Michalinos Zembylas

Educating for Anti-Complicity in the Era of Global Crises: An Affective Response to Political Violence

Michalinos Zembylas is Professor of Educational Theory and Curriculum Studies at the Open University of Cyprus, Honorary Professor at Nelson Mandela University, South Africa, and Adjunct Professor at the University of South Australia. He holds a Commonwealth of Learning (COL) Chair on peace and decolonizing education for 2023-2026. He has written extensively on emotion and affect in relation to social justice pedagogies, intercultural and peace education, human rights education and citizenship education. His recent books include: Affect and the rise of right-wing populism: Pedagogies for the renewal of democratic education, and Higher education hauntologies: Living with ghosts for a justice-to-come (co-edited with V. Bozalek, S. Motala and D. Hölscher).

Educating for Anti-Complicity in the Era of Global Crises: An Affective Response to Political Violence

This talk addresses the thorny issue of complicity in recent global reckonings of political violence (structural racism; histories of colonialism, slavery and genocide; populism; extremism etc.) and asks: What does it mean to educate students for anti-complicity and resistance, when they are embedded in institutions and practices that engage in political violence, as perpetrators, collaborators or bystanders?  What are the risks of a pedagogy and politics that cultivate affective practices of anti-complicity in the classroom? Drawing on recent insights from affect theory and political thought, this talk focuses on affect and its role in facilitating critical and political engagement of students and educators with violence. In particular, it interrogates how thinking about complicity through an affective and political lens can help address past and present instances, practices and structures of political violence. It is argued that the development of an anti-complicity pedagogy and politics provides a nuanced way to teach and learn about political violence and its entanglement with histories of suffering and injustice.

Upcoming ECERs

Title
26.08.2024
ECER'24, Nicosia
08.09.2025
ECER'25, Belgrade
17.08.2026
ECER'26, Tampere
iCal Download

Important Dates ECER 2024

Title
01.12.2023
Submission starts
31.01.2024
Submission ends
01.04.2024
Registration starts
03.04.2024
Review results announced
15.05.2024
Early bird ends
26.06.2024
Presentation times announced
30.06.2024
Registration Deadline for Presenters
26.08.2024
ERC First Day
27.08.2024
ECER First Day
iCal Download

Hosting Organisation

Local Services Website

Our partners EasyConferences support EERA, the University of Cyprus and you as conference participant in all matters around:

  • accommodation
  • transport
  • travel advice and visa information
  • bookable social and side events.

Link to Local Services Website