Submitted Papers and Presentations are now online

Capitalism, Nature, Socialism invites you to participate to the first international anniversary conference celebrating the work of James O'Connor and almost two decades of debate in Capitalism, Nature, Socialism. The founding of Capitalism, Nature, Socialism 17 years ago coincided with the rise of 'sustainable development' as the key response of dominant institutions to rising ecological degradation and radical ecological challenge. Almost two decades later, ecological degradation continues to deepen and broaden while even the most modest proponents of ecological reform ('ecological modernization', 'sustainable development') have suffered numerous setbacks at the hands of market fundamentalism, new forms of imperialism, and racialized moral panics about terror-induced insecurity. As a result, radical left ecology movements now form an important basis of contemporary movements against capitalism and war. Politicizing a dizzying array of issues from the privatization of water services, the erosion of global food security, and rampant urban sprawl to the very commodification of life through genetic engineering and biopiracy, these movements have pointed to the grossly unsustainable and unjust character of the contemporary world order.

Ecology, Imperialism and the Contradictions of Capitalism intends to take stock of the state-of-the-art in recent debates on the root causes of world-wide ecological degradation and the realities and possibilities of radical response. Radiating out from - but not limited to – James O'Connor's work on the second contradiction of capital and the broad range of debate in CNS, this conference wants to bring together a plurality of critical theoretical and political perspectives on the current crisis of societal relations with nature. Strictly cross-disciplinary in orientation, the conference intends to attract contributors in a variety of fields, including, but not limited to, critical theory, political economy, radical geography, environmental philosophy, and social movement theory. We welcome contributions to four broadly conceived subject areas:

1. Marxism, critical theory, and ecology
2. Ecosocialism, feminism, and environmental justice
3. Urbanization, ecological degradation and political ecology
4. Imperialism, world order, and global ecological politics

Subthemes are:
Marxism, uneven development and the contradictions of capital
Critical theory, the domination of nature, and societal relations with nature
The status of ecology and nature in Marx and marxism
Patriarchy, social reproduction and ecology
Feminist critiques of militarism, neoliberalism and colonization
Environmental racism and environmental justice, local and global
Dreams and Perils of global urbanization
Food, Hunger and urban-ecological reconstruction
Capitalist Globalization, colonialism and global pillage
War, globalization and ecological crisis
Neoliberalism, Privatization, and Green capitalism
Continental integration and comparative ecological modernization

After an opening keynote address by Maria Mies and panel on the contribution of Capitalism, Nature, Socialism, and the work of James O'Connor, the conference discussions will centre on keynote speeches by invited guests and other selected participants. Activists and non-academic researchers, new scholars and graduate students are strongly invited to submit proposals. The conference will be held from July 22 to July 24 at York University, Toronto, Canada.