Crosscurrents

Haiku North America 2009
August 5–9 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Come to Ottawa, Canada, to celebrate and share haiku in the crosscurrents of history, geography, culture and the arts.  For five days in August, the National Library of Canada will be home to international speakers, panels, presentations, poetry readings, haiga exhibitions and archival displays. Situated on historic Wellington Avenue in the heart of downtown Ottawa, our conference is steps from the Parliament Buildings, the Supreme Court, the Rideau Canal system (named a UNESCO heritage Site in 2007), and the outdoor beauty and fun of the Byward Farmers’ Market/ entertainment district.

Haiku development is passing through turbulent waters, like estuaries in constant flux due to wind, coastline drag, and the varied layers of salt and cold. Haiku Crosscurrents are increasing. Meanwhile haijin struggle in and out of eddies to steer an even course through competing schools of thought, to solve the puzzle of world kigo, to meld the aging of non-Japanese language haijin’s first wave sailors with the succeeding ranks of multi-lingual iPod haijin, to carefully erode the perpetual shoals of traditional English poets and poetry critics, and to find ways to remain close to nature as countries rush to build city-states.

HNA 2009: Crosscurrents will offer worldwide reflection, smooth the waters to navigate through regional haiku trends, and chart the ways to new poetic possibilities.

Call for Proposals

If you are interested in making a presentation or leading a workshop at the next HNA conference, in Canada’s capital, please forward the following information:

            TITLE:
            PRESENTER:
            SYNOPSIS: (50 words)
            BIO: (50 words)
            TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED:

Please send this information to all members of the organizing committee:

Terry Ann Carter tacarter@rogers.com
Claudia Coutu Radmore claudiarosemary@yahoo.com
Guy Simser guy.simser@sympatico.ca  

Proposals will be accepted from June 15 to September 30, 2008.

Responses will be sent in late October.

To get an idea of the kind of events we've had at past HNA conferences, see Past Conferences. See also Photos from Haiku North America 2005.

Remember Your Passport

By  the summer of 2009, all travellers (land and air) will need passports to enter Canada. Begin the work now. Be prepared  to be caught  in the currents.

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