انجمن ستائشِ باہمی
Anjuman Sa-ta-ish-e Baahmi
An organization which is particularly set up by the members to praise others and in return get praised by others. Obviously the important research work by linguists and their organizations in the west is not like that.
However, to an outsider (=me) who only had the opportunity (=privilege) to take part becz he happened to have a scholarship, it sure looked like that: A small group of people (with some variations) gathering on different occasions, at different conferences, talking linguistics
Knowing each other so very well. While at the same time, local researchers from these countries/ communities working on similar issues /topics, couldn't be part of these gatherings because they couldn't afford to travel.
> couldn't do the networking
> couldn't collaborate
> kept on remaining excluded
> still accessing the research work through any means (internet, Sci hub..)
> learning to do their own research work
> doing it not well enough
> not being able to publish in respected journals where this small community publishes
> getting left out (again)
Or
> publishing in predatory journals
> resultantly almost nobody from the original (small research community) noticing it (or considering it worthwhile)
> hence forming a vicious circle which gets broken almost only in exceptional cases
And the above creates almost two worlds of research: the small authentic research world and the other imperfect research world of less literate researchers from the same communities which provide data to feed models and theories devised by the authentic research community.
I worked in the sub discipline of World Englishes, so these observations (mixed with feelings) came out of this part of linguistics. They are obviously subjective and may be too much on the 'glass is half empty' side. But the problem exists, there is no denying that.
The inclusion of linguists from the less developed parts of the world in top tier conferences will not solve it 100%, but it sure will open many new avenues for collaboration and growth (for researchers as well as the researched communities).
__the end__