1–4 September 2026 | ISCTE – University Institute of Lisbon
The 19th Pan-European Conference on International Relations (PEC 2026) will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, from 1 to 4 September 2026, and will be hosted by ISCTE – University Institute of Lisbon. Organised by the European International Studies Association (EISA), PEC is one of the most prestigious and wide-ranging conferences in International Relations.
Following the highly successful PEC 2025 in Bologna, the 2026 conference will bring together scholars from across the world at the crossroads of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, offering a stimulating intellectual environment to engage with pressing questions in global politics, democracy, governance, migration, and human rights.
Abstract Submission Is Now Open
In addition to the general call for panels and papers, we would like to draw particular attention to Section S38, which is co-chaired by our Academic Board Member, Assoc. Prof. Itır Aladağ Görentaş, together with Marija Pavicevic.
Section S38
Democratic Backsliding, Transnational Accountability, and the Politics of Belonging
Section Chairs:
Marija Pavicevic & Assoc. Prof. Itır Aladağ Görentaş
This section explores how neoliberal dominance has contributed to the rise of populist movements, democratic backsliding, and authoritarian tendencies across regions. Importantly, these dynamics are not confined to the Global South; Western democracies are also deeply implicated, as reflected in differentiated protection regimes, the securitisation of migration and asylum, and selective human rights framings.
Democratic backsliding undermines norms of accountability and human rights. Across Europe and beyond, the convergence of populism, anti-gender politics, shrinking civic spaces, and restrictive migration governance exposes deep tensions between sovereignty, borders, mobility, and multilevel governance. At the same time, the proliferation of “unlikely” political alliances reveals the fragmented and interest-driven logic of contemporary global governance.
Adopting a bottom-up perspective, this section invites contributions that examine how communities targeted by these policies negotiate, resist, or transform them. It also encourages papers that explore whether transnational alliances, regional actors, and grassroots mobilisation can counter democratic erosion under conditions of growing uncertainty.
Important Dates
📌 Paper submission deadline: 19 February 2026
📧 For inquiries: [email protected]
TUIC Akademi strongly encourages scholars working on democracy, migration, human rights, transnational politics, governance, and social movements to submit their work to PEC 2026 in general, and to Section S38 in particular.
