Lynda and Kathryn present to ISISA 2021 on ‘Affective Islandness’ and material identities.

Today at the ISISA 2021 conference Kathryn A. Burnett @KA_Burnett and Lynda Harling Stalker @lynda_harling present to the islandness stream at ISISA 2021. Lynda and Kathryn’s panel paper is entitled ‘Affective Islandness: Personal Narratives and Material Identities’.

17th International Small Islands Studies Association (ISISA) Conference: ‘Sharing Lessons, Sharing Stories’ Virtual conference | June 14–18, 2021 Full program is out now — head to http://mun.ca/wearehere/isisa.php… for more details.

Mairéad Nic Craith: Keynote Panel Columba/Colmcille’s contested symbolism, creative practice research legacies and inspirations between Ireland and Scotland.

Colmcille: An Icon of Shared Heritage Irish and UK Keynote Plenary June 2021

Professor Mairéad Nic Craith discusses Columba/Colmcille’s contested symbolism, creative practice research legacies, links and inspirations between Ireland and Scotland. Alongside Mairéad on the panel are Professor Máire B Ní Annracháin and Dr Brian Lacey as they each contribute their rich expertise to the 5th June 2021 Keynote Plenary: “Colmcille: An Icon of Shared Heritage” | Irish & UK Joint Ambassadorial Addresses. You can view all three of these excellent presentations via this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CSG8tS1EN8

Scotland and Islandness – new edited collection

Scotland and Islandness: Explorations in Community, Economy and Culture (2021) Edited By Kathryn A. Burnett, Ray Burnett and Michael Danson

Peter Lang – Oxford, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, New York, Wien, 2021. XIV, 262 pp., 2 fig. b/w.

Studies in the History and Culture of Scotland

Scotland’s islands are diverse, resourceful and singularly iconic in national and global imaginations of places ‘apart’ yet readily reached. This collection of essays offers a fascinating commentary on Scotland’s island communities that celebrates their histories, cultures and economies in general terms. Recognising a complex geography of distinct regions and island spaces, the collection speaks to broader themes of tangible and intangible cultural heritage, narratives of place and people, the ideas and policies of island and regional distinctiveness, as well as particular examinations of literature, language, migration, land reform, and industry. With a view to placing ideas and expressions of islandness within a lived reality of island life and scholarship, the collection provides a multidisciplinary perspective on the value of continued and expanding research commentaries on Scotland’s islands for both a Scottish and an international readership. 

This book should instantly appeal to scholars of Island Studies, Scottish Studies, and Regional Studies of northern and peripheral Europe. Readers with particular interests in the sociology and history of Scottish rural and northern Atlantic communities, the cultural histories and economies of remote and island places, and the pressing socioeconomic agenda of small island sustainability, community building and resilience should also find the collection offers current commentaries on these broad themes illustrated with local island examples and contingencies.

Available in Hardback, PDF and Ebook.

https://www.peterlang.com/view/9781789974133/html/ch05.xhtml

Elisabeth Holm presents paper on ‘Language learning and migration: Voices from blue-collar workplaces in the Faroe Islands’

Elisabeth Holm, University of the Faroe Islands, presented to The Role of Universities in Addressing Societal Challenges and Fostering Democracy: Inclusion, Migration, and Education for
Citizenship, Conference , hosted online by the University of Akureyri, Iceland March 25th – 26th, 2021. Elisabeth’s paper was entitled” ‘Language learning and migration: Voices from blue-collar workplaces in the Faroe Islands’ and was developed from her doctoral research at Heriot Watt University, Scotland.

For a publication relating to this work see here: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s10993-019-09513-4.pdf

““Mikladalur, Faroe Islands” by DavideGorla is licensed under CC BY 2.0

An image above of houses on a coast. The photograph image is from the Faroe Islands. The photographer is Davide Gorla.

Islandness: Identity and Independence Panel MECCSA 2019

MECCSA 2019 (Media, Communications and Cultural Studies Association) Annual Conference, University of Stirling

Islandness: Identity and Independence Panel proposer: Dr Kathryn A Burnett, University of the West of Scotland;  Contributors Mr Tony Grace,  Mr Ray Burnett and Dr Kathryn A. Burnett; Chair: Dr Sarah Neely, University of Stirling.

This Scottish Centre for Island Studies panel contribution is offered in close reflection of the 40^th anniversary of MacDiarmid’s death in 1978, and the 90^th anniversary of the formation of the National Party of Scotland, which involved both MacDiarmid and Mackenzie. 2019 itself is the 50^th anniversary of the release of the iconic island film ‘Whisky Galore’ based on Compton Mackenzie’s celebrated novel. This film continues to offer a set of island tropes that signify both Scottishness and Britishness as well as the ‘national antisyzgies’ of cultural authenticities, the islandness complicities of place and people and the mediated complexities of remoteness, connectedness and independences. A further thematic of ‘island and national liberty’ draws on archival records and new film practice celebrating the ‘father of biography’ James Boswell, and his celebrated accounts of ‘tours’ including the Hebrides (1773) with Johnson, as well as his earlier account of Corsica and most particularly its independence movement.

We are delighted to be working in partnership with The Boswell Trust and hope to revisit aspects of this themed panel later in the year as part of the Boswell Trust’s event and celebrations diary 2019.

Mapping Small Island Communicative Ecologies Seminar SCIS@UWS

Invitation to Research Seminar Creativity and Culture HUB,

School of Media, Culture and Society  

Wednesday 17^th January 2018

14:00- 15:00 UWS Ayr Campus  GT 45

A/Prof. Evangelia Papoutsaki, UNITEC, New Zealand

Mapping Small Island Communicative Ecologies

Islands have a unique micro-communicative ecology makeup and distinctiv geographical and socio-cultural identities. This research seminar introduces the concept of island communicative ecology illustrated with examples from research conducted in several islands in the Pacific region.

The communicative ecology approach refers to the various forms, resources, activities, channels and flows of communication and information used by an island or group of islands or communities within islands. Mapping as a methodology enables a broader comprehension of the complexity of specific island communities and allows for the exploration of the various types of communication activity island people are engaged in (locally, trans-locally, intra-island, inter-island, trans-peripheral, national etc.), the resources available and the understanding of how these can be used in sustaining island communities.

In this seminar, several borrowed concepts, theories, terms and approaches from communication studies will be explored within an island context: communicative ecology, and communicative ecology layers (social, technological, discursive), communication infrastructure theory, communication action, storytelling network and storytelling agents, rhizomas and community media.

The presenter explores how the communicative environment forms part of existing island communities’ structures; identifies key communicative practices that contribute to sustaining islands sociocultural cohesion; explores the role of media, in particular community radio, in localized information flows unique to the islands; and identifies future areas of research of value to the field of Islands Studies especially through the application of the communicative ecology mapping approach.

We are delighted to welcome Dr Evangelia Papoutsaki to Ayr campus for this research seminar. This seminar is open to all UWS staff and students and all are very welcome. Please email Lesley-Anne (lesley-anne.niven@uws.ac.uk) or myself (kathryn.burnett@uws.ac.uk) for any further information you may require.  Evangelia will be delighted to speak with colleagues on any aspect of her global work on media and communication in a range of key sectors and international settings (including diaspora and migrant identities, HIV/Aids, Climate Change, and participatory methods for community engagement). There is time set aside after the seminar for colleagues to meet with Evangelia further.

For further information on Evangelia’s extensive global experience and expertise in media, communication and community research and policy please refer here:

http://www.unitec.ac.nz/about-us/contact-us/staff-directory/dr-evangelia-papoutsaki

https://www.epapoutsaki.com/

Communicative Ecologies Research Seminar Jan 2018

Historic Islands (Scotland) Bill introduced today to the Scottish Parliament, 12 June 2017.

Supporting, strengthening and protecting island communities.

An historic bill has been introduced to Parliament to meet the unique needs of Scotland’s islands now and in the future. The Islands (Scotland) Bill today (12 June) will help create the right environment for sustainable growth and empowered communities.

Measures in the bill will include:

• A requirement to ‘island proof’ future legislation and policies
• The creation of a National Islands Plan
• Statutory protection for the Na h-Eileanan an lar Scottish parliamentary constituency boundary
• Greater flexibility around Councillor representation within island communities
• Extended powers to island councils in relation to marine licencing

Islands Minister Humza Yousaf said:

“This government is committed to promoting islands’ voices, to harnessing islands’ resources and enhancing their well-being. The measures in this bill underpin this ambition.

In particular, the provision to ‘island-proof’ decision-making across the public sector will ensure the interests of islanders are reflected in future legislation and policy from the very outset.

“The National Islands Plan will set out the strategic direction for supporting island communities, continuing the momentum generated by the ‘Our Islands Our Future’ campaign and the work of the Islands Strategic Group.

“This is the first ever bill for Scotland’s islands, marking an historic milestone for our island communities. I am proud and privileged as Islands Minister to be guiding the Bill through Scotland’s Parliament. ”

http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/Bills/576.aspx

Source: https://www.wired-gov.net/wg/news.nsf/articles/Historic+Islands+Bill+introduced+12062017120500?open

SGSAH and “COST New speakers of minority language” doctoral students enjoy Enterprising Culture research training event, Oban, 2017

Enterprising Culture: Entrepreneurship, Endorsement and Engagement of Minority Language in Europe’s Remote Rural and Small Island Communities.

Earlier this year (a very cold and bracing Oban in February!)  the Scottish Centre for Island Studies ran a two day event in association with SGSAH and COST New speakers of minority lanaguge network.  The programme of the event can be seen below but it included a series of engaging talks and ‘walk abouts’ from both experienced and less experienced researchers interested in the relationships between remote and rural culture, minority language contexts and the research opportunities and complexities around enterprise and development in these terms for Scotland, and beyond.

Here is some of the feedback on the event

“Place, inter-disciplinarity , multi-linguistic, walking workshop.”

“Supportive atmosphere”

“Enthusiasm of event organisers”

“Capturing thoughts as we went along”

“Really helpful event with lots of inspiring ideas to explore for my PhD”

“Thank you for organising this- it’s been really great!”

“It was brilliant tae be in Oban, and tae haa the contact wi’ the place and talk aboot wir’ subject in context.”

“Underlined the veracity of cross-disciplinary research methodologies as a PhD approach.”

“The varied programme was really nice.”

“Having a speaker from the Isle of Man was great!”

“The location worked extremely well.”

The mix of papers was very interesting and provided different disciplinary context to the subject of minority language.”

“Visiting local agencies and hearing their perspective was very useful.”

“Thank you for putting together such a refreshing event!”

Only suggestions for improvement were that a few speakers were a bit “too quiet”, that the SAMS venue was a bit ‘far out’ from Oban but our car-share policy got everyone there and back fine J,  and we could (should) have delivered more of the actual event in Gaelic! All very helpful and we’ll certainly take these on board for future events.

Thanks to everyone for all their feedback and comments and most especially for such great participation and enthusiasm for the event.

Kathryn

Special thanks goes to James Harrison @Culture Vannin,  Isle of Man, to the team at the Furnan Gaelic Centre, Oban and to Norman Bissell, Scottish Centre for Geopoetics.

Scotland’s Islands Bill progresses.

Empowering our islands. 23th August 2016

Minister Humza Yousaf announced that legislation to empower Scotland’s island communities is to be progressed:

“Our islands make a significant contribution to Scottish life from both a cultural and economic perspective. As such, I am immensely proud to be able to announce that I am bringing forward an Islands Bill less than a year after my predecessor launched the Government’s consultation on potential provisions.

“We have placed the aspirations and needs of our island communities at the centre of our empowerment agenda. Drawing on the work of both the Island Areas Ministerial Working Group and the consultation findings, the Bill will provide lasting benefits for all our island communities for generations to come.

“I believe that this demonstrates our strong and continued support for our island communities and our desire to deliver quickly on the election promises set out in our manifesto. I now look forward to working with the various island communities and representatives in bringing this into effect over the next year.”

The Islands Bill follows a period of consultation and debate on Scotland’s islands futures and it is proposed that the legislation be brought forward and delivered during the next 12 months, within the first year of the new parliamentary session.

The local authorities of Shetland (Shetland Islands Council) , Orkney (Orkney Islands Council) and the Western Isles (Comhairle nan Eilean Siar), along with a number of key island and ‘remote peripheral region’  related organisations,  have  variously called for greater control over local matters and raised key isses and debate on Scotland’s islands long term  social and economic future not least through the campaign, Our islands – Our Future, in the lead up to 2014’s Scottish independence referendum.

See source: http://news.scotland.gov.uk/News/Empowering-our-islands-2945.aspx

“Britain: The Fractured Island” by Ray Burnett

“Britain: The Fractured Island” (pp 228-245) by Ray Burnett  is included in The Political Economy of Divided Islands (2013) edited by Godfrey Baldacchino and published by Palgrave Macmillan as part of the  International Political Economy series.

“Despite the sonorous magnificence of Shakespeare’s John of Gaunt monologue, England is not an island. Rather this ‘England, that was wont to conquer others’ just thinks, acts, governs, talks, plays and presents itself as if it is. For the island polity known as ‘Britain’, more formally as ‘Great Britain (GB)’, the ‘United Kingdom (UK)’ is an odd place. In spite of its self-promotion as the ostensible product of a long, stable and immutable partnership of equals, the ‘national’ institutions of this state-nation consistently present themselves as those of a singular ‘nation-state’ through the monofocal prism of the dominant ‘island race’ of England: the English historical narrative of ‘this sceptred isle’, and a smothering blanket of English cultural referents.”

DOI: 10.1057/9781137023131_13

Full details of the edited collection to purchase are here:

Godfrey Baldacchino (ed.) (2013) The Political Economy of Divided Islands:
Unified Geographies, Multiple Polities. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. 256
pp., £63 (hardcover), ISBN: 978-1-137-02312-4.

http://www.palgrave.com/gb/book/9781137023124#aboutAuthors

 A review of the book can be found here: Carabelli, G. (2015) [Review of the book The Political Economy of Divided Islands: Unified Geographies,
Multiple Polities], Urban Island Studies, 1, 187-189.

Scottish Island Studies research chapter in Community Media edited collection

Kathryn A. Burnett and Tony Grace (2009) ‘Community, Cultural Resource and Media: Reflecting on Research Practice’  in Gordon, Janey (ed.) (2009) Notions of Community:  A Collection of Community Media Debates and Dilemmas; Oxford, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, Frankfurt am Main, New York, Wien, 2009. 310 pp., 5 ill.

ISBN 978-3-03911-374-3 pb.

This volume gets beyond simple descriptions of the values and processes involved in community media and is deliberately seeking argument and structured debate around the issues of this vibrant sector of the media. The contributors examine the dilemmas that have emerged within this sector and provide an incisive overview. The chapters use case studies and data research to illustrate the major debates facing community media, along with a sideways look at the dilemmas that community media practitioners and their audiences must engage with.
This collection provides an international perspective and covers the traditional formats as well as newer media technologies. It also gives some intriguing examples of community media, which get beyond simple good practices.

http://www.peterlang.com/download/datasheet/50337/datasheet_11374.pdf

Contents: Janey Gordon: Introduction – Saba ElGhul-Bebawi: The Relationship between Mainstream and Alternative Media: A Blurring of the Edges? – Lawrie Hallett: The Space Between: Making Room for Community Radio – Janey Gordon: Community Radio, Funding and Ethics: The UK and Australian Models – Kathryn A. Burnett/Tony Grace: Community, Cultural Resource and Media: Reflecting on Research Practice – Katie Moylan: Towards Transnational Radio: Migrant Produced Programming in Dublin – Gavin Stewart: Selling Community: Corporate Media, Marketing and Blogging – Michael Meadows/Susan Forde/Jacqui Ewart/Kerrie Foxwell: A Catalyst for Change? Australian Community Broadcasting Audiences Fight Back – Kitty van Vuuren: The Value and Purpose of Community Broadcasting: The Australian Experience – Pollyanna Ruiz: Manufacturing Dissent: Visual Metaphors in Community Narratives – Janey Gordon: The Mobile Phone and the Public Sphere: Mobile Phone Usage in Three Critical Situations – Jason Wilson/Barry Saunders/Axel Bruns: ‘Preditors’: Making Citizen Journalism Work – Dimitra L. Milioni: Neither ‘Community’ Nor ‘Media’? The Transformation of Community Media on the Internet.

‘The Furthest Hebrides’: Critical reach from contested shores: Kathryn Burnett and Ray Burnett deliver to IGU 2010 Conference, island of Ven, Sweden

Finding Their Place: Islands in Social Theory

The Island of Ven, Sweden, 27–30 August, 2010

ABSTRACTS PARALLEL PAPER SESSION B1: Identity, culture, tradition and knowledge

 

 

 ‘The Furthest Hebrides’ : Critical reach from contested shores

Kathryn A Burnett & Ray Burnett

University of the West of Scotland, UK

 

Scotland’s islands are paradoxically peripheral yet conceptually central to an

understanding of the layered complexity of issues relating to land and identity in

contemporary 21 st  century Scotland. Through a specific focus on Scotland’s

western isles, this paper traces the authoring of the layered constructions and

reconstructions of space and place that has produced a dense and variegated

palimpsest; the process of the ‘making’ of the Hebrides. It examines visual and

documentary representations to draw out some of the issues of ‘belonging’ and

ownership, appropriation and dissemination, in the context of the nationalidentitarian

functions of culture, that are embedded in the complimentary and

contradictory ‘ways of seeing’ the contested terrain of island cultural landscape(s).

Through a grounded multi-disciplinary approach to the issues raised and the

exemplars elaborated on, the paper opens up several overlapping and inter-related

issues of concentric and conflicting identities, delineation of the field of cultural

discourse, the inscription of meaning and value and the production of cultural

landscapes, and the deeper processes of complicity, self colonialism and

subalternity.

The paper concludes by advocating that a detailed study of how these processes

of ‘making’ are mediated at local (island), national (Scottish) and supra-national

(UK) level opens up new channels for further research in the intricate waters of

the cultural dynamics of authorship, ownership, ‘belonging’ and power in the

politics of land and identity.