Dear Colleagues,

I send you my warm wishes from Melbourne, where the XX World Congress of Sociology will begin on Sunday, preceded by our day-long pre-conference workshop on Saturday for Early Career Scholars. If you will be joining us (physically or virtually), below is a compilation of information that I’ve been sending presenters within RC02.

RC02 is organizing or co-organizing over 33 sessions at the World Congress this year. We have two sessions in the first time slot available, and we’re ending the Congress with Sylvia Walby’s keynote, Chris Chase-Dunn’s session on inequality, followed by RC02’s Farewell Reception at The Common Man (Saturday, 1 July, 16:30-19:30). Click here for a list of our full program.

I warmly encourage you to attend our RC02 Business Meeting which will be held on Thursday, 29 June, 19:30-20:50 in Melbourne Convention Center 213 (Level 2). This provides you with an opportunity to meet other active members and create opportunities to participate in RC02 over the next four years before our next World Congress. I will present our accomplishments over the past term, introduce you to the new board, and open up the meeting for discussion of what members would like to do next.

It is impossible to highlight all of the superb sessions that we have organized but let me emphasize three. Jordanna Matlon has organized Postcolonial Ethnographies of Racial Capitalism, which will bring together four ethnographies in/from Africa with Michael Burawoy as our discussant (Wednesday, 28 June 17:30-19:20 in Melbourne Convention Center 213 (Level 2). Our Keynote Invited Session on Economy and Culture is organized by Lyn Spillman and chaired by Jeffrey Alexander (Thursday, 29 June 17:30-19:20 in Melbourne Convention Centre 213 (Level 2)). Our keynote lecture is by Sylvia Walby on Political Economy and Violence on Saturday, 1 July, 12:30-14:20 in Melbourne Convention Centre 203 (Level 2).

For maps and information about the conference locations and advice on how to get there: https://www.isa-sociology.org/en/conferences/world-congress/melbourne-2023/venue-23

Please note that the Crown Conference Center does not appear to have its own street entrance. The easiest way to get there is by entering the Crown Promenade (a hotel) and going upstairs. If you enter from the convention center where the casino is, you can follow the signs to the Crown Conference Center, but it is far and the signage can be tricky. Here’s a map showing the relationship of the two conference buildings:

I look forward to seeing you, physically or virtually, at the XX World Congress of Sociology!

Warm regards,

Aaron Pitluck