Call for Academic Papers

TORONTO 2012 CALL FOR PAPERS
Release February 6th, 2012

Gaia Gathering: Canadian National Pagan Conference
Theme: Building the Mosaic

CALL FOR PAPERS

Gaia Gathering was founded in 2004 and had its first conference in 2005. Each year the conference is hosted over the Victoria Day long weekend in a different Canadian city through a bidding process similar to the Olympics. Past host cities include Edmonton, Halifax, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal. Legally, we are incorporated federally as a non-profit organization and operate with a national Board of Directors as well as a local host committee.

The conference is organized collaboratively by Canadian Pagans and includes four days of discussion and workshops about Canadian Paganisms. After seven years of traveling across the country, the conference this year will be held in Toronto, Ontario at the University of Toronto New College. The theme for 2012 will be "Building the Mosaic". Individuals make up the whole of a community. By bringing together pieces of respective Pagan communities and local groups during the conference, a representation of the larger Canadian Pagan Mosaic emerges.

In keeping with the theme "Mosaic", we have chosen to present a "Mosaic of Speakers” representing the rich diversity of Canadian Paganism:

• Andy Biggers (Simcoe County, ON) has been deeply involved in the North American pagan and heathen community for over 25 years.
• Michel & Pamela Daw (Gatineau, QC) are modern Stoics, reviving the ancient philosophical and spiritual path.
• Tamara James (Toronto, ON) is a founding member of the Wiccan Church of Canada, which was established in 1979, and was one of the first Pagan clergy to serve in a Canadian prison system.
• Sydney Lancaster (Edmonton, AB) is a visual artist, writer, musician, Artist in Residence at Harcourt House, and an OBOD ovate.
• Brian Walsh (Toronto, ON) is a permanent part-time Spiritual Care Provider at a major Toronto hospital and a part-time Clinical Fellow in Spiritual Care at another major Toronto hospital.
• Witchdoctor Utu (St. Catharines, ON) is the founder of the Niagara Voodoo Shrine, the world-renowned Dragon Ritual Drummers and is a member of the New Orleans Voodoo Spiritual Temple.

The complete bios for our invited guests can be found here on our website.

In addition to the speakers we will also feature workshops, panel discussions, academic presentations and evening entertainment throughout the weekend.

The conference will be held May 18 - 21, 2012 in Toronto, ON.

SUBMISSION CRITERIA
We invite papers and proposals for our academic stream from all faculties within the humanities who touch into the realm of alternate spirituality, Paganism, New Religious Movements and related subjects. Also, if you are a retired, solitary, armchair, or aspiring academic not affiliated with an institution then you may also submit by the same criteria and to the same locations. We hope to see everyone rise to the challenge and welcome them to this opportunity to present here in Montreal with like-minded individuals.

Submissions may be sent via mail or e-mail and are to be no more than one page. They must include a publication-ready, titled abstract of 150-200 words. The name, address, telephone numbers, e-mail address, college or university affiliation and level of study of the presenter(s) must also be included. Any special requests or needs for audio-visual equipment must also be indicated. We will be accepting submissions for peer and academic review between February 2nd and March 20th (Ostara 2012). Abstracts and proposals (and thus presentations) may be in English or in French. All received submissions will be acknowledged, with notification of acceptance, by early April 2012.

Email to: bmyers@cegep-heritage.qc.ca

Or mail to:
Dr. Brendan Myers
C/O Cegep Heritage College
325 boul. Cite-des-Jeunes,
Gatineau Quebec
J8Y 6T3

Call for Panels and Workshops

Panels and Roundtable Discussions

The focus of Gaia Gathering is knowledge-sharing through panel and roundtable discussions. These are determined collectively through discussions on our Yahoogroup, blog and Facebook page, as well as through discussion in the host city community. We invite you to join the discussion. To give you an idea of what we’ve done in previous conferences, some examples of past discussions can be found here, here and here.

Workshops

In the last couple of years people have been asking for workshops to be included in the program in addition to panels and roundtables. We listened and we have included programming space for several workshops for Toronto in 2012.

Workshop topics should pertain to Paganism. The topic can be theoretical, practical, or a combination of both. We especially welcome topics pertaining to specialised knowledge or skills that may not be widely available in various Canadian Pagan Communities. Gaia Gathering offers a unique opportunity for people to hold these skills and knowledge to share them with peers from across the country, who can then bring them home to their communities.

Workshops proposals must be submitted by March 20th, 2012 to programming@gaiagathering.ca and should include the following information:

1. Name of presenter(s)
2. Geographic location of presenter(s)
3. Contact information
4. Title of presentation
5. A 75-150 word summary of the workshop
6. Bios for the presenter(s)
7. Details of your experience presenting this workshop in the past and/or specifics about what makes you qualified to present the workshop.
8. A brief explanation of why you want to present the workshop and who you expect to benefit from it.
9. Any scheduling restrictions (ie, if you’re only arriving Saturday morning)

Please note that we have limited programming slots available for workshop. Workshops will be selected by a committee based on the uniqueness of the presentation and the broadness of its appeal.

Workshop proposals should be submitted by e-mail to programming@gaiagathering.ca.

Please feel free to direct questions and comments to programming@gaiagathering.ca.

GG Fundraising in Montreal Feb 4th

February is the national fun(d)-raising month for Gaia Gathering. Montreal kicks of the month of fun activities raising awareness (and funds) for Gaia Gathering on Saturday February 4th with an evening of music, story, poetry, and song.

Why not add your event to the line-up? A fund-raiser is a great way to raise funds to help get people from your community (or other communities) to the conference, or to donate funds to the conference in general. It's your fundraiser, you decide how the money is used.

Beat the Winter Blues.
February 4th, 2012
An evening of music, story, poetry, and song to raise funds for the Canadian National Pagan Conference, Gaia Gathering taking place in Toronto in May 2012.

Performers include:
Taelstrum (Hobbes & Shayne)
Kym Dominique Ferguson (Spoken Word poet)
Loran Magie Mystique (stage magic)
Laura Jane Beach (Bluegrass / Folk / Indie)
Alex del Busso and his Goddesses
Ryan Sauvé (dancer)
and more to come!

Cost: $10

Atwater Library Auditorium
1200 Atwater Ave
Montreal, QC

Doors open at 6:30 pm.
Entertainment starts at 7pm.

Funds raised will be going to travel subsidies.

Facebook event page

Getting to Gaia Gathering 2012 in Toronto

Gaia Gathering 2012 in Toronto is fast approaching. There is less than four months left until the conference, which takes place May 18th to 21st at New College, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON.

Information about getting to the conference via plane, train, bus or automobile is now up on our website. Links to accommodation is also on the same page.

For those of you who were thinking of taking the train to Toronto for Gaia Gathering, Via Rail is having a 50% off seat sale until January 26th 2012! Prices probably won't get much better than this unless you manage to book last-minute with one of their express deals.

To get the most out of the conference, plan to arrive before noon on Friday to take advantage of the Friday afternoon workshops. The conference wraps up on Monday afternoon. Our list pf featured speakers and what to expect at the conference is available here. More will eb revealed as it becomes available.

You can register online for the conference here. Or download the pdf of the registration form and mail it to us with payment.

Looking forward to seeing you all in Toronto in May!

Invited Guests for GG2012!

We finally have a line-up of confirmed invited guests for Gaia Gathering 2012 in Toronto. In keeping with the the theme "Mosaic", we have a "Mosaic of Speakers". Here they are in alphabetical order:

Andy Biggers
Andy has been deeply involved in the North American pagan and heathen community for over twenty five years. He is a past member of the board of directors of both Wic-Can Fest and Harvestfest – as well as serving on the board of directors of the American Vinland Association. He is an Elder in the Ásatrú faith and a past High Redesman of the Ring of Troth. Andy is also a key organizer and board member of SiMuCoR (Simcoe Muskoka Coalition of Old Religions), and holds several advanced academic degrees including Bachelor and Master’s degrees in History.

Michel and Pamela Daw
Michel & Pamela are modern Stoics, reviving the ancient philosophical and spiritual path. Michel is a founding member of the College of Stoic Philosophers, an online study program for Stoic Practice. Pamela runs Stoici Civitas, a nacent umbrella organization for Stoic Spirituality. They have been joinlty hosting monthly Stoic Workshops in the National Capital Region, the monthly Ottawa Region Pagan Discussion Night, and have spoken at festivals and conferences on Stoic Spirituality. Together, they also manage TheStoicLife.org, a Stoic website and resource center, as well as Words of the Ancient Wise, a daily Stoic blog.

Tamara James
Bio to come

Sydney Lancaster
Sydney Lancaster is an Edmonton-based visual artist, writer, and musician. She creates mixed media assemblages, drawings, photographs, sculpture, and installations that examine the construction and interpretation of lived experience -- in particular, how we ‘map’ our sense of place and belonging (or lack thereof), in psychological and spiritual terms. Lancaster has exhibited in solo and group shows in Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and St. Albert, and curated CORTEX: a multidisciplinary event in 2006 and 2007 for the Edmonton Poetry Festival. Recent exhibitions and projects include: a collaborative multi-media exhibition and chapbook project entitled Archives of Absence (with poet Catherine Owen); Make: Believe - a site-specific sculptural installation; EGG - a sculpture-based ritual/performance; and new work for the group show Lost and Found, exhibited December 2011 - January 2012 at the Art Gallery of St. Albert. She is the Artist in Residence at Harcourt House artist-run centre in Edmonton for 2012. She is an OBOD Ovate, member of the Druid Network, was involved in organizing Gaia Gathering in
Edmonton and Winnipeg, and has assisted in various capacities with the Spirit of the West Druid Gathering.
www.sydneylancaster.ca
www.rustymetalthings.blogspot.com

Brian Walsh
Brian Walsh is a permanent part-time Spiritual Care Provider at a major Toronto hospital and a part-time Clinical Fellow in Spiritual Care at another major Toronto hospital. In the Canadian Association of Spiritual Care he is one of six members who identifies as part of a Pagan or Earth-based tradition. Additionally, Brian serves as Pagan (Celtic and Reconstructionist) chaplain at the University of Toronto, leads a private circle, and provides open rituals and presentations in the local community.

Brian is a priest in the Céilí Sídhe tradition of Celtic Paganism and holds a B.A. in Celtic Studies and Religious Studies from the University of Toronto, as well as an M.Phil. from the University of Wales. Also, as a licensed Wedding Officiate, Brian is able to perform legal weddings in the province of Ontario. Brian's passions include Celtic Studies, World Religions, Mythologies, Story-telling, Frame Drums, and Dogs. For more information go to www.newtara.org

Witchdoctor Utu
Witchdoctor Utu is the founder of the Niagara Voodoo Shrine, the world renowned pagan drum troupe the Dragon Ritual Drummers and is a member of the New Orleans Voodoo Spiritual Temple. He has been traveling the continent for over a decade sharing the traditions and mysteries of North American voodoo with lectures, workshops and rituals at some of the continents top tier spiritual festivals. Utu is a regular contributor to the international publication "Hoodoo and Conjure Quarterly Magazine".
niagaravoodooshrine@hotmail.com
www.niagaravoodooshrine.com

Dragon Ritual Drummers and Gaia Gathering 2011

Remember when the Dragon Ritual Drummers came to play during Gaia Gathering in Montreal this past May? Well, they had such a good time that they posted a video blog about their trip on YouTube.

I'm no mind-reader, but I get the strong feeling that they had a great time. This won't be the last time we see them in our fair city. In the meantime, enjoy!

Programming Change Saturday

Regretfully, our key note speaker on Saturday, Arin Murphy-Hiscock, has had to withdraw from the conference due to recent complications in her pregnancy that has her on bed rest. I think none of us are more disappointed than she is about this turn of events. We offer our support to Arin and her family, and wish her a safe, strong and healthy remainder of her pregnancy and delivery.

Malheureusement, Arin Murphy-Hiscock, notre conférencière d’honneur de samedi, a dû se retirer de la conférence en raison de complications récentes liées à sa grossesse, qui l’obligent à demeurer alitée. Personne n’est plus déçu qu’elle-même de cette tournure des événements. Nous offrons notre appui à Arin et sa famille, et nous espérons qu’elle demeurera forte et en santé durant le reste de sa grossesse et que son accouchement se déroulera bien.

Instead of a keynote talk, this topic will be addressed as a moderated panel discussion.

UPDATE: We've just received and intro and selection of discussion points from Arin for the panel tomorrow morning. They are all very engaging. This looks like it's going to be a really interesting discussion!