Social Transformations and Sociology: Dispossessions and Empowerment, Nova Gorica, Slovenia, November 21 – 24, 2022

Sociology thrives in making sense of social transformations. But the wide expanse, rapid pace, and abundant varieties of social transformations today demands the supply of new tools and lenses and from different perspectives from sociologists around the world.  The forthcoming ISA Council of National Associations Conference gathers representatives from its member associations to take stock of current social transformations, the dispossessions, as well as the empowerment that these changes create.

Global iterations of power and structure across levels have introduced challenges that our society must confront, from the inequalities of everyday life such as the unequal access to basic needs and the precarity of labor, to the dispossession of autonomy, normalcy and human dignity.

In recent decades, the digital revolution has influenced human interaction, politics, and culture; it has impacted the production, distribution and consumption of knowledge, including sociological knowledge. Despite its promise, it has also introduced new forms of marginalization and isolation, especially in the political process, as it excludes minorities from conversations, among others.  

The conference takes stock of the current turning point the global community is confronted with: Having upended the “normal” in everyday life, the coronavirus pandemic continues to exacerbate the growing polarization of political, economic, and cultural worlds across different societies.

As societies struggle to implement measures in containing the pandemic and other crises sociologists turn to ways in which citizens find themselves empowered as they mobilize resources for the benefit of marginalized, participate in the political process through online and offline platforms, and deepen democracy through engagement in civil society.

Sociology must take up the challenge of making sense of the rapid societal transformations and provide systemic explanations that have practical implications for decision making. The Fifth ISA Council of National Associations Conference invites representatives from national associations to present papers that address the crises of our time and imagine solutions that foster vibrant societies or papers connected in some way to this theme.

Source: isa-sociology.org/