A new umbrella for the Area Studies community

UKCASA (United Kingdom Council of Area Studies Associations) was formed on 5 November 2003 at an open meeting at CILT. 16 Area Studies Associations have come together to form the council, the aims of which are as follows:

• To promote, support and defend Area Studies programmes at both undergraduate and postgraduate level in UK Higher Education Institutions.
• To provide a voice for Area Studies in dialogue with different government agencies across the UK.
• To develop a collaborative community amongst Area Studies Associations and practitioners.
• To promote interdisciplinary research and teaching about specific regions of the world.

Professor Dick Ellis, Nottingham Trent University and Dr Peter Matanle, University of Sheffield, were elected as founding chair and vice-chair respectively. A second meeting will be held in London on 6 February 2004 at which officers of the association will be elected.

UKCASA represents an exciting opportunity for Area Studies in the United Kingdom. A website for UKCASA (www.ukcasa.ac.uk) was launched in the New Year.

For further details contact John Canning, Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies, Modern Languages, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, Tel +44 (0)23 8059 5407, Fax +44 (0)23 8059 4815. e-mail j.canning@soton.ac.uk