Conference Information
Date: Tuesday 3 November 2026 (9:30 – 18:00)
Location: Landbergstraat 15, 2628 CE Delft
Admission: The conference is free of charge for registered participants
Language: English
We are excited to invite panel and workshop proposals for the 2026 LDE Governance of Migration & Diversity (GMD) Conference. This gathering will unite GMD alumni, students, and scholars with designers, policymakers, practitioners, and societal stakeholders to explore and reflect on the role of design in shaping migration societies and just futures.
Migration is usually studied from the perspectives of public administration, (inter)national law and security, history, sociology, economics, and development studies. However, a design perspective is often missing from the debate. This conference will explore and showcase what design, as an interdisciplinary way of thinking and practice, can offer to our understanding of the governance of migration, diversity, and inequality, and particularly, in co-creating just futures and societies. A full description of the conference's themes can be found here
We invite two types of active contributions:
60-minute panel sessions that spark discussion on design, interdisciplinary collaborative research or education across universities, on innovative policy initiatives, or on societal initiatives that employ design and/or co-creation in some form;
Two-hour workshops enabling design exercises and other hands-on engagement with design-oriented topics. Examples may include countermapping exercises, critical geography, testing design instruments on spatial cases, or Policy Labs that review (re)integration programmes, housing policies, and legal frameworks and instruments.
We invite panels and workshops that go beyond traditional paper presentations to encourage cross-disciplinary collaboration and facilitate meaningful exchanges among research, education, and practice.
The following is especially encouraged:
- Active and innovative format - We encourage proposals that explore new topics, methodologies, and forms of collaboration through active and innovative panel formats.
- Interdisciplinary and interuniversity - We encourage proposals that integrate perspectives from researchers, designers, and practitioners across Leiden, Delft, and Erasmus. Proposals from a single institution are also welcome.
- Connecting research, education, and community - Proposals that include GMD students, alumni, or societal stakeholders alongside academic contributors are especially welcome.
Panel / Workshop Proposal Guidelines - Include the following information:
- Panel/workshop title and description: Include the general objective and state explicitly whether the proposal concerns a 60-minute panel or a two-hour workshop.
- Organisers: Provide the names and emails of the organisers.
- Co-organisers/panellists information: Indicate names, institutions, organisations, and/or fields.
- Please mention whether panellists/co-organisers are already involved or confirmed
- We encourage an LDE approach and transdisciplinary frameworks that involve GMD alumni, students, and societal stakeholders. However, proposals from a single institution are also welcome.
- Panel / Workshop Format: Describe the envisioned panel design and format
- Abstract — A 250-word abstract suitable for use in the conference programme.
Total Proposal length: no more than two pages.
Submission Details
- Deadline: Submit your proposals by Tuesday, July 14.
- Submission: Email proposals in Word or PDF to: GMDCentre@essb.eur.nl and y.c.huang@essb.eur.nl
- Result: Applicants will be notified of the outcome by the end of August. Accepted panels and workshops will be announced to participants in early September.