The CES 2026 conference is organized in close cooperation with UCD

Conference Location: University College, Dublin

Conference co-chairs: Karen Anderson (UCD), Imelda Maher (UCD), and David Phinnemore (Queen’s University Belfast)

Integrity, Solidarity, and Unity: Hopes and Realities of the European Future

European society, politics, law, and culture are imbued with shared ideas of integrity, solidarity, and unity. The end of the Cold War redrew the map of Europe as once oppressed societies gained independence and territorial integrity after decades, or even centuries of domination. But integrity was not simply related to borders, it was inextricably linked to solidarity– the idea that European countries would join together to promote social progress and democracy through shared ideas and institutions advancing European unity, however defined. Solidarity also captures Europe’s efforts to build social and political institutions — the welfare state broadly defined — to provide collectively financed and organized social protections. Indeed, the “European Social Model” no matter how flawed, is for many the standard against which all advanced democratic societies should be judged. Similarly, solidarity implies individual autonomy embodied in shared values such as fundamental rights and the right to social protection.

European hopes around integrity, solidarity, and unity rest on loosely shared understandings of what the future should hold. Dashed hopes of the past show the importance of embedding individual and collective hopes in values of integrity and solidarity and in social and political realities. Seeking to realize hope through agency and an articulation of shared goals creates space for the exploration and realization of potential futures for Europe. The integrity of collective hopes grounded in shared values also means reimagining European futures in response to realities. Indeed, Russia’s war against Ukraine, the radical reorientation of US policies toward Europe since January 2025, and the increasing flow of migrants and refugees from outside of Europe are daunting realities.

Ireland is an ideal location for the CES conference, situated on Europe’s western coast and of all European countries the one geographically closest to North America. Ireland is an island that has forever looked beyond its shores: from the early medieval period when Irish monks travelled throughout Europe leading to the title of Insula Sanctorum et Doctorum, to the Wild Geese – Irish soldiers of the late 17th century, and the departure of famished and impoverished migrants from the mid-19th century following the Great Famine when the United States and Canada became key destinations. Transformed in the late 20th century, a country that challenges the boundaries of post-colonial studies, Ireland is the European home for many of the leading tech and pharma multinationals, a gateway into the European Union single market. It is also the first country in the world to adopt marriage equality by popular vote. The island is an important location for the arts and culture. Irish authors and poets have made an exceptional contribution to English literature while Ireland’s ancient language, Irish/Gaeilge, is one of the oldest living languages in Europe.

The conference is organized on an all-island basis, recognizing both the richness of scholarship that exists across Ireland and Northern Ireland and the continuing near invisibleness of the border, despite Brexit. The conference will officially open on June 16th, Bloomsday, the day on which Leopold Bloom meanders around Dublin in Ulysses, that most local and most European of novels, authored by James Joyce — the most celebrated alumnus of UCD.

We invite papers, panels, roundtables, and other kinds of presentations that explore these themes from a multidisciplinary and multilevel perspective. We welcome submissions related to other topics related to European Studies, as well as the inclusion of underrepresented groups and early-career scholars.

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If you do not have a CES login. Please create one here.  Once you register your email, you will use your email and password to log in to the application system. If you do not remember your CES membership login details, please email us at events@ces-europe.org

You do not need to be a member to submit an application, however, you must be a CES member to be eligible for discounted rates. All presenters, chairs and discussants must register in order to participate at the conference. To become a member or renew your membership here. 

If you have any questions or need assistance, please email us at: events@ces-europe.org.