Navigating a Fractured World: Struggles for Survival and Solidarity
EWIS 2026, to be held in Izmir, will take place at a time of great challenges and clear failures in the international sphere. The first two decades of the 21st century have left a profound mark on the international political, institutional, and social order. A series of dramatic events – such as escalating wars and genocide, climate change and wildfires, gender backlash, or the persistent crises of capitalism – have heightened uncertainty and existential anxiety worldwide. As a result, this era is often referred to as the ‘fracture time’ or ‘emergency age’, where tectonic political shifts have proven highly contingent, with their disruptive effects extending beyond national borders. Actors at all levels are navigating a landscape of enduring fears and insecurities, both physical and ontological.
Against this background, pessimism and negativity seem like natural responses. Still, struggles for survival and solidarity persist. While the failure of the international institutional order to deliver justice pushes us to a dark worldview, resistance remains a life-and-death necessity for many. Critical scholars, together with activists and subaltern voices, have turned to rage or anger as productive spaces from which to seek justice. We encourage colleagues to engage with failure and anxiety in similar ways, centring conflict, loss, and violence, as well as possibilities, repair, and alternatives.
The 13th iteration of EWIS at the Izmir University of Economics invites scholars to reflect on today’s turbulent international climate and the debates surrounding the future of the liberal, Western-led world order. We welcome proposals addressing alternative visions of world politics, including critiques of globalism, the civilizational turn, populism, and skepticism toward multilateralism. We also encourage questions on the growing assertiveness of non-Western and regional powers, the impact of historical and cultural contexts on their approaches, and the role of persistent North–South inequalities. Finally, we invite reflections on how risks such as the uncontrolled expansion of AI, renewed wars, democratic backsliding, and economic crises intersect with opportunities for transformative change, and what new frameworks of global governance might emerge beyond Western hegemony.
