HYPER-TRADITIONS
December 15 – 18, 2006

IASTE 2006 call for papers poster
IASTE 2006 conference poster
IASTE 2006 conference program
IASTE 2006 conference photos coming soon
IASTE 2006 Working Paper Series

This conference will explore the complex ways in which the idea of tradition has been destabilized by globalization, particularly as manifested in “hyper-traditions.” We use the term “hyper” to refer to social and cultural realms, created and maintained through contemporary technologies of communication, transportation, and information transfer, that have radically transformed notions of time and space, forever changing the meanings of distance and immediacy. As one form of current time-space altering media, the hyper-real entails simulation: in this realm, the simulation is a map that precedes the territory to which it refers, a map that effectively creates the territory and becomes the reality itself. In this way, perhaps as a response to the perceived “end of tradition” or “loss of heritage” (seen by some as inevitable by-products of globalization), hyper-traditions emerge in part as references to histories that did not happen, or practices de-linked from the cultures and locations from which they are assumed to have originated. This IASTE conference focuses on how these practices transform our understanding of tradition; how they shape the experiences and processes of tourism, migration, urbanization, and cultural change; and what liberatory prospects they may offer. Scholars and practitioners from architecture, architectural history, art history, anthropology, archaeology, folklore, geography, history, planning, sociology, urban studies, and related areas will present papers related to the following three themes: From Simulated Space to “Real” Traditions and Vice Versa, Hyper-Traditions in “Real” Places; and Identity, Heritage, and Migration.

ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Nezar AlSayyad,Conference Director, University of California, Berkeley
Vimolsiddhi Horayangkura, Conference Local Director, Thammasat University
Stacey Murphy, Conference Coordinator, University of California, Berkeley
Thavanan Tanesdechsunthorn, Local Conference Coordinator, Thammasat University
Pimpan Vessakosol, Local Conference Advisor, Thammasat University
Montira Horayangura, Local Conference Advisor, UNESCO
Mark Gillem, Conference Advisor, University of Oregon
Wannaluk Pasomkusolsil, Local Conference Administrator

LOCAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Vimolsiddhi Horayangkura, Richard Engelhardt, Arak Sunghitakul, Khemchat Thepchai,Pisit Charoenwongsa, Suprabha Mooleeratanond, Trungjai Buranasomphob, Yongtanit Pimonsathean, Jarunee Pimonsathean, Warinporn Yangyuenwong, Thavanan Tanesdechdunthorn, Jaturong Pokharatsiri, Maadi Tungpanich, Rachadaporn Kanipun, Wannaluk Pasomkusolsil

SESSIONS ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Hesham Abdelfattah, Nadia Alhasani, Joseph Aranha, William Bechhoeffer, Anne-Marie Broudehoux, Greig Crysler, Yasser Elsheshtawy, Mark Gillem, Mui Ho, Montira Horayangura, Clara Irazábal, Gareth Jones, Hasan-Uddin Khan, Anthony King, Chee-Kien Lai, L. Keith Loftin, Duanfang Lu, Robert Mugerauer, Alona Nitzan-Shiftan, Marcela Pizzi, Mike Robinson, Vimalin Rujivacharakul, Gunawan Tjahjono, Dell Upton

CONFERENCE SPONSORS
Thammasat University, Bangkok, Thailand
College of Environmental Design, University of California, Berkeley