HEIDEGGER 50 YEARS ON
IS THERE STILL A GOD THAT CAN SAVE US?
British Society for Phenomenology Annual Conference 2026 convened by the
Philosophy Department, Faculty of Media, Arts, & Humanities, University of Sussex, UK
Brighton, UK | 21 – 23 May 2026
CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
Overview:
A number of events are being planned to mark the centenary of the publication of Martin Heidegger’s Being and Time / Sein und Zeit in 2027. However, May 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of Heidegger’s death. Accordingly, the Philosophy Department at the University of Sussex will convene the British Society for Phenomenology Annual Conference 2026 to consider where we are 50 years on in terms of Heidegger’s legacy.
Our event will be framed by Heidegger’s infamous 1966 interview with Der Spiegel (published posthumously in 1976 at Heidegger’s request), which appeared five days after his passing. Der Spiegel published the interview with a title taken from one of Heidegger’s statements in the interview: Only a God Can Save Us.
‘Heidegger 50 years on – Is There Still a God That Can Save Us?’ asks people to reflect on our times along with the many questions and themes Heidegger’s philosophy opens up.
We welcome papers across a broad range of areas. These include, but are not limited to: technology, art, politics, Artificial Intelligence, the continental/analytic divide (to the extent that there still is one), history, nihilism and so on. This is very much a ‘Heidegger and…’ conference, and speakers are welcome to focus on Heidegger’s own work, but also Heidegger in relation to other thinkers, those exploring interdisciplinary approaches within and beyond phenomenology, and practitioners who engage with Heideggerian themes in their work.
Topics:
Topics may include, but are not limited to:
History and Theory of Phenomenology (perception, the body, sexuality, emotion, ethics and morality, key thinkers in the history of phenomenology, feminism, gender, race, existentialism, philosophy of religion, phenomenological theology, philosophy of technology)
Art (fine art, photography, video games, poetry, literature, film, architecture, music)
Health and Social Care (medicine, medical humanities, physiotherapy, maternity, disability)
Mental health and Psychological Theories (psychology, psychotherapy, psychiatry, childhood development, trauma studies)
Public Policy and Society (education, policing, law, economics, politics and international relations, science and technology [STEM])
Submission system open now
Deadline for submission: 15 January 2026
Submission review notifications: 1 February 2026
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