MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- The Air Force Culture and Language Center is seeking presenters and proposals for Air University’s 4th annual Language, Regional Expertise and Culture (LREC) symposium.
The symposium provides a platform for academic exchange on topics specific to culture and language education in the military. This year, AFCLC will be addressing/exploring the theme of "Inter{cultural}operability".
"Interoperability, in the military context, usually brings to mind the technical and procedural means for cooperating with joint and coalition partners. Cultural knowledge and skills are also an essential element of interoperability, yet they are often not emphasized in military planning," said Dr. Patricia Fogarty, the symposium's co-founder. "Military personnel regularly face hurdles of a cultural nature when coordinating efforts at tactical, operational and strategic levels. Therefore, this year's AU LREC Symposium asks participants to focus on how culture, regional expertise, and language are at the heart of interoperability".
This year's theme is pulled in part from the 2018 National Defense Strategy. The document focuses on interoperability, especially when it directs us to "strengthen alliances and attract new partners".
So, how can we enable inter{culturally}operable Airmen? Presentations at this year's Symposium might address the following questions:
-How do effective communication skills reinforce partnerships and defuse tensions?
-What can we learn from our historical alliances?
-What are our regional partners doing well, and how might we apply their lessons learned?
-How is linguistic, regional and cultural knowledge integral to key areas of PME, such as leadership, strategy, planning, and international relations?
-How can the same knowledge be integrated into skill sets used during exercises and operations?
These are only some of the ways that inter{cultural}operability may be highlighted at the 2019 AU LREC Symposium.
THE LAST DATE FOR PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS IS JANUARY 15, 2019.
You can register for the symposium beginning Dec. 1, 2018. Right now you can download the call for proposals, the abstract template, and the optional symposium PowerPoint template at this link:
https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/AFCLC/AU-LREC/AU-LREC-Registration/