Welcome to the ESA RN15 Midterm Conference 2025 

Fragmented Societies & Fragmented Science: 

Theory and Methods for Global Sociology in Turbulent Times

News about the conference

The programme for the conference has been published!

The programme is still subject to change and we will add more information concerning the workshops before the conference.

If you have any questions regarding this mid-term conference, please email the conference organizers: esarn15midtermmeeting2025@ffst.hr

Main Themes of the Conference

The alarming rise of armed conflicts, illiberal regimes, and extremist movements around the world are pushing back on cosmopolitan values and dreams of developing sustainable societies. The world can be viewed as a single interconnected place, where ideas, products and people travel across national borders at an increasing speed. However, it is also a world that is fragmented and riddled with power struggles and polarized political views. These emerging global challenges demand fresh perspectives from scholars, political actors, and international organizations. Simultaneously, the global decline in demand for social sciences underscores the urgency of critically re-examining contemporary approaches. 

The field of global and transnational sociology is in many ways as fragmented as the world that it examines. On the one hand, this diversity of perspectives is a strength that helps to shed light on global phenomena from various angles. On the other hand, exchanging ideas and insights between different schools of thought is important for creating novel and nuanced viewpoints. 

This conference aims to foster discussion between different theoretical and methodological approaches that strive to make sense of the global developments we are currently witnessing. We hope to bring together scholars to offer new local and transnational insights that highlight the relevance of social scientific research in addressing these challenges. We are also interested in editing a volume/journal special issue based on selected papers presented at the conference.

We invite contributions across thematic areas and methodological approaches, including but not limited to the following themes:

•  Methodological and theoretical developments in global and transnational sociology

•  Contested status of science and expertise in contemporary societies 

•  Polarization of politics and fragmentation of societies from a global and transnational viewpoint

•  Policy-making in a globalized world

•  The impact of climate change, exogenous shocks, and conflicts on national and international policies

•  International migration and translocal lives, with an emphasis on Europe

•  Decolonial and postcolonial approaches

•  Culture, identity, and cosmopolitanism in a changing world

•  Extremist movements and their transnational mobilization

•  Gender and sexuality from a global perspective 

•  Globalization, localization, and glocalization

About the Conference

Following the success of the workshops organized by Research Network (RN) 15 on Global, Transnational and Cosmopolitan Sociology at the European Sociological Association’s (ESA) 16th Conference held on 27–30 August 2024 in Porto, plans are now underway for the 2025 Mid-Term Conference. The conference will take place in Split, Croatia, on 18–19 September 2025.

The keynote and semi-plenary speakers are esteemed scholars in global and transnational studies:

Alexandros Kentikelenis, Associate Professor of Sociology and Political Economy, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy 

Geoffrey Pleyers, President of the International Sociological Association (ISA) and the FNRS Director of Research and Professor of Sociology, the University of Louvain, Belgium

Valerija Barada, Associate Professor, Head of Department of Sociology, University of Zadar, Croatia 

Key dates for the conference:

• Call for papers closed on 31 March 2025

• Notification of acceptance by 14 April 2025

• Registration for the conference opens 9 April 2025

• The registration closes 15 June 2025

Conference Time and Venue

The conference will take place at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Split, University of Split, Croatia, on 18-19 September 2025.

If you have any questions or require assistance with practical matters, please do not hesitate to contact the organizing committee: esarn15midtermmeeting2025@ffst.hr

About the Organizers

Chair of the Organizing Committee:

Marjaana Rautalin (University of Helsinki, ESA RN15 Coordinator)

Other members of the Organizing Committee:

Valerija Barada (University of Zadar)

Gwenaëlle Bauvois (University of Helsinki)

Sylvain Beck (Paris-Nanterre University)

John Eade (University of Roehampton)

Larisa Hržić (University of Split)

Marija Lončar (University of Split)

Ivan Serbin (Tampere University)

Zorana Šuljug Vučica (University of Split)

Valtteri Vähä-Savo (Tampere University)

Xinwei Zhang (University of Helsinki)

ORGANIZERS

Contact e-mail: esarn15midtermmeeting2025@ffst.hr