4th Students' Letters Conference 2026

The Institute of Sociology and The Culture Club @ ELTE TaTK at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Eötvös Loránd University, invites Early Career Researchers and Students at the Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral level to submit Academic Papers

 to the 4th Students’ Letters Conference, 2026, on the 20 of November, 2026 at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary.

In-Person Conference. Registration is FREE

Conference Theme: 

“Living with Uncertainty: Social Science Perspectives on Risk”

As Beck (2000:80)1 reminds us:

“The mainstream considers that the concept of society is applicable only to the nation-state. Accordingly, the sociological perspective or gaze (the sociology of inequality, of the family, of politics and so on) is geared to and organized in terms of the nation-state. On the whole, sociology observes, measures and comments on its phenomena, for example, poverty and unemployment within a national context rather than in the context of world society. Within this frame, the theme of globalization means that there are an increasing number of social processes that are indifferent to national boundaries. This is based on an understanding of globalization that decodes it as ‘time–space compression’. Accordingly, for empirical purposes globalization is operationalized as interconnectedness between state societies. All three criteria – indifference to national boundaries, space–time compression and an increasing network-like interconnectedness between national societies – are exemplified primarily by economic globalization.”

We are living in a time when the ground beneath our societies is shifting politically, economically, and culturally at a pace that challenges our ability to make sense of it all. To make an active response to it, the Culture Club @ ELTE TaTK, along with the Institute of Sociology at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, is organizing the 4th Students’ Letters Conference, 2026, titled “Living with Uncertainty: Social Science Perspectives on Risk,” and invites you to explore with us how risk is embedded in the fabric of modern life.

In an era marked by uncertainties jointly shaped by technological transformation, climate change, international migration, and public health challenges, individual experiences, institutional responses, and societal developments are also undergoing unprecedented changes. Drawing on Ulrich Beck’s influential concept of the “risk society,” we comprehend risk not simply as an immediate threat but rather as an unintended byproduct of modernization processes. Risk, instead of existing only on the societal periphery, it becomes increasingly intertwined with everyday life.

The conference offers a space for critical interdisciplinary discussion, reflection, and exchange of ideas on how risk is understood, experienced, and managed across different spheres of social life. We would like to encourage early-career researchers to contribute their critical perspectives that challenge assumptions, build bridges across disciplines, and deepen understanding of how individuals and societies navigate an increasingly uncertain world.

Submissions from all disciplines are welcome including: anthropology, humanities, social sciences, political science, public policy, social work, legal studies, international relations, psychology, philosophy, communication, journalism, management, business, and economic studies.

We believe that diversity in perspectives augment our understanding of the surroundings and only by bringing together different ways of seeing can we gain a more comprehensive understanding of what we are living through. This gathering is about more than sharing academic knowledge. It is also about awakening using the tools of science, research, and reflection to ask what must be done collectively. Critiques are welcome, as are solutions. We invite contributions that not only examine the problems and challenges of our time but also imagine and design ways forward. 

This conference is an open invitation to asses our current reality and to explore the doors that could lead us closer to it. We welcome papers in English Language on themes such as:

-Understanding of Risks and Uncertainty

-Risk management, Policy and Governance

-Social Inequality, Vulnerability, and Justice in risk society

-Environmental Risks and Climate Change

-Legal and Institutional Responses to Risks and Crisis

-International Relations in an Age of Risk and Crisis

-Economic Risks and the Transformation of Future Work

-Technology, AI and Digital Risks

-Migration, Mobility and Human Security in a Risk Society

-Media, Communication, and Public Trust

-Public Health Risks (Health, Well-being, Social Resiliience)

-Any other related theme