CfP: NSU Theorizing transitions - ext deadline 25/4

[Anders Hylmö]

*** apologies for cross-posting ***

Dear colleagues,

Perhaps this summer session on Theorizing transitions may be of interest to you or someone in your network. Deadline for abstracts has been extended until 25th April.

 

This event is part of the Nordic Summer University 2025 Summer session, a week-long gathering of multiple study-circles inviting in-depth reflection and dialogues in an open, democratic and relaxed format. We invite papers contributing to a critical but friendly dialogue on topics related to theorizing societal transitions to sustainability.

 

Please feel free to circulate!

 

All the best,

Anders Hylmö & Jakob Lundgren, coordinators

 

***

 

Call for Papers: Theorizing sustainability transitions and transformations

 

NSU Summer session 2025, July 21 – 28, Jyväskylä, Finland

 

Facing the increasingly severe crisis of rapid anthropogenic climate change and biodiversity loss, the need for a major societal transition to more sustainable forms of living is beyond doubt. Across different research fields, policy makers and social movements, there is a broad shared understanding that such a societal transition or transformation involves restructuring the complex socio-technical or social-ecological systems. This involves significant change to our economies, institutions, culture, technology, physical energy and resource flows, and relation to the biosphere. Furthermore, such a far-reaching transition will also have to address social justice.

 

This need for a societal transition or transformation invites a host of different theoretical issues that are addressed in various scholarly communities. While researchers in the sustainability transitions field are concerned with the mechanics of evolutionary change socio-technical systems, (Andersen and Geels 2023; Geels 2011; Kanger and Schot 2019; Köhler et al. 2019), other conversations focus on concepts such as socio-ecological systems (Young et al. 2006) or sustainability transformations (Child and Breyer 2017; Hölscher, Wittmayer, and Loorbach 2018). Still others focus on macroeconomic issues, such as limits to growth, steady-state or degrowth economies, challenging the established capitalistic system (Kallis et al. 2018; Kerschner 2010), including the problems of decoupling economic growth from environmental impact and the resilience of capitalism (Warlenius 2023). Neo-Gramscian political economists focus on the analysis of power in transitions (Newell, Paterson, and Craig 2021) and the literature on Just Transitions centers on issues of environmental justice (McCauley and Heffron 2018). This abundance and variety of not always linked conversations and approaches to the same common challenge raises multiple conceptual questions. Beyond academia, societal actors including policymakers, activists, private companies and civil society all embody different theories of change as they strive to enact transitions or transformations. Although these theoretical issues are discussed at length in their respective fields, there are few cross-cutting discussions about common ground, contrasts, contradictions, or complementarities.

 

We invite papers addressing all manner of theoretical issues related to sustainability transitions (broadly understood), with the hope to provide a forum where such perspectives can meet and interact in critical but friendly dialogue. Potential topics could be critical discussion, comparison or development of concepts or theoretical frameworks in these literatures, for example through bringing different concepts, theoretical traditions or literatures into productive dialogue. We furthermore invite empirical contributions addressing the mobilization and negotiation of transition theories by various actors, for example in governance processes or by social movements. We encourage work in progress papers and interdisciplinary work challenging established literatures and theories.

 

The session is a part of the Nordic Summer University (NSU) Summer Session 2025. NSU is a Nordic independent academic institution, which organizes winter and summer symposia that draw international participants across disciplines in the Nordic and Baltic regions. Focusing on crossing sectoral and disciplinary boundaries, NSU provides opportunities for participants to be challenged out of their intellectual comfort zones in a non-hierarchical space that encourages slow thinking and reflective dialogue.

Within NSU, this session is arranged by the three-year NSU study circle Act, React, and Reflect: Meta-perspectives on Climate Change Knowledge. The study circle focuses on the challenges to established forms of knowledge production posed by the need for a response to climate change. Aside from the 2025 summer session’s focus on societal transitions, we have also discussed or plan to discuss expertise, academic activism, planning and markets, denialism and obstruction, and boundary crossing. While the main topic of this session will be theorizing transitions, we also welcome submissions relating to these topics or any other that deal with challenges to established knowledge production due to climate change.

 

Format
The summer session will be structured around in-depth discussions of participants’ submitted papers. This NSU summer session will take place in Jyväskylä, Finland during a full week (July 21 – 28). An NSU Summer session is host to multiple parallel study circles, and participants are welcome to join other study circle’s session, and a range of cultural and social activities. Our summer session will also include a joint workshop co-organized with the NSU study circle Exnovation and Degrowth, whose summer session “Building community in the midst of collapse: organizing towards degrowth futures” takes a more practice- and social movement-oriented approach to the issue of degrowth and transformation.

 

Travels, accommodation and children
Accommodation (full board) is organized by NSU and included in the conference participation fee.  Information about accommodation and pricing will be available at the NSU website. For participants with children, NSU organizes a “childrens’ circle” with daytime activities for children between 3-13.

For PhD students/students/independent/early career researchers without institutional funding, a travel grant may be offered to partially cover travel costs and participation fee. NSU furthermore offers a scholarship and grant program where recipients can participate at a reduced fee. See the NSU website for details. Please indicate interest in travel grant/scholarship in your abstract submission.

 

ECTS credits for PhD students
Upon request, PhD students who attend the summer session and present a paper will be granted, through NSU, a letter recommending 3 ECTS credits for active participations.

 

Submission and important dates
Extended Deadline for abstracts:  25 April 2025

Proposals should be written in English and include title, author name(s), email, affiliation, a short bio (max 200 words) and your abstract (max 350 words). Submit your proposal by email to the coordinators: jakob.l...@hh.se and anders...@hh.se

Notifications of acceptance: Accepted proposals will be notified at the latest by 30 April.

Registration deadline: 15 May. Registration is done through the NSU webshop.

Full paper deadline: Participants should prepare to submit a full paper by July 4th. Papers may be work in progress at any stage of completion.

 

Coordinators

Jakob Lundgren (PhD), School of Business, Innovation and sustainability, Halmstad University, Sweden. Email jakob.l...@hh.se

Anders Hylmö (PhD),School of Business, Innovation and sustainability, Halmstad University, Sweden. Email anders...@hh.se

 

Circle and CfP on NSU Web: https://www.nsuweb.org/circle-7-act-react-reflect-meta-perspectives-on-climate-change-knowledge/