ECPS organises a three-day symposium on the interplay between populism, religion, and civilizationism from local, national, transnational, international and global perspectives. Evaluating their combined impact on plural societies, intergroup relations, social cohesion and democratic institutions, the symposium will analyze how populists from diverse cultural, geographical, and political contexts both in Global North and Global South interact with and employ religion, civilizationism and digital technologies in their discourses and performances.

Themes include but are not limited to:

- Civilizational populism in the Global South and the Global North (proposals about situations in Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Indo-Pacific and Southeast Asia are particularly welcome).
- Digital technologies, including the use of AI, and civilizational populism (e.g., new opportunities to communicate and politically mobilize and the implications for the future of civilizational populism).
- Local, national and transnational dynamics of civilizational populism and their policy implications.
- Impact of civilizational populism on intergroup emotions of different ethnoreligious and political groups in societies, social cohesion and civility.
- The impact of civilizational populism in contexts of acute intergroup conflict, including political violence and war.
- Authoritarianism, authoritarian state and non-state actors and their modes of promotion of civilizational populism.
- Foreign policy, inter-state relations and civilizational populism.
- Neo liberalism, market and civilizational populism.

Target Audience
Policymakers, academics, researchers, civil society organizations, and practitioners in political science, sociology, international relations, and public policy. 

Key Dates
- Abstract Submission Deadline: 15 October 2024.
- Notification of Acceptance: 30 October 2024.
- Paper Draft and PowerPoint Presentation Submission: 15 April 2025.
- Symposium Dates: 21-23 May 2025.

Submission Guidelines
- Abstract (600-800 words) and bio submissions (300-400 words) are invited to explore the symposium’s themes. 
- Submissions should include a clear methodology, theoretical framework, argument and potential contributions to the existing scholarship on populism. 
- Please indicate the relevance of your research to the symposium themes and its overall focus.
- Add a few keywords to your abstract.

Contact Information
For inquiries and submissions, please contact the Symposium Coordinator Prof. Ibrahim Ozturk at iozturk@populismstudies.org

For more information, please see:

Many thanks, 

Martina Micozzi

Outreach Coordinator at ECPS