AAACS 2010 Conference April 27-30, Denver

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE
ADVANCEMENT OF CURRICULUM STUDIES

Curriculum and the Cultural and Environmental Commons:
Local to Global//Global to Local

Our 2009 conference theme carries us into 2010, but with a new subtitle. Last year’s theme bore the subtitle “Towards Reclaiming, Restoring, and Reinventing.” Though we hardly exhausted the possibilities to which that subtitle points, our hope for the Denver conference is that we reconsider, but with a greater focus on the international scene.

Again, we might understand the commons, in general, as those material and cultural spaces that belong to everyone, upon which our survival depends, and which are not, or should not be, abandoned to the logics of private interests. For example, more tangible assets of the commons include vast resources such as oil, water, minerals, timber, that are on publicly owned lands, as well as broadcast airwaves, parks, and civic institutions. Less tangible commons include public education, nonprofit institutions, creative works and public knowledge that are paid for by public funds. All are essential to human survival or quality of life. Yet, these public resources are under persistent threat of enclosure as private interests steadily convert them into market resources.

The encroachment of private interests on a global scale into environmental commons such as water, energy, and agriculture, and into cultural knowledge and information commons threatens to overwhelm efforts toward global sustainability, equity, and peace. At a time when numerous expert analysts are predicting disastrous events from climate change in which millions will be displaced, the “end of oil,” massive water shortages, and more, international educational efforts toward sustainable futures could not be more pressing.

What sorts of curriculum work are needed to assist us in becoming the people we need to be in order to meet these challenges? How will we, as curriculum theorists, articulate and pedagogically address the challenges before us in their myriad local and global manifestations? How can we support each other in the work of conceptualizing the interpersonal, political, and spiritual dimensions of a sustainable future, one that expands the possibilities of peace and freedom for an ever greater number and fosters an ever broader and more sensitive attention to the resources and rhythms of our planet?

While presentations, performances, or installations that speak directly and clearly to this theme are desirable, we also recognize that the spirit of the theme points toward a broadly conceived and complicated conversation, not fettered by any assumptions—conscious or unconscious—embedded in the foregoing words. Any proposed contribution to the complicated conversation that creates meaningful curriculum study is welcomed and encouraged.