2010 SEA Annual Meeting
Contested Economies: Global Tourism and Cultural Heritage
April 8-10, 2010
Tampa, Florida
Co-Chairs: Sarah Lyon (University of Kentucky) and Christian Wells (University of South Florida)
Call for Papers
Global tourism is perhaps the largest scale movement of goods, services and people that humanity has witnessed with the exponential growth of international tourist arrivals, which in 2008 numbered over 900 million globally. Consequently, for anthropology tourism has proven to be an ideal context for studying issues of political economy, social change, development, natural resource management, and cultural identity. And yet if tourism accounts for an ever greater segment of national economies, it also challenges classic theoretical descriptions of just what an economy is: What are the commodities being consumed? What is the division of labor between producers and clients in creating the value of tourist exchanges?
The 2010 SEA conference will bring together researchers to examine the connections among economy, sustainability, heritage, and identity that tourism makes explicit. Presentations and discussions will seek a new synthesis for the anthropology of tourism. They will also aim to show how new theories of the economics of tourism can lead to rethinking of non-touristic enterprises—from farming to heavy industry to medical occupations.
Paper and poster presentation topics might include, but are certainly not limited to, the following:
• The intersection of tourism and the economy: the impact of tourism on socioeconomic inequalities, development, wage labor, and subsistence activities; the possibilities and limitations of alternative and new forms of tourism
• Tourism’s impact on the environment and the promise of eco-tourism: whether negative in the form of environmental degradation or positive through eco-tourism initiatives, protected areas, and heightened environmental sustainability
• Theory: models and/or analytical frameworks that help us predict the conditions under which local economies will be strengthened or harmed, resources will be protected or degraded, and local traditions/values will be strengthened or weakened
• Cultural heritage tourism and identity: the reification and/or transformation of identities and cultural heritage as a result of tourism and the commodification of culture, the dialectic between governments and local populations over the control of tourism sites
• Economic crisis: the effects of the economic crisis on the industry and attempts to overcome current challenges; the aftermath of tourism and what happens when the flow of tourists is reduced in an industry especially prone to boom and bust cycles
• Tourism and archaeology: the importance of tourism both for and in archaeological research, interpretation and reconstruction
Poster Presentations
At the annual conference, the SEA always welcomes posters on any topic in economic anthropology. Students and scholars whose work may not fit the central theme of the meeting are encouraged to submit a poster. The special poster session during the meeting is inclusive and a major event of the SEA conference.
The SEA meetings provide a rare opportunity for a focused and coherent program of presentation, with time for critical discussion in a convivial intellectual setting. Papers are selected for a program that allows 20 minutes for presentation and 20 minutes for discussion in a single plenary session over two days; additional abstracts will be selected for the poster session. Each SEA annual meeting also produces a book on the conference theme. Submitting a paper for the plenary session represents a commitment that you wish to be considered for inclusion in this volume. We encourage archaeologists, cultural anthropologists, economists, and scholars concerned with the tourism and hospitality industry to submit abstracts. Please send a 300-500 word abstract for a paper or poster to Sarah Lyon at ude.yku|noyl.haras#ude.yku|noyl.haras or 202 Lafferty Hall, Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506-0024 by November 15th, 2009.
Roundtable Discussions
We are organizing several discussion tables for an optional Saturday lunch. We envision these roundtables as a venue for attendees to present their own research in progress, discuss future collaborations, debate ideas, and organize sessions for other scholarly meetings, while enjoying the local cuisine. We have identified three topics that we feel are especially timely: the current economic crisis, alternative forms of tourism [eco-tourism, volunteer tourism, agritourism], and green/sustainable economics. We encourage members to e-mail us with additional ideas or to volunteer to serve as a discussion leader (ude.yku|noyl.haras#ude.yku|noyl.haras or ude.fsu.sac|sllewc#ude.fsu.sac|sllewc).
Venue
The conference will take place at the Hilton Garden Inn in Historic Ybor City, Tampa, Florida.
"Don Vicente Martinez Ybor, an influential cigar manufacturer and Cuban exile, moved his cigar business from Key West to Tampa in 1885. Other cigar factory owners quickly followed suit and before long “Mr. Ybor’s City” was the “cigar capital of the world” populated by thousands of Cuban, Spanish, Italian and German immigrants. That reputation endured until the emergence of Fidel Castro and the embargo on Cuban tobacco and is now designated as one of three National Historic Landmark districts in Florida. Today, Ybor City is a fusion of Tampa’s past and present where the majestic architecture of cigar factories, wrought iron balconies and brick-lined walkways, meet modern-day galleries, shops and restaurants to form a unique and extraordinary entertainment district." Read more...
SEA Meeting Hotel:
Hilton Garden Inn (Tampa Ybor Historic District)
1700 East 9th Avenue, Tampa, Florida, 33605 USA
Tel: 813-769-9267, Fax: 813-769-3299
Rate: $119/night (plus tax)
Be sure to mention “Society for Economic Anthropology” when booking your room to receive the discount rate.
Past Meetings
For information about past meetings, including themes, programs, and abstracts, click here.
