Call for Proposals: CCN Conference

I received this invitation, and must admit I don't know the organization. They don't appear to have any members in the U.S., which may be one reason I'm not familiar with them. If anyone has more information, please let me know. I thought you might be interested in knowing more about this, however.

The Consumer Citizenship Network takes this opportunity to invite you to contribute to the sixth Consumer Citizenship Network international conference, entitled: “Making a Difference--Putting consumer citizenship into action” to be held 23-24 March 2009 at the Technical University of Berlin in Germany.

The growing imbalances of social, economic and ecological systems are increasingly visible as prices for food and energy rise around the globe, the availability of many resources declines and the devastating effects of climate change touch the lives of rich and poor alike. The sixth international conference of the Consumer Citizenship Network will investigate the proactive role of the consumer in the transition to more sustainable human development around the world.Educators, researchers and professionals are invited to submit papers related to the themes mentioned below.

Submission date for proposals (abstracts) of 250 words for a presentation, a paper, a poster, a symposium or an opinion article for the upcoming CCN conference is 1st December 2008 to the CCN Core Unit ccn@hihm.no

Presentations should address one or more of the following themes:

Track 1: Understanding Consumer Citizenship Behaviour- What perspectives can we employ to investigate the global consumer’s decision making process?- Which factors hinder a broader diffusion of consumer citizenship behaviour?- What incentives and enabling systems can help consumers to consume socially responsible?- Which methods can help to evaluate and illustrate the social and ecological consequences of consumer behaviour?

Track 2: Education for Consumer Citizenship a)Education at schools and Universities b)General Consumer Education- Which approaches to consumer citizenship education are most effective?- What challenges and opportunities exist when teaching about long term global goals for sustainable consumption?- How can education lead to choosing sustainable lifestyles?- How can education stimulate creativity for inventing sustainable solutions?- What kind of research is necessary for the development of consumer citizenship education and education for sustainable consumption?- What is the relationship between consumer citizenship education and education for sustainable consumption?

Track 3: Co-operating for Consumer Citizenship- How can co-operation for consumer citizenship be improvedo between producers and consumers,o between authorities and citizens,o between schools and communities,o between researchers and activists,- What are exemplary community-based initiatives for responsible consumption (urban or rural)?

Especially welcomed are contributions, which - raise critical issues like economic growth or consumer sufficiency, - go beyond the cognitively oriented mainstream of consumer citizenship education and research, - focus not only on Europe and OECD-countries but also on developing countries and ‘one world’ issues, - reflect the state of the art of consumer behaviour (e.g. in marketing or consumer psychology).

Practical information concerning the conference can be found in the conference invitation attached or on the CCN website: www.hihm.no/concit .

If you need additional information, kindly contact us at the CCN Core Unit. ccn@hihm.noWe apologize for cross sendings.

Yours sincerely,
Associate Professor Victoria W. Thoresen
The Consumer Citizenship Network, Project Manager
Hedmark University College
Postboks 4010 Bedriftssenteret
2306 Hamar, Norway

The Consumer Citizenship Network (CCN) (www.hihm.no/concit ) is an interdisciplinary network of educators, researchers and civil society organizations, (including UNESCO, UNEP and Consumers International) who recognize the pressing need for constructive action by individuals in order to achieve sustainable consumption and global solidarity. The Consumer Citizenship Network has, since 2003, developed interdisciplinary approaches to central issues dealing with the balance between material and non-material well-being and with how one can translate ethical values into everyday practice through conscientious participation in the market. CCN also brings together expertise in the fields of citizenship-, environmental- and consumer education to further develop research and good practice for teaching and accessing consumer citizenship education. The Network consists of 133 institutions in 37 countries.The project targets lecturers, researchers and teacher trainers in higher education; students, professionals working with children and young people, public authorities, and associations dealing with citizenship training, sustainable development and consumer issues... By focusing on social responsibility, the CCN addresses the growing international concern for implementation of norms and behaviour which support sustainable development and cooperation.