The Sustainable Welfare and Eco-Social Policy Network will hold its first-ever in-person conference in Brussels from 9-11 September 2026.
The event is hosted by the Université libre de Bruxelles and jointly organized by the Network, ULB, the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), the MERGE project, and the WELRISCC project.
If you want to participate in the conference, please provide an abstract of max. 400 words by February 13th, 2026.
We invite contributions that address the eco-social topics in a broad sense in its political, social, economic, and epistemic dimensions.
The following themes may serve as inspiration, but contributions can also cover other topics:
- (Un)just Transitions: Justice, redistribution, and intersectionality
Who bears the costs and who reaps the benefits of eco-social transformation? How do class, gender, race, and geography shape pathways toward (or away from) justice — and what policies can mitigate and prevent new inequalities?
- Eco-Social Risks and Vulnerabilities: Mapping insecurities and institutions
How do ecological degradation, climate impacts, and socio-economic inequalities intersect to produce new patterns of risk, vulnerabilities and precarity? What are the implications for social protection, wellbeing, and political stability across regions?
- The European and Global Governance of Transformation
How do EU institutions, international organizations, and transnational policy networks shape eco-social change? What tensions arise between national welfare models, supranational regulation, and global justice concerns?
- The Eco-Social Role of the State: Steering, blocking, or bypassed?
How can states navigate the tension between economic growth, ecological limits, and social justice? What capacities, forms of legitimacy, or political constraints shape their role in eco-social transformations — from national welfare systems to global governance
- Eco-Social Conflict and Societal Frictions: Movements, resistance, and the struggle for change
What social forces drive or resist eco-social transformation? How do conflicts — within and across movements, parties, and policy fields — shape the politics of transition?
- Postgrowth and the Ecologicalization of Welfare
How must welfare systems be transformed to function growth-independently? How can welfare systems support environmental-friendly living and reduce environmental impacts
- Policy Integration and Institutional Change: Governing welfare and sustainability together
How are ecological and social objectives integrated — or kept apart — in contemporary policy-making? What institutional mechanisms, policy mixes, or governance innovations facilitate coordination across welfare, environmental, and economic domains? Which eco-social policies could enhance inclusive wellbeing within planetary boundaries
- From Needs to Institutions: Operationalizing just and sustainable societies
How can welfare institutions, public services, or commons be redesigned to meet human needs within ecological boundaries? What frameworks, indicators, or governance arrangements support this reorientation
- Revisiting the Positivism Debate Today
How do we balance analysis, advocacy and normative visions in times of crisis? What is at stake when research claims neutrality — and who benefits from it
- Activism & Academia: Crossing, blurring, or guarding the line
How do scholars engage with social movements and policy arenas without losing credibility or autonomy? Can academic and activist practices reinforce one another in transformative ways?
These themes are guidelines rather than fixed tracks. Applicants may indicate which theme(s) their paper resonates with, but panels will be curated flexibly to foster dialogue across boundaries. We also welcome new themes that challenge, expand, or reconfigure existing debates.
The standard format of scholarly engagement will be paper presentations and discussions. Furthermore, participants can also submit proposals for closed sessions (i.e., a group of three or four already defined papers plus a chair of max three persons). Furthermore, to create an open and engaging atmosphere, the conference also aims to include diverse formats for scholarly interaction.
Therefore, when submitting, you will be asked whether you are interested in one or more of the following options:
- Only participating in the standard paper presentation,
- Chairing a session,
- Participating in an in-depth paper development session using Korpi’s rule (your paper is presented by another participant; you listen to the discussion and respond at the end — full paper due mid-July),
- Joining a research-policy dialogue session that brings together scholars and stakeholders.
Submission guidelines and deadlines
- Abstracts: max. 400 words
- Submission via: Submission link will be made available at in January 2026
- Deadline: February 13th, 2026
- Review process: Abstracts will be evaluated by external reviewers and the organisers
- Notification of acceptance: March 20th, 2026