Conference: Networks of Infrastructure and the Phantom Borders in East Central Europe

The conference on "Networks of Infrastructure and the Phantom Borders in East Central Europe" aims to discuss the topic outlined above from three angles. Firstly, the conference will approach the question on strategies used by the governments of the newly formed states in Central and Eastern Europe after 1918/19 (or after 1945 when the borders were 'shifted' on the map) to promote the development in their own countries by setting up integrated, national infrastructure networks (railroads, telegraph, telephone, roads, waterways, etc.). In this context it is of particular interest to evaluate how the structural legacy of predecessor states was dealt with and which measures of integration were used to change regional networks into national networks. Secondly, we will discuss the extent to which regional infrastructure networks - regardless of attempts to integrate these into new national contexts - influenced and shaped the economic, social and cultural development in Central and Eastern
Europe beyond the aforementioned historical turning points. The final point that will be looked at during the conference is the historical traces noticeable to date which indicate the existence of infrastructural 'phantom borders' in Central and Eastern Europe. In this context it is not only worth looking at the railway network maps, but also the remnants of the structural legacy of older infrastructure networks in general, such as the former border stations between the German and Russian Empire or between the Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire.

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