Call for Papers

RLUK27 Conference, Belfast, 10-12 March 2027 [CfP Open]

Research Libraries UK 2027 Conference call now open

RLUK27 Conference | Belfast | 10-12 March 2027

The Living Library, Shaped by People

💠 The RLUK27 Conference call for papers is now open. The deadline for submissions is 17:00 (GMT) on Monday 26 October 2026

🔗 Read the full CFP at https://rlukconference.com/

RLUK27 is an international conference that is open to all. We welcome submissions from all colleagues who share our commitment to reshape scholarship and the role of the research library. We look forward to hearing from a range of voices that will challenge, disrupt and inspire us.

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Research libraries are dynamic, living infrastructures of knowledge, exchange, and collective progress. A library’s life is expressed through continual evolution – in the way that they sense, respond, and evolve to the complexities of the communities and institutions that they serve.

💠 RLUK27 will explore how this ‘life’ is shaped in the research library and how this helps to sustain the foundations of a healthier, more humane society. 

The main conference themes will include, but are not limited to, the following: 

The stories we tell: How research libraries define themselves, and how they are understood by others, raises important questions about our relevance, value, and visibility. With continual social, economic, and technological shifts, is this now an opportune moment for us to tell stronger narratives around the breadth of the work that we do? Can we update outmoded perceptions, both within and outside the academy, of the purpose and value of the library as a passive support system for scholarship and research? How do we evidence our role as dynamic, strategic partners in the creation, organisation, and circulation of knowledge? And how do we show that we are an active force for economic development, cultural vitality, and social resilience?

The bridges we build: Our collections are profoundly human. In the multiplicity of the histories, voices, and perspectives they document, our collections reflect an infinite complexity of individual lives lived and collective experiences had. The library is perhaps one of the few spaces where it is possible to soberly reflect on difficult and contentious pasts, through exhibitions, oral histories, events and other programming, and through this provide a shared ground for dialogue, understanding, and reconciliation. We wish to explore the unique role research libraries can bring as stewards of knowledge and how this can contribute towards collective healing and social cohesion.

The futures we create: We are operating in a time of increasingly severe financial constraints, which can have a detrimental impact not just on our budgets, but also the morale, performance, and potential of our people too. If traditional funding structures become further constricted, is this now the time for research libraries to look to alternative sources of funds to make an increasing contribution towards financial stability? How can partnerships with external organisations and donors remain mutually beneficial whilst ensuring that libraries stay true to their core mission and values? How can philanthropic activities help libraries further innovative and specialist programmes that may sit outside our core spend? Is there a risk that non-standard funding could reshape our libraries and services in unintended ways? How can we assess and mitigate against such risks?

The technology we shape: In an era defined by rapid technological change, particularly the rise of AI and other emerging technologies, how can libraries help to shape flexible, interoperable, and future-facing knowledge infrastructures, whilst keeping human needs, values, and relationships at the centre of any infrastructural change?

The meaning we bring: Research libraries are increasingly recognised not only as centres of scholarship, but also as civic institutions that create public value and strengthen community connections. We seek to explore their evolving civic role: how they meaningfully engage communities beyond the university, support community building, and expand the reach and relevance of special and heritage collections beyond the campus. How is a growing emphasis on civic priorities reshaping library collections, spaces, and professional practices?

Linked Pasts (LOD) 23-25 Nov [CfP closes 13th Sept]

Linked Pasts – Call for Participation

University of Porto, 23–25 November 2026

https://linkedpasts.hcommons.org/2026/06/23/linked-pasts-12-programme

The annual Linked Pasts Symposium brings together scholars, heritage professionals and other practitioners with an interest in Linked Open Data (LOD) as applied to the study of the ancient and historical world. All the activities taking place in the Linked Pasts are goal-oriented discussions and collaborations, instead of research presentations as is usual in a conventional academic conference. Activities and agendas are often proposed, developed and revised by all participants at the event itself. The Linked Pasts Symposium is a formal partner of the Pelagios Network. 

The 12th Linked Pasts annual symposium will be hosted in-person from 23–25 November 2026 by the CODA — Centre for Digital Culture and Innovation, at the University of Porto.

Sessions can relate to any application of Linked Open Data towards history, archaeology, culture and heritage, but this year we particularly welcome proposals for activities in the areas of:

  • Semantic annotation
  • Gazetteer and ontology development/alignment
  • Data enrichment and reconciliation
  • Knowledge Graphs
  • Digital mapping and visualisation
  • Working with uncertain or incomplete data
  • Linked Open Data and AI
    • KG, Semantics and their combination with other relevant AI technologies
    • Transformer-based language models and their implications for LOD
  • Discoverability and usability
  • Sustainability, preservation and reuse
  • FAIR and CARE principles
  • Ethical and environmental impact
  • Community building and collaboration

Call for Activities

Activities in the event are collected in three categories: Sessions, Mini Demos & Posters.
Language: English.

Session

You will be organising a session or a series of sessions, and providing topics and an agenda for the discussion. Sessions, which could include collaborative activities, discussions, tutorials, hackathons, standards or project planning, etc. Proposers should submit an abstract of 300–500 words, including the background, objective, possible topics, main audience, and an estimated number of (1.5 hour) sessions you require.

Mini Demo & Poster

In an abstract of 300–500 words, proposers of Mini Demos should explain in detail the tool, service or method they intend to demonstrate in the session; while Posters introduce early-stage research or preliminary results. Mini Demos and Posters will be briefly presented on Wednesday 24 November. Posters will be on display for the entire duration of the conference and will offer an additional opportunity for informal networking.

Important dates

Call for Sessions, Mini Demos & Posters: 1 July – 13 September 2026 – Submit your proposal here.
Notification of acceptance: 30 September 2026
Registration: 1 October – 15 November 2026. Participation in the conference is free, but advance registration is required.

Programme Committee

  • Chair: Vera Moitinho de Almeida (University of Porto)
  • Gabriel Bodard (University of London)
  • Uldis Bojārs (National Library of Latvia)
  • Anna Foka (University of Uppsala)
  • Leif Isaksen (University of Exeter)
  • David Lindemann (University of the Basque Country)
  • Sarah Middle (Archaeology Data Service, University of York)
  • Richard Nevell (Wikimedia UK)
  • Jun Ogawa (University of Tokyo)
  • Chiara Palladino (Durham University)
  • Luís Trigo (University of Porto)

Emerging Digital Methodologies CfP [18 Nov, Oxford, Call closes Aug 28th]

Call for Papers now open | Emerging Digital Methodologies Conference 2026

We are inviting graduate students and early career researchers who are applying new digital methodologies to the humanities, and related fields, to share that research at the Emerging Digital Methodologies Conference 2026 in Oxford on Wednesday 18 November 2026. 

Since the turn of the millennium, digital and computational methodologies have become increasingly prolific at the cutting edge of language and humanities research. This conference invites graduate students and early career researchers applying new digital methodologies to the humanities and related fields to share that research. We are particularly interested in hearing about research involving digital methods being used to rethink established fields, new applications for conventional digital methods, and how digital methodologies are being translated in the cross-disciplinary space.

This in-person conference sponsored by the Jesus College Cheng Kar Shun Digital Hub and Voltaire Foundation invites presenters from any discipline to submit papers on:

· New applications of digital methods

· The use case and problems of any digital method

· How digital methodologies are changing their field

We invite submissions in the following formats:

· 7-minute lightning talks (especially suitable for early findings or work-in-progress)

· 15-minute papers

· 30-minute roundtable conversations (minimum 3 participants)

The conference will capture a wide range of subject areas across the many communities of scholars taking-up digital methods – both from novices and expert practitioners. Papers could include, for example, ‘Problems of LLM’s in the Humanities’, ‘ChatGPT and visual culture’, ‘A Network Analysis of 16c Europe’, ‘Crafting music in the age of AI’, ‘The problems of control-f in the modern age’, ‘Book culture and language models’, ‘NLP processing of 20c films’, etc.

Tickets for the conference will be £38 pounds per-person, including tea breaks, lunch and a wine reception. More information to follow.

To apply, please complete the form below with a proposal for a paper (200 words maximum) and a short biography (50 words maximum) by 5pm (UK British Summer Time) on Tuesday 28 August 2026.

To apply to speak, you can submit a 200-word abstract and a short biography using the form available here. 

MeCCSA Postgraduate Conference – Media and Sustainability [Calls closes May 25th]

MeCCSA Postgraduate Network Conference

We are pleased to say that due to exceptional demand, we are extending the deadline to submit an abstract for the 2026 MeCCSA Postgraduate Network Conference, which will take place on 9th September 2026 in the Minghella Studios, University of Reading. The new deadline is Monday 25th May 2026.

This year’s theme is Media and Sustainability and invites postgraduate researchers to explore how media industries, forms, cultures, and research practices endure, adapt, resist or reimagine themselves within unstable or emerging environments. We also encourage reflection on the sustainability of academic and creative labour, and the infrastructures that support media work.  

Participants are encouraged to interpret the conference theme broadly and creatively. Submissions from interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary perspectives are warmly welcomed, including practice-based work.  

Possible areas of interest include, but are not limited to:  

  • Sustainable media industries: policy, production cultures, funding, and independent practice. 
  • Sustainable creative and research methodologies: slow scholarship, decolonial and feminist methods, ethics of care, collaboration and community partnership. 
  • Environmental sustainability and media: climate communication, ecocinema, eco-media, green production, and environmental representation.  
  • Sustainable archives and preservation: memory, heritage, obsolescence, and care for audiovisual materials.  
  • Sustainable digital technologies and infrastructures: platforms, AI, media infrastructure, resource extraction, and the environmental costs of data.  
  • Sustainable identities and communities: queer, Indigenous, diasporic, and disabled media-making. Visibility, survival, and continuity.  
  • Sustaining the self: wellbeing, burnout, emotional labour, and the lived realities of postgraduate research.   

In recognition of the diverse ways postgraduate researchers work and communicate research, we invite proposals in a range of formats, including:  

  • Paper presentations (15 minutes) 
  • Panel proposals (typically 3-5 named contributors) 
  • Practice-based or creative contributions, including film, audiovisual work, performance or artistic practice 

We particularly welcome work-in-progress and contributions from early-stage postgraduate researchers.  

Submission deadline: Monday 25th May 2026 at midday (GMT)

Submission link: Microsoft Form

Further details can be found here. Alternatively, feel free to email us with any questions.

Digital Humanities Congress 2026, Sheffield, UK [CfP closes March 2nd]

Digital Humanities Congress 2026 CfP

A reminder that the deadline to submit your proposals for the Digital Humanities Congress 2026 is approaching on Monday, 2nd March 2026.

Hosted by the Digital Humanities Institute (DHI) at the University of Sheffield, this biennial event is an opportunity to meet with researchers, technologists, and heritage professionals from across the digital humanities. Whether you are working on AI applications, 3D visualization, innovative digital editions or other areas of research, we want to hear from you.

Submit your proposal here: www.dhi.ac.uk/congress