CONFERENCE 2026

2026 IPSA RC 44 & RC 52 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

Reimagining the Post-Westphalian Era

Climate Crisis and Networked Security 

organized by

Institute of Public Policies and International Relations (IPPRI) - São Paulo State University (UNESP)

and San Tiago Dantas Graduate Program in International Relations (PPGRI STD)  (UNESP/UNICAMP/PUC-SP)  

together with

International Political Science Association (IPSA)

Research Committee on Security, Conflict and Democratization (RC44) 

Research Committee on Climate Security and Planetary Politics (RC52)

São Paulo, Brazil, 3-6 August 2026 

at the Institute of Public Policies and International Relations (IPPRI/UNESP)/San Tiago Dantas Graduate Program in International Relations (PPGRI STD)

We are delighted to invite you to the IPSA RC 44 & RC 52 Conference, to be held at the Institute of Public Policies and International Relations/San Tiago Dantas Graduate Program in International Relations (UNESP, UNICAMP, and PUC-SP), in São Paulo – Brazil. The Conference will be organised in lectures, roundtables and thematic sections, and will welcome colleagues from a diversity of disciplines connected to the main theme “Reimagining the Post-Westphalian Era - Climate Crisis and Networked Security”.

The Conference will be in-person. A few thematic sections will be held entirely online on 3 Aug 2026 to allow participation by those who are unable to travel to São Paulo.

RC44 & RC 52 invite paper and panel proposals from professors, researchers, professionals and postgraduate students (master and doctoral candidates) that explore transformations in global security, governance, and democratization eight decades after the founding of the United Nations. We welcome contributions that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:

Complex security environment and changing strategic dynamics

- Multipolar competition, weakened alliance commitments, and regional conflicts

- Nuclear proliferation, changing deterrence dynamics, new energy resources, and radiation risks

- Bio-threats and pandemics, AI convergence, biochemical weapons, and pollutants

Networked Security Challenges

– Cyber warfare, digital surveillance, and data governance

– Non-state armed actors, private militias, and hybrid threats

– Impacts on state sovereignty, human rights, and electoral integrity

Geopolitics, Governance, and Climate Security Architecture

- Multipolarity, climate risks, and shifting international alignments and coalitions

- Democratic backsliding and authoritarian adaptation in the climate era - how regimes use security narratives and impacts on pluralism

- Data governance, cybersecurity, and environmental threats to critical infrastructure

- Non-state actors, hybrid threats, and evolving security governance structures

 Human Security, Vulnerability, and Social Resilience

- The role of subnational governments, multilevel governance frameworks, and decentralized institutional innovations in addressing climate-related security challenges

- Climate resilience and community-based social protection

- Gender and climate security

Climate-induced resource conflicts, water scarcity, land degradation, and competition over critical minerals

- Migration, displacement, and border politics under climate pressure

- Health security: pandemics, pollution, and biohazards in climate-stressed environments

- Gender and intersectionality in climate vulnerability and response policies

- Indigenous knowledge and community-based security responses

Urban Systems, Finance, and Institutional Innovation

- Urban resilience and security infrastructure in rapidly urbanizing, climate-impacted regions

- Climate finance innovations, development cooperation, and peacebuilding strategies

- Legal responses, litigation, human rights frameworks, and accountability mechanisms for climate security harms

Populism, Polarization, and Democratic Backsliding

– Security narratives in populist and re-nationalizing movements

– Majoritarian exclusion, minority rights, and political violence

– Mechanisms to safeguard pluralism in emerging democracies

Institutional Innovation and Transregional Architectures

– Lessons from UN reforms, UN80 initiatives, and BRICS+ alternatives

– African Union, ASEAN, and South American security cooperation

– South–South collaboration, multilateralism, and governance experimentation

Conflict and Conflict Resolution

– Peacekeeping: comparative analysis of UN missions, AU standby forces, and ad hoc coalitions

– Peacebuilding process: reconciliation, governance, and the protection of human rights in multipolar contexts

– Local ownership, mandate design, operational limitations, and effectiveness of interventions 

SUBMISSIONS

Submissions may be empirical, theoretical, or normative orientation. The proposal in English should include the following information:

• Name of authors/contributors

• Institutional affiliations, titles

• Email address

• Title of the paper

• Abstract (200 words)  

IMPORTANT DATES

• October 15, 2025: Call for papers released

• November 15, 2025: Abstract submission opens

• February 15, 2026: Abstract submission deadline

• March 15, 2026: Acceptance emails sent to presenters

• March 16, 2026: Registration opens

• April 30, 2026: Registration Deadline for Participants in the Programme

• May 15, 2026: Online Programme Published

• June 30, 2026: Submission of full papers to discussants

• August 3, 2026: Panels exclusively online (from 17:00 to 21:00 UTC)    

• August 4-6, 2026: In-Person Conference to be held in São Paulo, Brazil

Registration Fees

Professor, Researcher, Professional - 50 USD - 250 Brazilian Real

Students (master and doctorate candidates) - 20 USD – 100 Brazilian Real

The student rate is available only to participants attending a university or institute of higher education. 

Students must provide proof of their student status.

Organising Committee

Sérgio Aguilar, São Paulo State University, Brazil

Hamdy Hassan, Zayed University, United Arab Emirates

Steven Ratuva, University of Canterbury, New Zealand

James Scott, University of Eastern Finland, Finland

Shaimaa   Moheyeldin, Cairo University, Egypt

Dalila Gharbaoui, University of Canterbury, New Zealand

Mercedes Fernandes, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Spain

Marília Pimenta, São Paulo State University, Brazil