AAG CFP - Between Realignment and Flexibility: The Shifting Geographies of Military Base Closures

[Javier Arbona]

CFP - Between Realignment and Flexibility: The Shifting Geographies of
Military Base Closures

AAG Conference, Las Vegas, 22-27 March 2009
We invite papers that explore how former military spaces can be tied
to processes of economic restructuring, neoliberal geopolitics, and
the cultural production of place/memory. Changes in national defense
policy and U.S. geopolitical interests have led to a geographic
reorganization of military space. The Base Realignment and Closure
(BRAC) process, responsible for closing hundreds of military
installations, was part of this shift. These spaces were once
important nodes in the U.S. military network that defined Cold War
policy. Base closure and realignment marked a shifting geography of
U.S. militarism. Our panel will explore what’s at stake in this
physical and cognitive remapping of military space.

Although we are open to papers that deal with the broad theme of
military bases, we particularly welcome submissions that deal with the
following topics:
-The conversion of former military bases into spaces of accumulation.
We are especially interested in how new economic ventures are tied to
accumulation strategies that re-link these spaces with global economic
processes.
-Theoretical explorations that analyze the intersection of physical
and cognitive remappings of former military spaces.
-Connections between geopolitical doctrine and a shift in demand for
more mobile and flexible military spaces.
-Contemporary landscapes of post-military spaces.
-Struggles for economic and social justice tied to military base
reuse.

Please direct abstracts (max. 250 words) and questions to
jde...@berkeley.edu by October 10, 2008.

Session Organizers:
Juan David De Lara, UC Berkeley
Javier Arbona, UC Berkeley