The start of this new decade marks an exciting new departure for EPIC, as we move beyond North America and Europe for the first time – to Tokyo.

EPIC is the premier international forum bringing together artists, computer scientists, designers, social scientists, marketers, academics and advertisers - and others! - to discuss recent developments and future advances around ethnographic praxis.

We seek original, high quality and engaging papers, workshops, artifacts and presentations concerning ethnographic praxis in industry, including case studies on research investigations, methodological & theoretical advances, discussions on outcomes, standards, and new applications of ethnography around this year’s conference theme:

道 Dō / The way of ethnography

Dō captures the sense of individual mastery that is achieved only with the help of a community and its rich heritage. Dō implies a body of knowledge and tradition with an ethic and an aesthetic.

Dō is the “path” we have travelled and also the way ahead of us.

EPIC 2010 will feature a wide range of ethnographic applications in industry, different “ways” forward. Ethnographic praxis in industry is global in scope, but adapted to different geographies (Asia, Latin America, Middle East, Europe, North America), different contexts (academia, business, NGO’s, government), different industries (technology, healthcare, consumer goods, advertising) and different purposes (product innovation, strategy, interorganizational collaboration, communications, policy making).

Join Epic 2010 and help define Ethnography’s Dō.  Show others “the way” of doing ethnography in your context, in your industry, in your geography, for your goals.

Aspects of Ethnography Dō:

normativity: Quality standards, best practices, proficiency/mastering the discipline, benchmarks, rigorous process/outcomes

specialization: Inclusion of new disciplines to enrich the practice, new contexts/applications of ethnographic praxis, new ways to do ethnography (online ethnography, etc.)

transmissivity: Taking to new heights, exploring new territories, opening doors, spreading the value of ethnography, communicating results in new ways.

authoritativeness: Tradition, recognition, acknowledgment /appraisal of the past, and solid foundations, deep reflection for inner strength and energy.

universality: Optimism, human values, path towards the future, balancing science + art, growth, innovation to be prepared for what’s next

As we enter a new decade we want to focus on defining the practice from within, exploring different applications of ethnography in industry and defining as a community what the future will hold for us. Come join us at EPIC2010 in Tokyo, one of the most innovative, but also one of the most traditional cities in the world – the perfect setting for exploring, learning, discussing, reflecting and defining:
 
道 Dō / The way of ethnography.

In the rest of this document you will find details about how to make submissions for the Papers, Workshops and Artifacts and Pecha Kucha sessions.

Dates

Where: Papers: Abstract submission deadline March 14, 2010
Workshops: Proposal submission deadline April 22, 2010
Artifacts: Proposal submission deadline May 2, 2010
Pecha Kucha: Proposal submission deadline May 9, 2010
 
EPIC2010 Co-chairs:

Simon Pulman-Jones, GfK
Luis Arnal, in/situm
Hiroshi Tamura, Hakuhodo