One of the ways that we enact the WFI’s mission — communication as central to the creation of positive social change — is through the annual sponsorship of symposia, lectures, workshops, conferences, and events. Although these events differ in specific theme, they all aim to create and strengthen a global network of Communication scholars and professionals, and to generate new conversations about communication, social change, and social justice.

Current WFI-Sponsored Events

NEXT! ANNOUNCING THE 2012 WFI SYMPOSIUM! On October 26-27, 2012, the WFI presents “Truth, Fact, & Communication in Complex Information Environments.” This two-day event will begin with an evening keynote address, "Deception and Distraction in the 2012 Presidential Election," delivered by Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Elizabeth Ware Packard Professor of Communication in the Annenberg School of Communication and Director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. The next day will involve a panel presentation and roundtable discussions, "Conflicting Conceptualizations of Truth and Fact in Recent National Campus Controversies," focusing on communication challenges within the specific context of higher education. THESE EVENTS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC! Please join us for the 2012 WFI Symposium!

COMING SPRING 2013! In April, 2013, the WFI will sponsor a two-day event, the 8th Annual “Hearts and Minds International Film Festival.” This event will include numerous film screenings and special events. Keep checking back here for more details on the festival, and how to get involved!

Past WFI Symposia

• The 2011 Symposium: On October 22, 2011, the WFI hosted a one-day event, “The Challenge of Communicating Truth.” This event, inspired by the work of the late pioneering communication theorist Barnett Pearce, brought together scholars and practitioners from across the country to engage in conversation about the nature and complexity of truth.
  
• The 2010 Symposium: our WFI Inaugural Symposium. On October 1st and 2nd, 2010, the WFI was officially launched! The program began at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, and continued the next day on Villanova's campus, in a symposium connecting communication students, scholars, and professionals from around the country.

Past WFI-Sponsored Events (Selected)

• On June 22-24, 2012, the WFI sponsored a three-day conference, “Economies and Ethics of Performance: Performance Studies in and as Communication.” This event emphasized the interconnection between performance studies and social change.
  
• On April 13-14, 2012, the WFI sponsored a two-day event, the 7th Annual “Hearts and Minds International Film Festival.” This event included numerous film screenings, including the East Coast Premiere of the powerful film, “Erasing Hate”--and a roundtable discussion with the film’s protagonist and director--as well as the recognition of the WFI/CMM/ISI 2011-12 Fellows.
  
• On November 8, 2011, the WFI sponsored a lecture by Raka Shome, Villanova’s inaugural Harron Family Endowed Chair of Communication. Her lecture, entitled “Mapping the Limits of Multiculturalism in the Context of Globalization,” critically engaged the US discourse of multiculturalism from the perspective of transnational cultural studies.
• On February 21, 2011, the WFI welcomed Ronald L. Jackson. His lecture, entitled “Inscribing Black Male Bodies, Pathologizing Blackness: How Tyler Perry Imagines Black Cultural Authenticity” generated a spirited dialogue among Villanova students and faculty on matters of race, economics, and patriarchy.