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Elective affinities. Critical approach of religious heritage-making in the MediterraneanOrganisation :Cyril Isnart, Cidehus/Universidade de &#201;vora, Portugal, isnart@uevora.ptLu&#237;s Silva, CRIA/FCSH-Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal, luis.silva98@gmail.comShort abstractThis workshop focuses on the relationships between religion and heritage in the Mediterranean. It aims to study the entwining of these two phenomena and reveal the eventual particularities of religious heritage-making, as well as to discuss the conceptions of heritage embedded in the monotheistic religions, and re-examine the cultural matrix that religion and heritage share, redefine or negotiate through memory practices.Extended AbstractHistorically, the three monotheistic religions in the Mediterranean area appear related to various heritage objects and phenomena, such as archaeological ruins, architectural works, places of worship, museums, organised itineraries, and religious tourism. In this respect, the Mediterranean could be represented through an open-air museum conserving the three confessions embedded in the archaeological landscape of the Antiquity. Moreover, the history of religious diffusion, the superposition of political and religious power, and the colonial history of heritage intervention have blurred the frontiers between heritage, politics and religion with regard to objects, practices and buildings viewed as patrimony. Nowadays, the Mediterranean is also marked by cultural practices aiming to define and preserve the religious heritage of alternative religious confessions or movements, such as Sepharadic, ex-colonial Catholic, Soufi, Gnawa, or Protestant communities. Therefore, the Mediterranean is a rich field to investigate the links between religion and heritage both in the longue dur&#233;e and in the contemporary heritage-making.This workshop aims to describe the relationships between religion and heritage in the Mediterranean area, and discuss the conceptions of heritage embedded in the monotheistic religions, while dealing with questions such as: Why and how does believers construct heritage? Which are the heritage tools they adopt or reject from the world of the museums? What are the modalities of collaboration between believers and curators? And, conversely: What do heritage practices adopt from the religious world? How do the (dis)agreements between dogma, memory and amnesia become manifest in the world of heritage? Does the ecumenical dialogue fit with heritage-making and memory-making processes? How does the global structure of religions deal with localised purposes and determinations, both at the institutional and personal level? In multi-confessional contexts, what are the effects of one confession heritage policy on the other(s)? And, what are the links between public heritage institutions and religious authorities?Ethnographic case studies are especially welcome but inquiries into theory are also expected. Main topics and objects of study include religious World heritage sites, museums, heritage initiatives, religious tourism, heritage performances and discourses of confessions oriented groups and lobbies, as well as social and political uses of religious heritage.Modalities of submissionPaper proposal of 250 words and contact information must be sent to the organisers of the workshop and to Bosse Lagerqvist (bosse.lagerqvist@conservation.gu.se)prior to 31 January 2012.About the inaugural Conference of&#160;the Association of critical heritage studiesThe inaugural Conference of&#160;the Association of critical heritage studies&#160;is joint venue organised by the Heritage Seminar at the University of Gothenburg and The International Journal of Heritage Studies (IJHS).In connection to this conference, the Association of Critical Heritage Studies will be launched, which together with International Journal of Heritage Studies will establish an extensive network of scholars across the globe in order to debate and discuss cutting edge-research in the field of heritage studies.The aim of the conference is to re-theorise the field of heritage and to develop current theoretical debates to make sense of the nature and meaning of heritage. We see Heritage Studies as a synthesis emerging from diverse disciplinary fields (e.g. public history, cultural studies, archaeology, anthropology, memory studies, museology, conservation, fine, applied and performing arts and cultural geography). We wish to encourage people working in those areas to submit papers that address the inter-disciplinary nature of Heritage Studies.Papers should encourage cross cutting thinking and should not be afraid to try to theorise what heritage studies is and where it should go. They should be underpinned by an active move away from site- and artefact-based definitions of heritage in a traditional sense and should pursue instead a range of methodologies and questions aiming at interdisciplinarity stemming from social science, scholarly traditions, natural science, and also areas such as art and the performing arts.Important informationDeadline for abstracts on sessions, workshops and panel discussions is now closed.Deadline for abstracts of individual papers or performances is extended to January 31 2012.Selected papers and/or sessions will be published in IJHS.Organisation committeeBosse Lagerqvist, Department of Conservation, bosse.lagerqvist@conservation.gu.seKristian Kristiansen, Department of Historical studies, kristian.kristiansen@archaeology.gu.seJohan &#214;berg, Faculty of Fine and Performing Arts, johan.oberg@konst.gu.seMikela Lundahl, Department of Global studies, mikela.lundahl@globalstudies.gu.seScientific committeeAnnie Clarke (Australia), Rodney Harrison (UK), David Harvey (UK), Emma Waterton, (Australia), Steve Watson (UK) Ola Wetterberg (Sweden).