Dear colleagues,

It is a pleasure to announce the forthcoming Special Issue "Endangered
Human Diversity: Languages, Cultures, Epistemologies" to be published in
the journal Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050;
http://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability/). The Special Issue is now
open to receive submissions of full research papers and comprehensive
review articles for peer-review and possible publication.

This special issue focuses on the threat to human diversity in terms of
epistemologies, languages, cultures and traditions. When a language
disappears, mankind loses a part of its rich cultural heritage. When cultures
and traditions are marginalized it impacts on identity development and
construction. Moreover, what are the consequences of the hegemonic role
of Western epistemology in terms of human diversity globally? While the
answer to this question is often contradictory and multiple, there is a sense
that Western hegemonic epistemology does not necessarily play a positive
role in preserving linguistic and cultural heterogeneity. On the contrary, the
hegemonic Western discourse is often seen to be closely related to what
could be called linguistic and cultural imperialism, resulting in the
marginalization of peoples' languages, cultures and epistemologies,
particularly in the global South. It seems necessary to replace the
monological focus on Western knowledge production with what Gregory
Bateson calls double or multiple descriptions. Such an approach allows for
the incorporation of various linguistic, cultural and epistemological
manifestations in the discussions of sustainability, sustainable development
and a sustainable future. There is a need for new conversations and
questions about epistemologies, cultures and languages in the global village.
Questions of what kind of knowledges and cultures exist, for instance in
learning institutions, are seldom asked and problematized, even though
there is common knowledge that the traditional knowledges and cultures of
millions of students are dislocated and rubbished. Questions related to the
kind of knowledges, traditions and cultures for a sustainable future seldom
transcend the Western knowledge universe. To what extent does
globalization hinder epistemological, cultural and linguistic diversity? In this
issue of Sustainability we welcome manuscripts which both address issues
of human diversity and sustainability from a global perspective, and more
localized or micro studies. Manuscripts discussing the impact of
globalization on epistemological, cultural and linguistic diversity are
particularly welcome.


Special Issue: Endangered Human Diversity: Languages, Cultures,
Epistemologies
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/si/sustainability/endangered_human_diversity/
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2012

Guest Editor

Prof. Dr. Anders Breidlid
Oslo University College, Faculty of Education and International Studies
P.O. Box 4
St. Olavs Plass
N-0130 Oslo
Norway
Website: http://home.hio.no/~andersb/indexenglish.html
E-Mail: Anders.Breidlid@lui.hio.no

You may send your manuscript now or up until the deadline.

Submitted papers should not have been published previously, nor be under
consideration for publication elsewhere. We also encourage authors to send
us their tentative title and short abstract by e-mail for approval to the
Editorial Office at sustainability@mdpi.com.

This Special Issue will be fully open access. Article Processing Charges are
500 CHF for well prepared manuscripts before 1 July 2012. For details
see: http://www.mdpi.com/about/apc/.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors before submitting a manuscript:

http://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability/instructions/.

Manuscripts should be submitted through the online manuscript submission
and editorial system at

http://www.mdpi.com/user/manuscripts/upload/.

Sustainability, an international and cross-disciplinary, scholarly, open access
journal of environmental, cultural, economic and social sustainability of
human beings, which provides an advanced forum for studies related to
sustainability and sustainable development, is published by MDPI online
monthly. In case of questions, please contact the Editorial Office at:
sustainability@mdpi.com

We are looking forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,
MDPI AG

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E-Mail: sustainability@mdpi.com
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