Society for Applied Anthropology Annual Meeting

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Monday, March 22, 2010 - 8:00pm

Vulnerabilities and Exclusion in Globalization

Globalization is changing the context in which we work, the people we work with and the way in which applied researchers and practitioners address real world problems.  The 70th Annual Meeting of the Society for Applied Anthropology in Mérida, México will bring attention to the growing challenges facing applied practitioners in the 21st century, especially the effects of globalization on the peoples we work with resulting in higher levels of exclusion of vulnerable populations. How do these factors impact applied practice and social science research? Participants are encouraged to submit presentations, roundtables and workshops around this theme.  

Globalization is embedded in the human problems we study at local and regional levels.  The increased circulation of capital and migration of people in the contemporary world have substantially influenced our approaches to social science practice and the research that guides it, affecting methodological and theoretical concerns and the scope of work that we undertake, among others. The current global situation requires increased collaboration in interdisciplinary and transnational teams to better engage and advance our efforts in the solution of critical global problems. What have individual and team experiences been and how have our approaches changed?  What are the new emerging, contemporary problems facing us? Some of our research efforts are directed at increased poverty, global warming and biodiversity, international migration, the status and protection of political and economic refugees, the protection of cultural heritage and ethnic diversity, the effects of global financial crises and the global food supply crisis, economic justice, and an array of issues faced by vulnerable and excluded populations. What new practices, techniques, procedures, research methods and theoretical perspectives are we developing as a result of our local, regional, international and transcultural collaborations with individuals, partners, groups, NGOs, universities?