The 25th Annual Interdisciplinary Graduate Student Conference Committee at AMNE invites graduate students to submit abstracts for our Spring 2025 conference, on the topic of “Nature and Artifice”. The conference will be held in-person in Vancouver and via Zoom (hybrid format) on Friday, March 28, 2025, and will feature a keynote address (Thursday, March 27) by Dr. Catherine Kearns, Assistant Professor of Classics at the University of Chicago.
Papers can investigate any aspect of the ancient world relating to nature, artifice, or both. Some areas of interest include (but are not limited to) the following questions:
What do we mean by “nature” in a broad sense, or by the “nature” of a particular being? How do human-created “artificial” structures and human impact on nature shape the world, and how do humans, non-human animals, or ecosystems adapt in response? Is the relationship between humans, non-human animals, and the environment antagonistic, constructive, or both? Do the arts—such as literature, visual art, architecture, and music—merely imitate nature, or do they transcend it? Was there ever a truly “natural” or “artificial” way of life for ancient humans? Furthermore, when humans alter the natural world around them, do they also alter their own nature?
Graduate students interested in presenting a paper should submit an anonymized abstract of no more than 300 words in addition to their name, affiliation, and paper title via this Google Form by January 31, 2025. If you have any questions, please reach out to Caroline Armstrong, Jennifer Porter, and Cristalle Watson at amne.grad.conference@ubc.ca.