The Atlantic World Research Network
Around the World |
One hears so much about globalism and globalization, both in the academy and in commerce, but Atlantic World Studies truly deserves the global name. Though centered on the “western” side of the globe, the peoples and civilizations of Europe, Africa, and the Americas have encountered, collided, and combined around the Atlantic Rim to create one of the world’s first truly global cultures—and one that remains hotly contested.
So while our Network’s mission includes connecting like-minded colleagues across campus, we also are making connections throughout our region, around our nation, back across the Atlantic, and around the world. The most ambitious of our mission is to identify UNCG as the leader in Atlantic World Studies in the southeastern United States, and to provide leadership in Atlantic World Studies throughout North America and globally.
Remarkably, UNCG is already well on its way towards this leadership goal. Our 2004 conferences on Southern Backcountry and Creating Identity and Empire, our two 2007-2008 transatlantic gatherings on the poet George Herbert (one in England, one here), and our plans for another wide-ranging Atlantic World conference in 2010—all mark UNCG as a rising star in this rapidly-growing area of inquiry.
Watch this space for links to a variety of Atlantic World resources and study groups throughout North America and around the Atlantic Rim, as well as information about AWRN-related programs involving overseas research, teaching, and travel—including international conferences that we hope to co-sponsor abroad.