Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to participate in the 3nd International conference “The Magic of Innovation: New Dimensions in Linguistics and Foreign Language Teaching” to be held in Moscow on 24-25 March 2017. The conference is organized by the English Language Department of the School of International Relations of the Moscow State Institute of Foreign Relations (MGIMO University).

Every other year leading Russian and overseas professionals share their ideas and best practices at our conference sessions and seminars, which cover the most topical aspects of modern linguistics, teaching languages, translation and interpretation. Workshops, interactive seminars and round table discussions, including in the “open space” format, attract and bring together a wide audience of teachers, professors, researchers, Master programme and PhD students.

Every year the geographical diversity and the number of participants increase: the year 2015 saw the participation of over 350 scholars from 130 universities and 22 countries.

In 2017 discussions will cover topical issues related to:
• modern approaches in linguistics and their implementation in teaching foreign languages;
• theory and practice of teaching languages at universities (undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate levels);
• translation: practitioners’ and teachers’ perspective
• cross-cultural research: new trends and implications for training specialists whose jobs require foreign language skills.

The conference will be organized into the following strands:
1. Modern Text and Discourse Theories
2. Political Discourse Analysis
3. Cognitive and Communication-based Aspects of Linguistics
4. Linguistic and Methodological Aspects of Cross-cultural Communication
5. Foreign Language Teaching: New Approaches in a University Classroom
6. Foreign Languages for Specific and Academic Purposes
7. E-learning and Distance Learning in Foreign Language Teaching
8 a. Translation and Translation Studies in Training Specialists at Universities
8 b. Translation Teaching Methods

The conference will feature round table discussions, interactive seminars and workshops by Russian and overseas experts, as well as plenary sessions.

Time limit: each presentation at concurrent sessions is up to 15 minutes. Workshops/seminars are allotted 50 minutes each.

The working languages of the conference are Russian and English (simultaneous interpretation will be provided upon request).

Participants’ papers of up to seven pages (300 words per page) will be published in the proceedings of the Conference (publication fees apply). Only attendees’ papers will be accepted for publication provided they are related to the theme of the conference and conform to the publication guidelines. The publication fee will be announced in due course.

Conference speakers are invited to submit abstracts of their presentations either in Russian or English by January 1, 2017 through the conference site. Notification of acceptance will be forwarded by January 15, 2017.

If you are interested in holding a workshop/master class or an interactive seminar related to the theme of the conference, please forward your proposal to inno-conf@inno.mgimo.ru by January 1, 2017.

Participants from non-CIS universities are eligible for a printed Certificate of Attendance.

The conference fee for participants from non-CIS universities is 100 euros and covers a participant package, coffee breaks, the reception, and interpretation services. The conference fee does not include publication fees. Bank account details will be forwarded once your proposal has been approved.

Further information including cancellation policies and updates on the program, participants’ accommodation etc. will be available in due course at www.inno-conf.mgimo.ru.

Please note that participants’ accommodation, travel and other conference-related expenses will be borne by participants.

International participants who require a visa to enter the Russian Federation are kindly reminded that they are to apply for a visa 45 days prior to the day of entry into the country. If you need an invitation as part of the visa application process, please submit a request via email inno-conf@inno.mgimo.ru. Letters of invitation can only be issued to confirmed registrants. When submitting your request, please provide the following information:
1. full name
2. nationality / citizenship
3. date of birth
4. place of birth (city, country)
5. passport No, valid from ..... to … (it is important that your passport is valid at least 6 months after the period of your stay)
6. home address
7. phone, e-mail
8. what visa application center / consulate you will go to (city, country)
9. good quality scans of your passport pages containing the above-mentioned information (where applicable).

Please be advised that obtaining a Letter of Invitation will not guarantee that your visa application will be approved.

For further questions, please contact inno-conf@inno.mgimo.ru.