A growing number of social scientists speak of “knowledge societies” and of the importance of knowledge for an understanding of contemporary societies. And also international organizations refer to the term extensively even if they might use it metaphorically (To quote the World Bank (“Knowledge for Development”, 1999): Knowledge is like light. Weightless and intangible, it can easily travel the world, enlightening the lives of people everywhere. Yet billions of people still live in the darkness of poverty – unnecessarily).

The aim of the thematic section/dossier of the International Social Science Journal is to shed light on the role knowledge play in a world which itself is characterized by a global dynamic. The aim is thus to explore in more detail the character of knowledge, its different forms and the possibility of its dissemination. For instance, the idea that knowledge is a substance which can easily travel from one place to another, that knowledge is information and not a situated relation between actors and objects should be explored theoretically and empirically. The following questions will investigate in the thematic section of the journal in more detail.

To what extent is and can knowledge generally be accessible around the world? Is knowledge a public good whose opportunities for example in the field of health care can be equitably exploited? As the quote from the World Bank Report on Knowledge for Development suggests there are apparently huge gaps and barriers to the actual dissemination of knowledge around the world but these disparities appear to constitute “problems”, thus, they may be overcome in principle. Is that indeed the case?

The question of whether among modern societies a “global” world of knowledge can exist is, from the viewpoint of social science, a largely unexplored terrain. Among long standing, basic and complicated questions that form part of such territory would be: How dependent is the world-wide dissemination of knowledge systems on social structure (for example, “global” job markets)? Does knowledge change as it travels? Is an equal or uniform distribution of knowledge even possible in modern societies? If knowledge becomes global what are its benefits or drawbacks?

Given the wealth of basic issues connected to the question of a global worlds of knowledge, we can only sketch some of the fascinating questions that the notion of “global knowledge” obviously implies. And does the notion “global knowledge” stand for standardization, i.e. the convergence of organizational and social forms as discussed in political science? In this perspective forms of knowledge transcends its local context and promote converging social contexts.

Let us close with a reference to a few contemporary considerations of the global context of our very question. There is, first, a re-evaluation of the nature and the value of “local” or “indigenous” knowledge against the backdrop of globalization processes and their impact around the world. More specifically, the assessment of the economic value of “local knowledge” (Clifford Geertz) or the appraisal of indigenous knowledge as source of sustainable development is changing. At the same time there is, second, the growing stress in various forms of discourse including policy discussions on the rapid and perhaps unstoppable diffusion, and therefore the local as well as ubiquitous (global) relevance of scientific-technical forms of knowledge.

Although experts with narrow competences generate contemporary scientific knowledge in highly specialized settings such as laboratories and field stations, such knowledge is supposed to be having ubiquitous qualities. Does the term knowledge stand for “expert systems”? The ease with which specialized knowledge (and information given that these terms are often liberally conflated) is assumed to be able can travel is echoed in recent transnational treaties designed to protect intellectual property, for example, in the so-called TRIPS (trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights) treaty of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

In contrast to such measures and the convictions that underlie the need for such treaties are developments in science studies that reject any need to differentiate among forms of knowledge. At the same time, science studies stresses that the generation of knowledge takes place in distinct places and under special circumstances. Thus, knowledge appears to be locally bound. The spaces, practices, tools, objects and circumstances touch the knowledge which is produced.

The questions that then arises, can such knowledge travel and if it moves around does it travel as part of the baggage of knowledge carriers such as scientists, engineers, consultants and the like? Or, if it diffused, isn’t it transformed by transcending features of its origins? And if it is transformed as the result of travel, can knowledge really only become global if the places of its origins achieve global presence?

But aside from distinct local or even global intentions to protect knowledge that threatens to become “placeless” and the vision that knowledge becomes effortlessly - in a technical sense - connected all over world, the question of the possibility or the nature of the limits to globalizing knowledge is an open matter.

We invite scholars who share the interest in the topic on global knowledge to contribute to this special issue. We are interested in theoretical as well as empirical papers.
Length of papers: 8000 words (including footnotes, bibliography etc.)
Language of the paper: English
Deadline for abstracts: June 15, 2007
Decision on abstracts: June 30, 2007
Deadline for papers: September 30, 2007

The accepted papers will also be published in the French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian editions of the journal and will therefore be translated into these languages.

Please send abstracts to the Editors:
Nico Stehr nico.stehr@zeppelin-university.de
Herbert Kalthoff herbert.kalthoff@zeppelin-university.de