A call for papers is being made for the upcoming conference – Encounters in Canada: Contrasting Indigenous and Immigrant Perspectives – taking place May 15 to 17, 2013.
Co-sponsored by York’s School of Public Policy & Administration and Centre for Refugee Studies, the conference aims to fill a knowledge gap. Many immigrants to Canada view the country as a land of opportunity, but are sorely unaware of Indigenous history, rights and contributions to Canada’s development. In addition, there is 
significant alienation between Indigenous peoples and Canadian governments as a result of hundreds of years of assimilation and territorial dispossession.
Michele Millard
Encounters in Canada will bring together leaders from government and the judiciary, legal scholars, academics and practitioners to formulate practical solutions to the discrimination, racism, stigmatization and marginalization often experienced by Indigenous peoples, as well as immigrant and refugee 
communities. The primary objective is to build bridges – cultural, political, intellectual and social connections – between those who share the lands of what is now Canada.
Jennifer Dalton
Conference papers are expected to be published subsequently in an edited volume, and acceptable topics will relate to the following broad themes: Colonialism versus Consent, Exclusion and Identity, Place and Displacement, Nationalism and Alienation, 
Recognition and Respect, and Relationship-Building and Community Engagement.
David McNab
Interested participants are requested to submit abstracts as soon as possible, and no later than Jan. 15, 2013, after which time they will be reviewed by the Conference Program Committee. Proposals for paper presentations and/or panels are welcomed from academics, practitioners and advanced graduate students from across Canada and internationally.
Submissions should include a title, an abstract of no more than 250 to 350 words demonstrating the relevance of the topic to the conference themes, as well as brief biographical and contact information along with institutional affiliation (100 words) for each presenter. Abstract 
submissions should be submitted online here.
James Simeon
The conference is actively sourcing funding to support travel and accommodation. If successful, it will be able to provide modest support to selected participants based on financial need. If applying for travel support, e-mail a brief one-page budget outlining financial need for travel and accommodation to Michele Millard at mmillard@yorku.ca.
All other questions concerning the conference should be directed to the principal academic organizer, Professor Jennifer Dalton, School of Public Policy & Administration, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies 
(LA&PS), and Centre for Refugee Studies scholar, at jedalton@yorku.ca.
H. Tom Wilson
Interested participants may also contact the members of the Conference Organizing Committee: David McNab, professor of Indigenous Thought & Canadian Studies, Departments of Equity Studies/Humanities, LA&PS, at dtmcnab@yorku.ca; James Simeon, acting director, Centre for Refugee Studies, and professor, School of Public Policy & Administration, LA&PS, at jcsimeon@yorku.ca; Professor H. Tom Wilson, Faculties of Graduate Studies, Law and LA&PS, and Senior Fellow of McLaughlin College, at htwilson@osgoode.yorku.ca.
For more information, including more detailed descriptions of acceptable topics, visit the Centre of Refugee Studies website.