Call For Papers

The 49th Annual Meeting of the Society for Utopian Studies

Interconnections between Utopia and Dystopia in Times of Crisis

📅 November 12–14, 2026
đź“Ť Embassy Suites Portland Downtown
Portland, Oregon, USA

Conference Organizers:
Sangita Gopal (Local Chair, University of Oregon)
Edward K. Chan (Program Co-Chair, Waseda University, Tokyo)
Patricia Ventura (Program Co-Chair, Spelman College)
Donald Zarate (Graduate Assistant, University of California, Riverside)

Conference Co-chairs email:
susprogramchair@gmail.com

Proposal Deadline:
June 30, 2026

Individual paper/poster/other submission

Pre-formed full session submission

Conference Theme

A common assertion in utopian studies and beyond recognizes the dialectics of utopia and dystopia. As Ursula K. Le Guin put it (expressing a widely held sentiment), if “[e]very eutopia contains a dystopia, every dystopia contains a eutopia”*: a dream of how things could be, combined with the realities of how things could be worse (or even how they are). Scholarship on the critical utopia and critical dystopia also highlights how the two forms are embedded within each other.

Yet, it is perhaps in times of crisis—when the catastrophes of war, genocide, authoritarianism, continuing and growing economic disparities, blatant discriminations of all varieties, and ecological collapse cannot be ignored—that we need to place emphasis on how to think through the relationship between utopia and dystopia. In this sense, utopia emerges not as an actually existing place to which we can escape but a horizon toward which we can aspire. Utopia becomes a call to action as much as a vision of the possible alternatives that our actions can bring about.

Even as immigrants around the globe are demonized and targeted for violence and arrest, as new acts of colonial aggression are perpetrated, as the U.S. President threatens to control elections, we also see social movements arising, progressive political formations emerging, and people uniting to reject fascism.

The 2026 meeting of the Society for Utopian Studies invites proposals that explore the complex interconnections between utopia and dystopia in historical, theoretical, literary, political, artistic, and practical contexts.

We welcome submissions from scholars in all academic disciplines, as well as from artists, activists, journalists, and community practitioners. As always, the Society for Utopian Studies is committed to fostering dialogue among a wide range of activist, artistic, disciplinary, ideological, and theoretical perspectives.

* “Utopiyin, Utopiyang,” 2015, https://www.ursulakleguin.com/blog/97-utopiyin-utopiyang, (published in No Time to Spare, 2017).

Oregon and the Pacific Northwest

The 2026 conference will be hosted by the University of Oregon’s Center for the Study of Women in Society, which especially welcomes papers and panels addressing gender and utopia in intersectional and international frameworks.

We also invite presentations focusing on figures, histories, and locations connected to Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, whose complex past and present offer rich opportunities for reflecting on this year’s theme.

If the state’s notorious founding in 1859 as a “white utopia” was predicated on banning nonwhite people (particularly disenfranchising Blacks and Asians), it has led in more recent years to “a vibrant Black culture that helped sustain many communities throughout the state,” as Portland State University’s Walidah Imarisha has argued.** And while the Pacific Northwest more generally has been a key site for progressive visions like Ernest Callenbach’s Ecotopia, it has also been the home for racists to imagine their own visions of utopia, such as the white nationalist Northwest Territorial Imperative. Oregon has also been home to several intentional communities, including the Aurora Colony (1856-1883) and the more infamous Rajneeshpuram (1981-1985).***

The literary tradition is represented by Jeff W. Hayes’s Portland, Oregon, A.D. 1999 and Other Sketches (1913), and the University of Oregon houses the papers of numerous science-fiction writers such as Alice B. Sheldon/“James Tiptree Jr.” (1915-1987), Damon Knight (1922-2002), Ursula K. Le Guin (1929-2018), Sally Miller Gearhart (1931-2021), Joanna Russ (1937-2011), Suzy McKee Charnas (1939-2023), and Vonda N. McIntyre (1948-2019), among others, as well as architect Philip Dole who wrote and taught about utopia at the university.

Examples of Oregon-based activism and art include the Utopia PDX Queer and Trans Pacific Islanders organization in Portland and artist Camas Logue (Klamath Tribes), whose works have been included in Indigenous Futurism exhibitions.

** “Why Aren’t There More Black People in Oregon? A Hidden History,” A Conversation with Walidah Imarisha at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, February 23, 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWC-8hvP7aY&t=11s. 

*** As documented in Eden Within Eden: Oregon’s Utopian Heritage (2009) by James J. Kopp, who was born in Oregon and served as director of the Aubrey R. Watzek Library at Portland’s Lewis & Clark College.

Types of Presentations

We welcome proposals for a variety of formats, including:

  • Individual Papers: 15-20 minute presentations
  • Panels: Pre-formed panels with up to 4 presenters
  • Roundtables: Informal discussions on a particular topic with 3-5 presenters
  • Workshops: Practice-oriented session on a particular topic with up to 6 presenters
  • Creative Presentations: Artistic performances or creative works
  • Poster or Multimedia Displays: Visual or audio presentations, demonstrations, or installations
  • Alternative Formats: lightning talks, PechaKucha-style presentations, other innovative sessions with up to 6 presenters

Conference sessions will typically run 75-90 minutes.

We especially encourage pre-formed full sessions (e.g., panels) that allow for audience discussion and engagement.

Submission Guidelines

Proposal length: 250–300 words for individual papers/presentations and group session descriptions

Submissions should clearly describe the topic, argument/purpose, and format of the proposed presentation.

Proposals for both individual presentations and group sessions are welcome.

Proposed Categories

When submitting proposals, please categorize your presentation according to its primary emphasis:

  • Film and Visual Culture
  • Identity
  • Intentional Communities, Urban Planning, Architecture
  • Internet, Social Media, Video Games, and Digital Culture
  • Literature
  • Music and Performing Arts
  • Pedagogy
  • Political and Social Thought
  • Social Movements
  • Other (please specify)

If applicable, authors may indicate multiple categories.

Important Dates

Proposal Submission Deadline: June 30, 2026

Additional details regarding registration, keynote speakers, and the conference program will be available on their corresponding webpage.

About the Society for Utopian Studies

The Society for Utopian Studies is an interdisciplinary international association devoted to the study of utopianism in literature, political theory, philosophy, architecture, intentional communities, social movements, and other cultural forms. The annual meeting provides a collaborative environment for scholars, artists, activists, and practitioners to share research and explore the many ways utopian thought shapes cultural and political life.

The Society is also accepting nominations and/or submissions for the Lewis, Hough, Sargent, and Roemer awards.  For graduate students, there is also the Nicole LaRose travel grant. For information, please see the Awards tab of the SUS website.

For questions regarding submissions or the conference program, please contact: susprogramchair@gmail.com