I am so thrilled to be headed to Central Michigan University next week, to deliver a talk at the 15th annual “Communication and Social Action” conference, organized by the Department of Communication and Dramatic Arts! My talk is tentatively titled “Organizing/Communicating Sustainably” — not very original, perhaps, given the title of this website, but representative nevertheless of my program of research, which explains my thrill.
The conference is loosely structured around the theme of “Ethics and Communication,” and the speakers are slated to address topics as diverse as media, disclosure, group interaction, intimate/sexual communication, and of course organizational communication. The organizers tell me that one of the key goals of the conference is to reach out to a broader group of stakeholders, rather than the usual academic set, so that speakers are encouraged to adopt a very interactive format for their talks.
Did I mention I was thrilled they invited me to come? 🙂
Although I haven’t yet finalized the details of my talk, I plan on showcasing the diverse sites of sustainability that organizational communication research helps us address, including (but not limited to): personal career sustainability (e.g., doing work that is meaningful, career narratives), environmental sustainability (e.g., organizing around environmental conservation, corporate social responsibility), and system sustainability (e.g., organization-community relations, policy negotiations). I plan to illustrate these sites through some of my own ongoing and published research, which will hopefully resonate with the diverse audience.
Watch this space for more details next week, when I report how it went!
Rahul Mitra 