Call for Papers

The journal of Newfoundland and Labrador Studies is interested in producing a thematic issue tentatively titled “Practice and Philosophy of Public Engagement at Memorial University”.

NLS is an interdisciplinary journal with a focus on the society and culture of Newfoundland and Labrador, past and present. Accepted submissions will bridge disciplinary boundaries, and will challenge perceived binaries between academic and non-academic ways of knowing. This special issue of the journal recognizes the complex history and present of university-community collaborations in the province, and aims to articulate and interrogate the philosophical and practical approaches that have been employed in publicly engaged research, teaching and learning, and public and community partnerships by Memorial students, faculty, and staff.

At Memorial, “public engagement” is the term used to describe the scholarship that emerges when the university and the community collaborate on research, teaching and learning, and creative activity. Intrinsic to public engagement is the idea of mutual benefit, mutual contribution, and mutual respect between the university and its collaborating partners.

We invite prospective authors to submit previously unpublished work in the following categories (word counts are approximate and flexible):

• Scholarly articles (7500 – 12 500 words)
• Research notes (7500 words)
• Personal reflections, creative responses (3000 – 7500 words)
• Non-traditional research outputs (video, audio, photography, etc.)

Topics could include (but are in no way limited to):

• The risks and rewards of publicly engaged research/teaching & learning
• Engaging with remote/rural NL communities
• University partnerships in/with the tech and innovation sectors
• Indigenous engagement with/at Memorial
• Public engagement in the k-12 system
• Public engagement in health care
• University responses to community need
• Memorial’s Extension Service: history and legacy
• Public engagement and ecological education
• Mobilizing knowledge in NL
• Bridging cultures through public engagement
• University-government partnerships
• The politics of university-community collaboration

Submissions from the public – including previous collaborators with Memorial – are welcome.

Expressions of interest can be sent to guest editor Andreae Callanan (andreae.callanan@mun.ca) or NLS editor Barry Gaulton (bgaulton@mun.ca) no later than Friday, November 22, 2024. Scholarly articles and research notes will undergo a double-blind peer review process, while personal, creative, and other submissions will be reviewed by the guest editor. Accepted submissions will be published in Newfoundland and Labrador Studies Vol 41, No. 2 (fall 2026). The journal of Newfoundland and Labrador Studies is an Open Access journal.