Digital Orientalisms 2020 – A Twitter Conference Organised by the Digital Orientalist (#DOsTC2020)

Inspired by projects, such as the Public Archaeology Twitter Conference, the Digital Orientalist organized its first Twitter Conference in 2019. Following the success of #DOsTC and current global mobility issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Digital Orientalist, has decided to organize its second Twitter conference to take place on June 20, 2020. Below is an explanation of the conference and its theme.

Digital Orientalisms

The digital humanities are a burgeoning discipline in which Africanists, Middle East and Asia specialists are discovering and building new technological and digital solutions and approaches to the study and teaching of the histories, languages, peoples, religions, societies, and cultures of their object of study. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year more than ever there is a need to share the digital tools, solutions, and ideas that we use in our teaching, research, and related work. There are few means through which our fellow scholars and the public can follow research advancements in our interconnected fields, and since many traditional (non-virtual) conferences have been cancelled this year, it is becoming increasingly important to find a space in which we can facilitate the sharing of and engagement with our research, networking, and academic discussion. This conference aims to provide one such space through which scholars can bring their research in the digital humanities to a wider academic and public audience, and discuss and share the digitization of their research and teaching in these uncertain times.

We believe that the format of a Twitter Conference, conducted as it is through a digital platform is highly suited to the digital humanities as a field of research. Additionally, in times such as these when there are limits on our capabilities to travel, Twitter conferences provide a means through which we can present our research across international boundaries without needing to leave our homes and with no financial costs for participants, observers, or organizers.

For those unfamiliar with Twitter Conferences we recommend looking at the website of the Public Archaeology Twitter Conference or the PressED Twitter Conference. You can also check out the information that we posted when holding our first Twitter conference, #DOsTC, last year, and the proceedings for that conference, as well as the information for this year’s conference.

If you have any further questions feel free to contact the Digital Orientalist’s Editor-in-Chief, James Morris, either through twitter (@JHMorris89) or email (james@digitalorientalist.com).

Proposals

We seek paper proposals and review proposals from researchers, educators, students, librarians and curators working in the digital humanities who focus on any facet of the study of Africa, Asia, Latin America or the Middle East. We also seek proposals from educators and researchers who are engaging with the digitization of research and/or teaching in light of the COVID-19 pandemic who wish to share their digital teaching, research, and workflow methods with others. Although the conference will be conducted in English we will consider papers and reviews in other languages, however, please note that abstracts should be written in English. You can make multiple proposals in both categories. The deadline for proposals is the May 23, 2020.

Papers are to be based on original research or teaching and will consist of 12-18 tweets during the speaker’s 15-minute time slot. We encourage participants to use media (photographs, videos, maps, timelines, pieces of software, art, links etc.) within their papers.

Reviews are to be similar to classic book reviews in academic journals. Scholars should propose to review a book, project, piece of software, piece of hardware, app or other piece of technology within 8 tweets and a 10-minute time slot. (Please note that the review format is for discussing the projects and work of other people, your own projects and work should be presented as a paper).

Proposals can be made using the Google Form here. (Deadline: 23/05/2020 -> 30/05/2020).