Konference: Pluralism in Practice: Global Humanities at the Intersection of Geopolitics, Culture, and Public Dialogue

HUM:GLOBAL KONFERENCE 2026

At a time marked by geopolitical tensions, rising authoritarianism, and increasing pressures on freedom of expression, understanding how diverse perspectives are produced, negotiated, and constrained has become an urgent task. This two-day conference brings together scholars, practitioners, artists, and institutional actors to explore how global humanities can help us make sense of—and respond to—these challenges.

Rather than approaching pluralism as an abstract ideal, the conference focuses on how pluralism is practiced across disciplines, institutions, and cultural forms. It examines how knowledge, narratives, and creative expression are shaped by political realities, technological infrastructures, and institutional frameworks.

By bringing together academic debate, policy-oriented discussion, and artistic practice, the conference offers a distinctive platform for examining how pluralism operates across different domains. It invites participants to engage critically with the conditions that shape knowledge production, cultural expression, and public discourse—and to reflect on the role of institutions, disciplines, and individuals in sustaining open and inclusive spaces for dialogue.

DAG 1, 11. November 2026
Lokale 23.0.50, Københavns Universitet, Søndre Campus, KUA

Understanding the Global: Geopolitics, Method, and Humanities Research

The first day at the University of Copenhagen South Campus centers on academic perspectives and brings together leading scholars and early-career researchers to examine global challenges through multiple lenses.

A keynote lecture sets the stage by reflecting on methodological approaches within global history, followed by a series of conversations and roundtables that engage with some of the most pressing issues of our time such as the relationship between far right extremism and digital technologies, and regional perspectives on the shifting dynamics of contemporary geopolitics. The day concludes with conversations with early-career researchers, who reflect on how “the global” is conceptualised and studied across different disciplines and research practices.

Together, these discussions highlight the strength of the global humanities as a field capable of connecting perspectives, scales, and methods in order to better understand complex, interconnected phenomena.

DAG 2, 12. November 2026
FN Byen i København, Nordhavn, København

Shaping Dialogue Under Constraint: The Role of Institutions, Culture and Creative Practice

The second day moves from academic analysis to the humanities at the intersection of culture, policy, and lived experience, focusing on how public dialogue is shaped under conditions of constraint. 

The programme begins with a moderated public debate that brings together actors from law, civil society, academia, cultural funding, and artistic practice to explore how constraints take different forms, ranging from legal restrictions and digital threats to barriers of representation, visibility, belonging, and institutional access, and how this in turn impacts public dialogue.

This conversation is extended and deepened through the exhibition Under Constraint, which presents works by artists whose practices are shaped by conditions such as displacement, social norms, political repression, and institutional barriers. Here, the themes of the debate take on a visual and experiential dimension, showing how constraint not only restricts expression but can also generate new forms of creativity, resilience, and critical reflection.

docUNight - A Fox Under A Pink Moon

Day 2 concludes with a screening A Fox Under a Pink Moon, an award-winning documentary that follows a young Afghan artist navigating conflict, violence, and migration while continuing to create. The film brings an intimate, personal perspective to the themes explored throughout the day, foregrounding the lived realities behind broader discussions of cultural freedom, constraint, and agency. Prior to the film we engage with experts on Afghanistan and refugeedom, and after the film we wrap up the evening with a live interview with the main protagonist and the director of the film and audience Q&A. 

👤Se listen af talere, værter, moderatorer og kunstnere

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Tilmeldingsfrist: 2. november 2026