Call for papers

Awareness, Consciousness and “Ourness” of Spaces - International Conference 17th – 19 th September 2026

 

University of Palermo, Italy

Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement (SPPEF

 

In-Person Conference - Deadline for abstracts: 30th August 2026

 

From Lefebvre’s work on the production of space and, subsequently, in post-structuralist scholarship, particularly that of Foucault, space has been understood as something culturally and socially produced, shaping and shaped by human practice. This also applies to the way in which, today and within the process of glocalisation, concepts such as ‘centre’ and ‘periphery’ have taken on new, often shifting connotations. Whether referring to urban or non-urban contexts, symbolically or materially, spaces of glocalisation suggest a new grammar for understanding and redefining how we consider and perceive places, interact with them, move in and through them, represent them and, in a word, experience them – or, conversely, how we avoid and marginalise them. From many perspectives, acting within space (or deliberately abstaining from action) amounts to putting into practice epistemic and political visions that cannot be ignored. However, before space can be inhabited, traversed or re-signified, it must first be perceived. In both a logical and chronological sense, our engagements with space depend on the awareness of our surroundings, not only as physical environments but also as symbolic and socio-culturally constituted worlds. Building on these premises, the conference ‘Awareness, Consciousness and “Ourness” of Spaces’ aims to explore key issues concerning spatialities through the neologism of “ourness” that highlights an essential characteristic: the ambivalent nature of a ‘We’ that is both inclusive and exclusive. Can spatialities be experienced ‘consciously’ without first being recognised and without acknowledging the various forms of individual and collective belonging through which they acquire meaning? How is the ‘consciousness’ of places formed? What determines the way in which we (re)produce a sense of belonging and/or alienation from a place? The conference aims to initiate a debate involving multiple disciplinary approaches in order to collectively develop an epistemological reflection on spatial awareness and unawareness, taking into account the limitations, critical issues and full potential of interdisciplinarity as applied to this field of research.

 

Submission of abstracts, deadlines and info on participation:

 

Please send abstracts by 30th August 2026 to Gaetano Sabato (email: gaetano.sabato@unipa.it ). Abstracts should be no longer than 300 words, and they should include title of the paper, 3-5 keywords and a short biography of the author(s) including their affiliation (max 5 lines, not included in the 300-word limit). Notification of acceptance will be sent as soon as possible on a rolling basis, and no later than 2nd September 2026. The conference will be held in-person at the University of Palermo campus in Palermo, Italy on 17th and 18th September. On 19th September, depending on the number of participants, a cultural walking tour is planned through the historic centre of Palermo. The conference language is English. Individual presentations should be 15-20 minutes in lenght. Registration to the conference is free of charge. Unfortunately, no travel grants or scholarships are available. Participants are responsible for covering their own travel, accommodation and food expenses.

 

Scientific board:

 

G. Cusimano, University of Palermo; F. De Pascale, e-Campus University; G. de Spuches, University of Palermo; P. Fuertes, Vallès School of Architecture ETSAV, Universitat Politécnica de Catalunya, Barcelona; M. Kaaristo, Tallinn University, Estonia and Manchester Metropolitan University; L. Mercatanti, University of Palermo; G. Messina, University of Messina; G. Sabato, University of Palermo; C. Travis, University of Texas, Arlington.