Programme

Speakers at The Paris Conference on Education (PCE) will provide a variety of perspectives from different academic and professional backgrounds. This page provides details of presentations and other programming. For more information about presenters, please visit the Speakers page.

Monday, June 15 to Thursday, June 18, 2026, will be held at the Sorbonne University International Conference Center (CICSU), Paris, France. Friday, June 19 will be held online.

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Conference Outline

Monday, June 15, 2026Tuesday, June 16Wednesday, June 17Thursday, June 18Friday, June 19

All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+2)

Location: Sorbonne University International Conference Center (CICSU)

09:00-10:00: Conference Check-in & Coffee | Auditorium Foyer (B1F)

10:00-10:30: Welcome Addresses & Recognition of IAFOR Scholarship Winners | Auditorium (B1F) & Online
Joseph Haldane, IAFOR, Japan

10:35-10:50: Special Address | Auditorium (B1F) & Online

10:55-11:20: Keynote Presentation | Auditorium (B1F) & Online
François Taddei, Learning Planet Institute, France
11:20-11:35: Q&A

11:40-12:05: Keynote Presentation | Auditorium (B1F) & Online
How Can We Justify the Humanities at the Edge of AI?
Olivier Guillet, Institut Supérieur du Droit, France
12:05-12:20: Q&A

12:20-12:30: Conference Photograph

12:30-14:00: Extended Break

14:00-15:00: Featured Panel Discussion | Auditorium (B1F) & Online
250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
Lori Maguire, Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne, France
Andrew Smith, Emporia State University, United States
Brendan Howe, Ewha Womans University, South Korea (Moderator)

15:30-16:30: Cultural Event: Chanson Workshop Further details
French singer-songwriter Sophie Leliwa brings to life the story and songs of French chanson.

16:30-17:30: Conference Welcome Reception & Conference Poster Session | Auditorium Foyer (B1F)

20:00-22:00: Conference Dinner | Bofinger Further details
This is an optional ticketed event

All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+2)

Location: Sorbonne University International Conference Center (CICSU)

08:30-08:45: Conference Check-in | Room 102 (1F)

08:45-09:15: Conference Orientation for First-Time Presenters | Room 108 (1F)

09:20-10:20: The Forum (Onsite) | Room 108 (1F)
The Role of the Arts & Humanities in Troubling Times: Part II
Donald E. Hall, Binghamton University, United States (Respondent)
Melina Neophytou, IAFOR, Japan (Moderator)

The Forum is a plenary session designed as a platform for international, intercultural, interdisciplinary—and inclusive—discussions, joining experts and practitioners alike in an open dialogue format. Come share your thoughts and experiences as global educators and researchers.

10:20-10:50: Networking Coffee Break

10:50-12:30: Onsite Parallel Session 1
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Increasing Student Engagement in the Online Classroom (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Professional Development in Higher Education
Room 107 (1F): PCE | Foreign Languages Education and Applied Linguistics
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Generative AI in Higher Education
Room 109 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Teaching and Learning in Teacher Education
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Education, Sustainability, and Society
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | Representations in Arts and Media
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Aesthetics and Design

12:30-13:30: Extended Break

13:30-15:10: Onsite Parallel Session 2
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Improving Assessment with Diagnostic Classification Models (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Education Policy and Leadership
Room 107 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Approaches to Language Learning
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Design and Implementation of Technology in Education
Room 109 (1F): PCE | Learning Experiences in Higher Education
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Sustainability and Leadership in Education
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | Arts - Performing Arts Practices
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Media, Literature, Communication

15:10-15:55: Networking Session: Flash Presentations
Maximise your visibility with the opportunity to network and showcase your research highlights. Simultaneously, you will gain a comprehensive overview of other presenters, helping you identify potential collaborators and must-see sessions. This session is open to all delegates, including those who have already presented. Pre-registration is required. Space is limited.

15:55-17:35: Onsite Parallel Session 3
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Ethical AI-competency Goals in Higher Education Curricula (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Educational Leadership and Administration
Room 107 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Language, Linguistics, and Humanities
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Digital Technology in Higher Education
Room 109 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Philosophy and Educational Research
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Teaching Experiences and Teacher Education
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | Arts - Arts Theory and Criticism
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Theories and Politics in Arts and Media

All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+2)

Location: Sorbonne University International Conference Center (CICSU)

09:00-09:30: Conference Check-in | Room 102 (1F)

09:30-10:30: Featured Roundtable | Room 108 (1F)
Senior Academic Leadership
Christopher Cripps, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, France
Donald E. Hall, Binghamton University, United States
Ljiljana Markovic, European Center for Peace and Development, Serbia

10:30-11:00: Networking Coffee Break

11:00-12:40: Onsite Parallel Session 1
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Enacting Transformative Change for Black Children (Panel)
Room 106 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Knowledge Creation and Management
Room 107 (1F): PCE | Education and Differences: Learning Difficulties
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Creativity and Innovation in Education
Room 109 (1F): PCE | Professional Training in Education
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Design and Implementation of Innovative Technology in Education
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | Ethnicity, Difference, Identity
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Literature Studies

12:40-12:55: Break

12:55-14:35: Onsite Parallel Session 2
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Designing Transdisciplinary Learning Spaces in Higher Education (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Curriculum Design and Development
Room 107 (1F): PCE | Learning Experiences, Student Learning and Learner Diversity
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Human Emotional and Cognitive Development
Room 109 (1F): PCE | Professional Training, Development, and Concerns in Education
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Innovative Technology in Education
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | Social Studies
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Contemporary Literature and Poetics

14:35-15:05: Networking Coffee Break

15:05-16:45: Onsite Parallel Session 3
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Comparative Approaches to Teaching and Learning
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Curriculum Design and Development
Room 107 (1F): PCE | Teaching Experiences, Pedagogy, and Interdisciplinary Education
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Mind, Brain, and Psychology in Educational Contexts
Room 109 (1F): PCE | Counselling, Guidance, and Adjustment in Education
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Innovative Technology in Teacher Education
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | History and Politics
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | History and Gender in Literature

16:45-17:00: Break

17:00-18:15: Onsite Parallel Session 4
Room 105 (1F): PCAH | Measuring and Funding the Public Value of the Arts (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Embodying Relational Leadership (Workshop)
Room 109 (1F): PCE | Counselling, Guidance, and Adjustment in Education
Room 112 (1F): PCE | AI, Pedagogy, and Teaching Experiences
Room 114 (1F): PCAH | Nation and Immigration
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Literature/Literary Studies

All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+2)

Location: Sorbonne University International Conference Center (CICSU)

08:30-09:30: Conference Check-in | Room 102 (1F)

09:30-11:10: Onsite Parallel Session 1
Room 105 (1F): PCAH | Fostering Identity in Children of the Original Peoples (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Implementation of Technology in Education
Room 108 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Experiential Learning
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Creativity and Innovation in Higher Education
Room 114 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Culture, Inter/Multiculturalism, and Language
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Arts - Media Arts Practices: Television and Film
Room FSI 125 (1F): PCE | Learning Experiences in Foreign Languages Education

11:10-11:40: Networking Coffee Break

11:40-13:20: Onsite Parallel Session 2
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Re-Engaging Demotivated Students (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Digital Technology in Teaching and Learning
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Teaching and Learning Mathematics
Room 112 (1F): PCE/PCAH | Sustainability and Society in Arts and Education
Room 114 (1F): PCE | Multiculturalism in Arts and Education
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Arts - Performing Arts Practices: Theater, Dance, Music
Room FSI 125 (1F): PCE | Teaching Experiences, Pedagogy, Practice, and Praxis

13:20-14:05: Networking Session | Room 102 (1F)

14:05-15:45: Onsite Parallel Session 3
Room 105 (1F): PCE | Rap Music as the Key to Equitable Education (Workshop)
Room 106 (1F): PCE | AI in Language Education
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Research and Knowledge Creation
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Cognitive Development and Outcomes in Educational Contexts
Room 114 (1F): PCE | Inter/Multiculturalism and Language
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Arts - Media Arts Practices
Room FSI 125 (1F): PCE | Teaching Experiences, Pedagogy, Practice, and Praxis

15:45-16:00: Coffee Break

16:00-17:40: Onsite Parallel Session 4
Room 105 (1F): PCAH | Media and Technology
Room 106 (1F): PCE | Learner Diversity in the Digital Age
Room 108 (1F): PCE | Curriculum Design and Development
Room FSI 125 (1F): PCE | Teaching Experiences, Assessment, and Methodologies
Room 112 (1F): PCE | Sustainability Issues in Education
Room 114 (1F): PCE | Global and Digital Citizenship Education
Room 116 (1F): PCAH | Arts - Literary Arts Practices

17:40-18:00: Onsite Closing Session | Room 108 (1F)

All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+2)

Conference Venue: Online via Zoom

08:55-09:00: Message from IAFOR

09:00-10:00: The Forum (Online) | Live-Stream Room 1
The Role of the Arts & Humanities in Troubling Times: Part II
Apipol Sae-Tung, IAFOR, Japan (Online Moderator)

The Forum is a plenary session designed as a platform for international, intercultural, interdisciplinary—and inclusive—discussions, joining experts and practitioners alike in an open dialogue format. Come share your thoughts and experiences as global educators and researchers.

10:00-10:15: Break

10:15-11:55: Online Parallel Session 1
Live-Stream Room 1: PCE | Innovative Approaches to Teaching and Learning
Live-Stream Room 2: PCE | Foreign Languages Education and Applied Linguistics
Live-Stream Room 3: PCAH | Theory and Criticism in Arts and Media Studies

11:55-12:05: Break

12:05-13:45: Online Parallel Session 2
Live-Stream Room 1: PCE | Education, Sustainability, and Society
Live-Stream Room 2: PCE/PCAH | Teaching and Learning in Arts and Media
Live-Stream Room 3: PCAH | Culture and Literature in Arts and Humanities

13:45-13:55: Break

13:55-15:35: Online Parallel Session 3
Live-Stream Room 1: PCE | Design, Implementation, and Assessment of Innovative Technology in Education
Live-Stream Room 2: PCE/PCAH | Teaching and Learning Experiences
Live-Stream Room 3: PCE | Language Development and Literacy

15:35-15:40: Message from IAFOR

*Please be aware that the above schedule may be subject to change.

Accepted Presentations

One of the greatest strengths of IAFOR’s international conferences is their international and intercultural diversity.
As of March 20, 2026, PCE2026 has received over 860 submissions from over 107 countries and territories - including: United States, South Africa, Türkiye, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Canada, Malaysia, Poland, and Spain.

Accepted Presentations

Speakers

To be announced

  • Olivier Guillet
    Olivier Guillet
    Institut Supérieur du Droit, France
  • Donald E. Hall
    Donald E. Hall
    Binghamton University, United States
  • Brendan Howe
    Brendan Howe
    Ewha Womans University, South Korea
  • Lori Maguire
    Lori Maguire
    University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, France
  • Ljiljana Markovic
    Ljiljana Markovic
    European Centre for Peace and Development (ECPD), Serbia
  • Andrew J. M. Smith
    Andrew J. M. Smith
    Emporia State University, United States
  • François Taddei
    François Taddei
    Learning Planet Institute, France

Featured Presentations

To be announced

  • How Can We Justify the Humanities at the Edge of AI?
    How Can We Justify the Humanities at the Edge of AI?
    Keynote Presentation: Olivier Guillet
  • 250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
    250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
    Discussion Panel: Lori Maguire, Andrew Smith, Brendan Howe
  • The Role of the Arts and Humanities in Troubling Times: Part II
    The Role of the Arts and Humanities in Troubling Times: Part II
    The Forum: Donald E. Hall, Melina Neophytou, Apipol Sae-Tung
  • Senior Academic Leadership
    Senior Academic Leadership
    Featured Roundtable: Donald E. Hall, Ljiljana Markovic

Conference Programme

The draft version of the Conference Programme will be available online on May 11, 2026. All registered delegates will be notified of this publication by email.

Important Information Emails

All registered attendees will receive an Important Information email and updates in the run-up to the conference. Please check your email inbox for something from "iafor.org". If you can not find these emails in your normal inbox, it is worth checking in your spam or junk mail folders as many programs filter out emails this way. If these did end up in one of these folders, please add the address to your acceptable senders' folder by whatever method your email program can do this.

Previous Programming

View details of programming for past PCE conferences via the links below.

PCE2025
PCE2022 PCE2023 PCE2024
Olivier Guillet
Institut Supérieur du Droit, France

Biography

Dr Olivier Guillet is Managing Director of the Institut Supérieur de Droit in Paris, France, where he leads the development of innovative programmes at the intersection of law, education, and leadership.

He previously held senior academic and executive roles, including Dean of International Affairs at EM Lyon Business School, France; Vice Dean of the School of Management and Innovation at Sciences Po, France; and International Director at OMNES Education, France. Across these positions, he has contributed to the design and internationalisation of higher education programmes, working with diverse student populations and global institutional partners.

His research and teaching focus on leadership, with a particular emphasis on the dialogue between philosophy and psychology. His work explores how individuals develop inner coherence, ethical responsibility, and the capacity to act in complex environments.

Dr Guillet is the author of Deep Leadership (2025), a work that proposes a human-centred approach to leadership grounded in intellectual rigour and personal transformation. Alongside his academic career, he is also a trained musician, and continues to draw on music as a source of inspiration for his thinking on harmony, structure, and human expression.

Keynote Presentation (2026) | TBA
Donald E. Hall
Binghamton University, United States

Biography

Donald E. Hall is Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at Binghamton University (SUNY), USA. He was formerly Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering at the University of Rochester, USA, and held a previous position as Dean of Arts and Sciences at Lehigh University, USA. Provost Hall has published widely in the fields of British Studies, Gender Theory, Cultural Studies, and Professional Studies. Over the course of his career, he served as Jackson Distinguished Professor of English and Chair of the Department of English (and previously Chair of the Department of Foreign Languages) at West Virginia University. Before that, he was Professor of English and Chair of the Department of English at California State University, Northridge, where he taught for 13 years. He is a recipient of the University Distinguished Teaching Award at CSUN, was a visiting professor at the National University of Rwanda, was Lansdowne Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the University of Victoria (Canada), was Fulbright Distinguished Chair in Cultural Studies at Karl Franzens University in Graz, Austria, and was Fulbright Specialist at the University of Helsinki. He has also taught in Sweden, Romania, Hungary, and China. He served on numerous panels and committees for the Modern Language Association (MLA), including the Task Force on Evaluating Scholarship for Tenure and Promotion, and the Convention Program Committee. In 2012, he served as national President of the Association of Departments of English. From 2013-2017, he served on the Executive Council of the MLA.

His current and forthcoming work examines issues such as professional responsibility and academic community-building, the dialogics of social change and activist intellectualism, and the Victorian (and our continuing) interest in the deployment of instrumental agency over our social, vocational, and sexual selves. Among his many books and editions are the influential faculty development guides, The Academic Self and The Academic Community, both published by Ohio State University Press. Subjectivities and Reading Sexualities: Hermeneutic Theory and the Future of Queer Studies were both published by Routledge Press. Most recently he and Annamarie Jagose, of the University of Auckland, co-edited a volume titled The Routledge Queer Studies Reader. Though he is a full-time administrator, he continues to lecture worldwide on the value of a liberal arts education and the need for nurturing global competencies in students and interdisciplinary dialogue in and beyond the classroom.

Featured Roundtable (2026) | Senior Academic Leadership

Previous Presentations

Keynote Presentation (2023) | There is No New Normal
Brendan Howe
Ewha Womans University, South Korea

Biography

Dr Brendan Howe is Professor of the Graduate School of International Studies, Ewha Womans University, South Korea, where he has also served as Dean, Associate Dean, and Department Chair. He is the President of the Asian Political and International Studies Association (APISA), and has been elected to serve as the President of the World International Studies Committee from July, 2025. He is currently a Humboldt Foundation Research Fellow at Heidelberg University, Germany, from 2025 through 2026. He has held visiting professorships and research fellowships at the East-West Center as a POSCO Visiting Research Fellow (United States), the Freie Universität Berlin (Germany), De La Salle University (Philippines), The University of Sydney (Australia), Korea National Defence University (South Korea), Georgetown University (United States), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Malaysia), and Beijing Foreign Studies University (China).

Educated at the University of Oxford, the University of Kent at Canterbury (United Kingdom), Trinity College Dublin (Ireland), and Georgetown University (United States), his ongoing research agendas focus on traditional and non-traditional security in East Asia, human security, middle powers, public diplomacy, post-crisis development, comprehensive peacebuilding, and conflict transformation. He has authored, co-authored, or edited around 150 related publications, including Comprehensive Peacebuilding on the Korean Peninsula (Springer, 2023), Society and Democracy in South Korea and Indonesia (Palgrave, 2022), The Niche Diplomacy of Asian Middle Powers (Lexington Books, 2021), UN Governance: Peace and Human Security in Cambodia and Timor-Leste (Springer, 2020), Regional Cooperation for Peace and Development (Routledge, 2018), National Security, State Centricity, and Governance in East Asia (Springer, 2017), Peacekeeping and the Asia-Pacific (Brill, 2016), Democratic Governance in East Asia (Springer, 2015), Post-Conflict Development in East Asia (Ashgate, 2014), and The Protection and Promotion of Human Security in East Asia (Palgrave, 2013).

Discussion Panel (2026) | 250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
Lori Maguire
University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, France

Biography

Dr Lori Maguire is full professor of British and American Studies at the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, France, a member of the editorial board of Cold War History, and a senior review editor for H-Diplo. She has published extensively both in French and English. Her main focus has been on the cultural history and foreign policy of Britain, France, and the United States and their relations with each other. Her book, A History of the Cultural Cold War, should come out at the end of this year. Her most recent publications include Consuls in the Cold War with Sue Onslow (Brill, 2023); “To Stay or Not to Stay: The United States Consulate in Hà Nội, 1954–1955”, Journal of Vietnamese Studies (2023); and “The Diplomatic Departure from Limbo: Three Valedictory Despatches by British Consuls in Hanoi during the Period of the Vietnam War”, Contemporary British History (2023).

Panel Presentation (2026) | 250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
Ljiljana Markovic
European Centre for Peace and Development (ECPD), Serbia

Biography

Ljiljana Markovic is a Professor of Japanese Studies in the European Centre for Peace and Development (ECPD) of the United Nations University for Peace, and Special Advisor to the Executive Director and ECPD Academic Director. She is also a Visiting Professor at Toho University and Osaka University, Japan, and Gabriele d'Annunzio University, Italy.

Professor Markovic is the author of a large number of publications in the fields of Japanese Studies and Economics. She completed her bachelor’s and master's degrees at Cambridge University, United Kingdom, before pursuing her doctorate at Chuo University, Japan. For many years, she was a Professor at the Faculty of Philology at the University of Belgrade, Serbia, with terms as Dean (2016-2020) and Vice Dean of Financial Affairs (2008-2016). She has served as the Chairperson of the International Silk Road Academic Studies Symposium since 2017.

Professor Markovic received the Gaimu Daijin Sho Award from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan in 2010. In the following year, she received the Dositej Obradovic Award for Pedagogical Achievement. Professor Markovic recent accolades include the Medal of Merit by the President of Serbia in 2020, the Isidora Sekulic Medal for Academic Achievement in 2021, and the Order of the Rising Sun (Gold Rays with Rosette) in 2022, an Imperial Decoration awarded by the Government of Japan for her "outstanding contribution to establishing and improving friendly relations with Japan”.

Workshop Presentation (2026) | Senior Academic Leadership

Previous Presentations

Workshop Presentation (2025) | Senior Academic Leadership
Panel Presentation (2024) | International and Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Global Citizenship in Times of Change and Crisis
Andrew J. M. Smith
Emporia State University, United States

Biography

Dr Andrew Smith is an Associate Professor in the School of Library and Information Management (SLIM) at Emporia State University in Kansas, United States. He studied at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, Georgia State University, United States, and the University of Aberystwyth in Wales. He was a Robert T. Jones Memorial Scholar at Emory University in Atlanta and is an elected Visiting Professor at both the University of Belgrade in Serbia and The European Centre for Peace and Development.

Dr Smith has taught widely in the field, currently concentrating on collection development, library advocacy, indexing, genealogy and music librarianship. He developed Emporia State University’s Global Experience programme and has led 20 international trips where students study librarianship in different cultures. His current interests include accessibility as an essential element of equity in information provision, open access materials for teaching and scholarship, genealogical information provision, and grass-roots digitisation.

Dr Smith served as a trustee of the Emporia Public Library from 2016 until 2022 and has presented extensively on the creation and maintenance of library policy and on the recruitment and education of library board members. He currently serves as a Trustee at Large on the board of United for Libraries, a division of the American Library Association.

Panel Presentation (2026) | 250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
François Taddei
Learning Planet Institute, France

Biography

François Taddei, co-founder and president of the Learning Planet Institute, is an internationally renowned researcher.

Convinced that the future of learning must be co-constructed with learners, he explores educational transitions and “planetizenship” (global citizenship) to learn how to take care of oneself, others, and the planet.

He advocates for large-scale collaborations to co-create, with all stakeholders—from young people to UNESCO and the United Nations University (UNU)—a Learning Planet Academy, powered by technology and rooted in interdisciplinary sciences.

Its goal is not to train the best students in the world, but the best for the world, by developing their capacity to act and their skills to care for the planet's common goods and learn to be ‘the change they want to see in the world’.

Keynote Presentation (2026) | TBA
How Can We Justify the Humanities at the Edge of AI?
Keynote Presentation: Olivier Guillet

This keynote challenges the very framing of the contemporary debate about the humanities. To ask ‘how can we justify the humanities at the edge of AI?’ is already to concede the argument, accepting a logic of utility and measurable return that the humanities exist precisely to question and balance. The diagnosis offered is not a crisis of knowledge but a crisis of understanding. Western education, and the French Cartesian tradition with particular intensity, has progressively privileged a narrow form of intelligence: analytical, abstractive, procedural. Drawing on Iain McGilchrist’s work on hemispheric attention, the paper argues that we have systematically optimised for what can be formalised and reproduced, while neglecting what can only be perceived, interpreted, and lived. The arrival of artificial intelligence functions as a mirror: machines now excel at precisely the cognitive operations our institutions reward, exposing how much we have been educating humans to be machine-like.

Against this, the keynote proposes that the humanities cultivate three irreplaceable capacities: contextual intelligence, the reading of meaning in situations that resist rules; cognitive lucidity, an honest awareness of the mind’s biases and self-deceptions, drawing on Bronner, Haidt, and Spinoza; and wonder, understood not as naïveté but as openness to a reality richer than our categories. The closing argument reframes the stakes: AI does not threaten the humanities, it clarifies them. The real question is no longer whether the humanities are useful, but what kind of humans we still want to become.

Read presenter's biography
250 Years of Rights Promotion and Cooperation
Discussion Panel: Lori Maguire, Andrew Smith, Brendan Howe

The year 2026 marks 250 years since the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence of the United States on July 4, 1776. France has been a staunch ally of the US for most of the intervening years, being the first country to recognise American independence, and, in 1778, to sign an alliance with the fledgling country. The impact of the American Revolution against the external rule of the British king, and the subsequent French Revolution against domestic royal tyranny, has done much to shape the nature of principles of governance, both domestic and international. The US was to serve as a ‘shining city on a hill’ – an inspiration for other oppressed peoples, while the Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité motto of the French Revolution and Republic has served as a similar source of inspiration. Importantly, both countries were supportive of each other's revolutions. Yet this 250th anniversary is as much cautionary as it is celebratory.

Are the domestic and international governance principles that made the US a shining city on a hill a thing of the past? The second administration of President Donald Trump has been linked to populist and authoritarian forces that undermine democracy. US unilateralism has led to the demise of the liberal international order, which it did so much to create. While the US and France, jointly and separately, have done much to promote multinationalism, such cooperation is now imperilled. Are we witnessing the end of 250 years of normative leadership by the US? What, if anything, can replace US abdication in an era of contestation and disorder? This session recognizes the unique contributions of the US to domestic and international governance norms, the importance of its partnership with France, as well as challenges to the liberal international order, some of which originate from its greatest champion.

Read presenters' biographies
The Role of the Arts and Humanities in Troubling Times: Part II
The Forum: Donald E. Hall, Melina Neophytou, Apipol Sae-Tung

Education, and the arts and humanities in particular, act as a positive force in framing and understanding the many contentious issues we collectively face in the pursuit of a sustainable world. In times that are increasingly uncertain, hostile, and contentious, and in which national governments focus on productivity, efficiency, technology, and security, considerations of humanity, human intelligence, and the wider common good are often ignored.

In Part I of this Forum series held at the IAFOR Summer event in Tokyo in May 2026, delegates discussed whether the arts and humanities have made a sufficient case for their value to governments and wider society today. One of the main conclusions was that the case has always been there, but the problem lies in communication.

While we all know why the arts and humanities are vital and important, how do we define their worth in a hostile environment to those constituencies: funders, politicians, employers, and parents? What words and concepts will resonate? What are the directly and indirectly transferable skills that are used?

In Part 2 of this three-part series, this Forum session invites participants to build on Part 1 and discuss how we can effectively communicate the value of the arts and humanities to those who are aware of it but may be more inclined towards short-term achievements, financial stability, progress, and growth.

Read presenters' biographies
Senior Academic Leadership
Featured Roundtable: Donald E. Hall, Ljiljana Markovic

This roundtable and interactive session will explore the career paths of academic leaders and provide tips on the skills needed to succeed in leadership positions. Speaking from a variety of national and professional contexts, the session leaders will describe their individual paths to leadership roles and the trade-offs that often accompany a career in higher education leadership and administration. Following the brief presentations, audience members will be asked to provide their own thoughts and observations on successful and unsuccessful leadership styles, as well as engage in an active discussion of the potential for academic leaders to make positive changes within their institutions and professional organisations.

Read presenters' biographies