Please accept my apologies for not posting this notice sooner.  I received the call for papers a few weeks ago and meant to post it then.  But I now see that the deadline for abstract submissions is Monday!  Mea culpa.  Please feel free to post a comment here or contact me by email for more information if you want to submit.  I have a more full-blown version of the call for papers that I can send by email to those who are interested in more information.  (I omitted here prior conference locations as well as the names and affiliations of members of the conference academic and practice review boards and organizing committee.) 

I have participated in this conference for the past two years.  While there are few law academics in attendance, I have found the work of our international colleagues from the business side of the aisle to be both very informative to my work and interesting in many other respects.  This conference also has enabled me to forge new relationships that have positively impacted my scholarship.

Call for Papers
7th Conference on Innovative Trends Emerging in Microfinance (ITEM-7)
Pumping up Innovations In and Around Microfinance
(Microfinance, Crowdfunding and Community Development Finance)
Organized by the
Banque Populaire Chair in Microfinance of the Burgundy School of Business, Dijon, France
In collaboration with
The Chinese Association of Microfinance
And
Shanghai Jiao Tong University Centre for Financial Inclusion

March 15-17, 2016
In Shanghai, China

Poverty is a deep-rooted problem. Science magazine has published research indicating that poverty is even associated with cognitive problems. One hope to eradicate poverty is to provide the poor with the resources necessary to cope with it, the resources being specific to their situation. One possible resource is microfinance. Today, more and more researchers are getting involved in research that makes a difference to practitioners who want to create a new world of hope for the poor. Although it is too early to prove either a positive or a negative impact of financial leverage on the poor, other financial products are being offered to the poor so that they are financially included.
The international conference on Innovative Trends Emerging in Microfinance (ITEM) is aimed at researchers, both from academic field and from the industry, who are looking at institutional and technological environmental factors that could increase outreach or reduce costs or both. Previous editions of this conferences have been held in India, France and Morocco.

Conference themes
The 7th edition brings together researchers from three areas: Microfinance, Crowdfunding and Community Development Finance. However, the conference is open to other closely related microfinance fields and papers on impact measures, social governance, innovation, and sustainable development are welcomed.
The ITEM conference provides a forum for both researchers and practitioners to discuss and exchange on financial inclusion. The conference in March 2016 seeks quantitative, qualitative and experience-based papers from industry and academia. Case studies and PhD research-in-progress are also welcomed. It encourages reflections on the potential and use of technology in microfinance in developed and developing countries.
Papers can be in English, French and Chinese. Normally, there is no provision for translations. So, English is preferred.

Publication opportunity
The conference invites both professional presentations and research papers. Since we are all aiming for high level publications, we do not publish books or copyrighted proceedings. It is expected that the review process and the partnerships developed would help the researchers develop the paper towards a high impact journal and that, perhaps, they would think of acknowledging their participation in the conference. However, if researchers want, their papers are directly considered for journal special issues or books that the organizers or other participants may be associated with. These journals include Strategic Change (Wiley) and Cost Management (Thomson-Reuters).

Submission procedure
Proposals: All contribution types require a proposal in the first instance, including a short abstract between 300 and 500 words, up to five keywords, the full names (first name and surname, not initials), email addresses of all authors, and a postal address and telephone number for at least one contact author.

The abstract should indicate:

Title of the paper

Track of the paper (see below)

Authors and affiliations

Research purpose

Research design/methodology/approach

Key results

Impact: (on new research or on new practices, policies)

Value added/originality

Tracks proposed:

Stream 1: Microfinance

Track 10: Microfinance (all other)
English / French
Track 11: Communication and Microfinance
English/ French
Track 12: Experiments in Microfinance
English
Track 13: Market research in microfinance
English
Track 14: Microfinance in China
Chinese/English

Stream 2: Crowdfunding

Track 20: Crowdfunding (all other)
English / French
Track 21: Communication et crowdfunding
English/ French
Track 22: Regulation in Crowdfunding
English / French
Track 23: Engaging the crowd
English
Track 24: Strategies of crowdfunding
English/French
Track 25: Governance in Crowdfunding
English / French

Stream 3 : Community Development Finance

Track 30: Community Development (all other)
English / Chinese
Track 31: Impact Investment Funds
English
Track 32: Community Development Funds
English
Track 33: Slow Money / Agricultural Investment
English

Full Papers are only required after acceptance of abstract. Papers should not to be more than 5000 words including abstract, keywords and references. Submission period for the full papers is till December 31st, 2015. These will be sent for review after the registration fee has been paid. Each author of a full paper will also be required to review a paper and be a discussant at the conference.

Deadline / Timeline
November 30, 2015: Submission of abstract of proposals
December 10, 2015: Confirmation of acceptance
December 31, 2015: Early-bird registration ends
January 15, 2015: Full papers for those who want their papers reviewed
January 31, 2016: Normal registration ends
March 15-17, 2016: Conference

Registration and Payment: instructions will be sent at the time of confirmation of acceptance of abstract.
There are special discounts available for early-bird registration and for students. These will be posted on the conference website.

Contacts:
ITEM7@escdijon.eu
Web site: http://www.bmicrofinance.org/item7.html