7th ESTIDIA Conference feedback 1

Read the Participants’ feedback

Toader Adrian <toader.adrian@unitbv.ro>, Lecturer, University of Transilvania from Brașov, Romania, Faculty of Letters, Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics

This was my first time taking part in the ESTIDIA conference. What initially drew me to attend this event was the interesting topic, gravitating around the formation and use of dialogue in different social contexts. From the very beginning, I was pleasantly surprised by the organisers’ efforts which ensured that the conference ran smoothly, keeping the participants well-informed and always providing an open channel of communication throughout the event. In my opinion, what makes ESTIDIA an invaluable experience, for all those interested in dialogue in action, is the interdisciplinary and cross-cultural perspectives put forward by participants from different countries, with various specialties and research interests. I believe that exploring dialogue from multiple angles allows participants to better understand the complexity of the topic and, in my case, to find new analytical and theoretical directions for their own work. It is also important to note that the ESTIDIA members encapsulate a tight-knit community as one of their main foci is to bring together researchers with similar interests by establishing cohesive research groups, in the interest of bringing forward relevant, well-documented contributions in their respective fields of research. Another positive aspect that needs to be mentioned is the quality of the presentations, based on rich corpora, interesting hypotheses, and well-documented work.  ESTIDIA members are friendly and communicative, making every new participant feel comfortable, providing useful insight and always being willing to exchange ideas. I consider this to be one of the most important aspects of an international conference, and I was glad that my expectations were exceeded. I will definitely take place in future ESTIDIA events! 

IN OTHER WORDS

IN OTHER WORDS: A Contextualised Dictionary to Problematise Otherness

This project initiated by Dr. Paola Giorgis consists in the development of an online dictionary of contextualized keywords, which have been shaping the narratives of different forms of Otherness. The project involves the juxtaposition of creative proposals to reverse such perspectives.  

IOW is a critical, creative, collective, and interdisciplinary project that is at the same time a product and a process. In particular, the purpose of this online dictionary is to develop and share critical and intercultural awareness in order to challenge the (re)production and dissemination of the hegemonic discourses that dehumanize, stigmatize, and stereotype the representation of ‘the self’ in relation to ‘the other’. 

The dictionary bridges theoretical reflections and practical actions in a dialogue between different disciplines (e.g. critical linguistics, critical social studies, visual arts, cross-cultural and critical pedagogies), and it is meant to be used as a practical instrument in different social and educational contexts. It is structured as an online publication to grant free access to students, teachers, scholars, educators, activists and lay audience who wishes to simply consult the dictionary or to engage in discussions in order to problematize such representations, interpretations of reality, and even to imagine creative proposals to reverse such narratives.  

If you are interested in the IOW Project, please contact Dr. Paola Giorgis at  info@iowdictionary.org