This just in. Those in need or desirous of publication, take note:
CALL FOR PAPERS:
St Antony’s International Review – The Challenges of Illicit Economies
Abstracts due April 29, 2011
Papers due August 26, 2011
Whether in the form of piracy, prostitution, people trafficking, the sale of counterfeit goods, or the trade of illegal drugs, illicit economic processes are shaping individual lives across the world. The
contribution of criminal activities is estimated to represent as much as one seventh of global income. Much of the existing literature addresses the specifics of individual criminal organizations and their operations, while rafts of policy documents detail strategies for combating “organized crime.”
The St Antony’s International Review (STAIR) invites academics, policymakers, and other specialists to develop this literature in comparative, global directions. In particular we aim to further
conceptual under standings of illicit economic activity and move beyond a mere prosecutorial/policing focus by providing comparative, global analyses of different forms and contexts of illicit economies. We seek to publish theoretically informed discussions of the place, function, and effect of diverse forms of illicit activity in the states, societies, and transnational networks in which they operate.
Authors may wish to reflect on the following issues:
• Theoretical Framework: stair seeks a fuller understanding of the discursive and/or conceptual boundaries of illicit activity in local, national, regional, and international contexts. For example,
should a distinction be made between “productive” and “unproductive” illicit activity? What impact could such a distinction have on policy and theory?
• Comparative Context: stair encourages comparative analyses of diverse areas/sectors of illicit activity with a particular focus on their interactions and impacts at different levels. In addition,
stair has a particular interest in publishing both new comparisons of well known case studies of illicit economies and in uncovering new cases that have received insufficient treatment in the
literature and/or the understandings of which remain under developed.
• Illicit Economies and the State: Building on the literature covering the criminality of politics at the national level, stair seeks analyses of the ways in which illicit activity may impact, and be
impacted by, theoretical and practical understandings of the state and its institutions. How porous are the boundaries between nation-states or, indeed, nations and states in this context? Do illicit activities present any social, economic, or political opportunities for the state?
• The Impact of Globalization: In what ways and with what implications for policy do illicit economic activities interact with the processes of globalization to shape international norms and
influence global structures of power? How, for example, under conditions of increasing economic interdependence, are illicit economic activities impacting bilateral and multilateral interstate
relations?
STAIR welcomes abstracts of up to 500 words in length. In addition, we seek to publish book reviews of works that relate to this theme.
Please send abstracts and review proposals to stair dot illicit [at] gmail dot com.
Thanks,
Rachael Crook and Will Jones
Editors, St Antony’s International Review
