prevailing among a body of people

Curiously, we use the term “climate change” primarily (if not exclusively) in connection with deteriorating environmental conditions. Yet human bodies and dress are also... and have always been... impacted by changing “attitudes or conditions.” What changes happening today are having the greatest or most pertinent impacts? How are these changes affecting different “bodies of people” (societies, cultures, organizations, communities, etc.)?

Proposals for a paper or a virtual roundtable discussion on any topic related to dress and the body will be considered, but those related to this year’s theme are most likely to be accepted. Changing “attitudes and conditions” may include but are not limited to:

Technological innovations (e.g. AI-generated dress/bodies, biodegradable/fungal dress, biomimicry)
Politics and political activism (e.g. bodies of intersectional solidarity)
Circumstances of violence, conflict, and migration
The physical environment and attitudes about it (e.g. consequences and adaptations to anthropogenic climate change)
Cultural standards and ideals of beauty (e.g. “sexy” bodies or “healthy” bodies)
Implementation (or revision) of laws and dress codes (e.g. reproductive rights, gender diversity, labor rights)
Changes in education that impact future artists, designers, creators, and inventors
Changes in industries (fashion, theater, advertising, healthcare, media, museums, etc.)
Both beginning and advanced scholars are welcome. Abstracts should be 200-300 words. Presenters do not need to submit a paper before the conference. Depending on the number of submissions and the time zones of presenters, each person should have approximately 20 minutes to speak with discussion at the end of each panel.

Although we welcome scholars, educators, and activists from any country, the language of the conference will be English. We will consider a panel in an alternative language if there is sufficient interest from a group of scholars. Abstracts must be written in English and should be drawn from original research; we ask that presenters not simply recycle papers given at other conferences. Pre-recorded presentations are allowed, but presenters must join the Zoom meeting to hear the other speakers on the panel and participate in the discussion in real time.

For best consideration, please submit your abstract by July 1, 2023. All submissions will be read by at least two reviewers in a single-blind review process. Authors can expect letters of acceptance by mid-August.

Registration through the DBA website will be required for access to the online platform. Donations are welcome, but not required to participate. The recommended donation is 20 USD for students and early-career scholars, 50 USD for mid-career and senior scholars.

To submit an abstract: dress-body-association.org/abstracts
To register for the conference: dress-body-association.org/conference-registration

The Dress and Body Association is registered as a non-profit organization (501(c)(3)) in the state of Indiana (United States). Donations are tax-deductible.

Dress & Body Association | dress.body.assoc@gmail.com