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Congress Theme

Systemic Functional Linguistics: Power and Empowerment 

Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) strives to stand as a powerful theory capable of explaining  how language works and how it is being used to fulfil experiential and social functions, meeting, thus,  the need for “more powerful and abstract theories of experience” (Webster, 2004, p. vii).  
The power of SFL theory is in its flexible applicability and its rich descriptive resources which are  deployed not only to explain how meaning is created, negotiated, and structured in different social  contexts but also how these descriptions can be used in pedagogical settings. Indeed, researchers from  different fields have been empowered by the SFL theoretical model and methodological toolkits.  Thus, research fields like discourse analysis, language learning and teaching, translation, natural  language processing, and other professional fields such as business, media and healthcare  communication often draw on SFL theory in their research and practices.  
While providing “theoretical and descriptive resources to empower researchers to undertake  projects of investigation and intervention in many contexts” (Matthiessen, 2013, p. 437), SFL has  also been empowered by research undertaken in these contexts. Such an interaction has enabled  researchers and practitioners in SFL and other disciplines to take advantage of the various tools and  taxonomies offered by the theory. Yet, at the same time, it has made them contribute, whether directly  or indirectly, to its development and refinement. 
The 48th International Systemic Functional Congress aims to bring together researchers and  academics to discuss and reflect on the concepts of language, power and empowerment and their  relation to SFL theory. The Congress seeks to explore how SFL has empowered and been empowered  by various fields of study and welcomes contributions in the form of paper presentations, colloquia,  workshops and posters pertaining, but not restricted, to the following themes: 

SFL, the power of language, and the language of power  
SFL as an empowering theory of language  
Research and professional fields that have empowered SFL  
SFL and L2 Teaching and Learning  
SFL and EAP/ESP  
SFL and (digital) Communication (medical, business, political, etc.)  
SFL, Translation and Multilingual Studies  
SFL, Computational Linguistics, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence  
SFL and Corpus Linguistics  
SFL and Genre theories/ analysis
SFL and Cognitive Linguistics  
SFL and Pragmatics  
SFL and (Critical) Discourse Analysis  
SFL and Multimodality 
SFL, Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity
SFL and Ecolinguistics 
SFL and Literary Studies 
SFL and Culture and Media Studies
SFL and Embodied / Visual-spatial Communication