Call for Papers

We are excited to announce that the 8th Dragon Tails conference will take place on 27-30 November 2025 at the George Williams Hotel, Brisbane.

The Dragon Tails Association is now accepting submissions of paper proposals.

Proposals are due by Friday 5 September 2025.

Conference Theme: Relationships
Location: Woodcraft Room at George Williams Hotel, 317-325 George St, Brisbane
Convenors: Natalie Fong, Paul Macgregor, Karen Schamberger
Dates: Thurs 27 – Sun 30 November 2025
Thursday 27 - pre-conference tours and events
Friday 28 to Sunday 30 - conference proceedings

Download the Call for Papers pdf

The Dragon Tails conference series promotes research into the histories and heritage of Chinese people, their descendants and their associates, in Australasia (Australia and New Zealand). The conferences also encourage awareness of the connections of Chinese in Australasia with the histories of Chinese people, their descendants and their associates in other countries.

Conference outline

Chinese people have been migrating to Australasia from the 19th century to today. They and their descendants had relationships with each other as well as non-Chinese people which ranged from being co-operative to having conflict. This year’s conference theme highlights the role of relationships in shaping the lives of Chinese Australasians as well as the world around them. Papers might explore relations between Chinese people within the same family, clan or district as well as relations with those outside the Chinese community, including agents who contracted them, employers, officials, and governments as well as with neighbours, First Nations people, customers and other business-people.

Working the land and with animals as shepherds, gardeners, land-clearing, fishing and mining meant that Chinese people also developed particular understandings of their new environments, and relations with other species. Through the 20th and 21st centuries, students, skilled migrants, refugees and business-people arrived, not only from China and Taiwan, but also from South East Asia and elsewhere, expanding the types and numbers of relations. Wherever people move, they bring their traditions, beliefs and politics all of which continue, break and create new relations.

Newspaper reports and documents of Chinese Australasians dealing with government officials when applying for permits, buying land, registering a birth, death or marriage, or during court proceedings, all provide rich information about interpersonal and official interactions. Languages and dialects used to mediate relationships also impact relations, as do cultural and familial expectations and responsibilities, racial stereotyping and terminologies used to describe people eg. half-Chinese or full-blood.

Objects and buildings too, mediate relations between Chinese people within families and communities, as well as with non-Chinese people, like heritage professionals. Family, amateur and professional historians have also examined various sources and conducted oral histories. How have Chinese Australasians and their descendants managed relations with the people, such as historians, artists or writers, who have studied them?

While we look forward to receiving abstracts based on the conference theme, we also welcome papers on other topics that discuss the histories and heritage of Chinese people, their descendants and their associates, in Australasia and other parts of the world.

We encourage participation from academics and students, community, local, family, professional, independent and amateur historians, archaeologists, heritage workers and professionals from related disciplines/sectors with an express interest in this field of historical research.

The conference will be in-person only.

Student bursaries will be offered to speakers who are currently enrolled postgraduate students. This will allow free registration and a small travel subsidy for those from outside Brisbane. Enquire for details.

Presentations

Papers – Standard session presentations should be 20 mins long (plus 10 mins allowed for question time).
Panels – We welcome panel submissions. Our suggested formats for the panels is 3 x 20 min papers with a coherent theme.

How to submit a proposal

Proposals should be submitted by sending an email to dragontailsconferences@gmail.com

Please provide a paper title & abstract (200-300 words), your name, institution (if applicable), contact details & brief bio (100 words max). For panels, please provide a panel title as well as title/abstract/bio for each speaker. We will let you know by email if your proposal has been successful.