martina – Page 3 – Inclusive Humanities

CFP (De)Constructing Identities is now open

Posted on May 20, 2026 by martina

The Call for Papers for the PhD Conference “(De)Constructing Identities: Inclusive practices of naming”, organized by the PhD Program in Foreign Languages and Literatures of our Department, is officially open.

How do we construct who we are through words? And how can we “deconstruct” names to create more inclusive spaces? In relation to issues of diversity and inclusion, and building on post-structuralist, feminist, and postcolonial theories that have challenged essentialist views of identity—as well as more recent theoretical work focusing on onomastic politics—the conference aims to reflect critically on the linguistic, literary, and translation processes linked to naming through which identity and identities are constructed, shaped, negotiated, and likewise contested and distorted.

Join the discussion; view the full call for papers at this link.

Proposal submission deadline: June 1, 2026.

Keynote speakers: Julie Abbou (Università di Torino) e Donatella Bremer (Università di Pisa).

Stories That Matter: Rethinking Disability through Literature, Culture, and Storytelling

Posted on May 18, 2026 by martina

Reflecting on disability through literature and culture: on Friday, May 15, the international conference “Stories That Matter: Rethinking Disability through Literature, Culture, and Storytelling” took place. Organized by Chiara Battisti, Paola Carbone, Sidia Fiorato, and Anja Meyer, the event brought together leading international experts in Disability Studies and Medical Humanities. At the heart of the debate was a profound and necessary reflection on representations of disability within literary and cultural narratives.

Based on the premise that stories hold the tangible power to transform our worldview, the conference dedicated ample space to inclusive teaching practices and the new frontiers of digital storytelling.

Collaborating with the University Inclusion Unit

Posted on May 7, 2026 by martina

The Department has consolidated its collaboration with the University Inclusion Unit, which has long supported the design of specific initiatives through its Inclusion Service. The latter actively promotes the quality of university life for students with disabilities and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD). Specifically, the service provides operational support for:

Mobility: dedicated transport, escort services, and assistive technology devices.
Education: adaptation of lectures and exams, technological tools, and LIS (Italian Sign Language) interpreting.
Facilities and Financial Support: accessible study rooms and tuition fee concessions.
Relations: counseling, guidance, and mediation with University offices.

3 new podcasts

Posted on May 7, 2026 by martina

As part of the Project of Excellence, we have chosen to transform academic research into storytelling, bringing themes of inclusion, literature, and art into three podcasts distributed across major streaming platforms.

Inclusioni stems from the commitment of Giovanni Tallarico and aims to explore diversity in all its forms through the lens of foreign languages and cultures. From gender issues to linguistic accessibility, each episode hosts dialogues with experts and personal testimonies to reflect on how words can build bridges and foster a more equitable society.

Trame e Tramacci – storie di libri, born from an idea by Paola Perazzolo (University of Verona) and Michela Battocchio (Colognola ai Colli Library and AIB Veneto), is a podcast that dismantles the notion of dusty literary criticism to talk about books in an accessible, passionate, and decidedly irreverent way. Through two-voice dialogues, each episode explores novels, graphic novels, and classics, offering insights that can make us fall in love with—and rethink!—world literature. The project boasts a valuable collaboration with the librarians of the Verona Library System and the patronage of the Province of Verona.

Olbolbo. Arte potenziale is an audio-guide podcast for the annual exhibition of the same name, resulting from an agreement between the Academy of Fine Arts of Verona and our Department within the Inclusive Humanities Project of Excellence. Thanks to the collaboration with curators and artists, the guide was created not only to accompany viewers through the exhibition’s paintings and installations, but even more so to convey art, colors, and nuances to those who cannot fully experience them due to a disability, with a view toward inclusion and accessibility.

Visual and spatial well-being

Posted on May 7, 2026 by martina

Thanks to the project funds, we have completed the renovation of the historic “porthole corridors” that have long defined our Department’s image. This intervention was not merely aesthetic, but functional to the well-being of everyone who experiences the university daily:

Chromotherapy and Relaxation: We replaced the old orange color with a restorative green, a shade chosen for its calming properties that foster peace of mind and concentration. This transforms the corridors into decompression pathways between classes, creating an ideal continuation of the spaces dedicated to the preserved moss walls.
Freedom of Movement: Dismantling the old, bulky heating systems has reclaimed usable floor space, eliminating lateral bottlenecks. This has made pedestrian traffic smoother and safer, ensuring superior accessibility, particularly for individuals with reduced mobility.

Servers

Posted on May 7, 2026 by martina

Computing resources lie at the very heart of digital infrastructures. Thanks to the project of excellence, our Department is able to acquire and maintain high-capacity servers to host digital archives, journal catalogs, scientific documents, open data databases, and collaborative websites for research groups and projects. Furthermore, these resources support the study and development of new digital applications and services resulting from research into assistive, inclusive, and accessible technologies.