2026 European Security Studies Conference

Programme

The Annual Conference is structured around two categories of panels. ‘Closed panels’ are recurring year-over-year and are pre-established by the EISS. ‘Open panels’ are proposed by participants.

Closed Panels

Closed panels are recurring year-over-year and are pre-established by the EISS.

• Military Technology 1

  MILTECH1

  Military technology has a profound effect on strategic stability, military innovation, defence economics, and the conduct of warfare. In doing so, this panel studies the decisionmaking behind a wide range of systems, from emerging technologies to traditional conventional technologies, and to weapons of mass destruction. Scholarship around military innovation studies tends to focus on a wide set of actors: the policymakers who set out the military requirements, the scientists who invent these technologies, the industries that build the systems, the political actors who fund the systems, and the military officers and staff that operate the system. This panel invites submissions that advance our understanding of why states and non-state actors pursue military technology and how these technologies shape
  our security environment. It encourages perspectives from a diversity of scientific disciplines (political science, sociology, economy, history, philosophy, and others), a wide set of theories, and a variety of methods. The aim of the panel is to facilitate dialogue between scholars who are interested in how technology and politics interact and the conditions under which global actors cooperate and compete.

• Military Technology 2

  MILTECH2

  Military technology has a profound effect on strategic stability, military innovation, defence economics, and the conduct of warfare. In doing so, this panel studies the decisionmaking behind a wide range of systems, from emerging technologies to traditional conventional technologies, and to weapons of mass destruction. Scholarship around military innovation studies tends to focus on a wide set of actors: the policymakers who set out the military requirements, the scientists who invent these technologies, the industries that build the systems, the political actors who fund the systems, and the military officers and staff that operate the system. This panel invites submissions that advance our understanding of why states and non-state actors pursue military technology and how these technologies shape
  our security environment. It encourages perspectives from a diversity of scientific disciplines (political science, sociology, economy, history, philosophy, and others), a wide set of theories, and a variety of methods. The aim of the panel is to facilitate dialogue between scholars who are interested in how technology and politics interact and the conditions under which global actors cooperate and compete.

• War and Strategy 1

  STRAT1

  This panel explores the evolving intersections between grand strategy, military strategy, and international cooperation in times of war, competition, and geopolitical tensions. It investigates how states conceptualize and implement strategy across different levels of
  conflict — from high-level national objectives to operational military planning — and how these strategic frameworks interact with, or resist, efforts at international collaboration. Topics include the theoretical foundations of grand strategy, case studies of strategic decision-making in historical and contemporary conflicts, and the role of alliances, coalitions, and institutions in shaping wartime outcomes. By rethinking how war is theorized and practiced, this panel aims to deepen our understanding of strategic behavior and the potential for cooperative security in a divided world.

• War and Strategy 2

  STRAT2

  This panel explores the evolving intersections between grand strategy, military strategy, and international cooperation in times of war, competition, and geopolitical tensions. It investigates how states conceptualize and implement strategy across different levels of
  conflict — from high-level national objectives to operational military planning — and how these strategic frameworks interact with, or resist, efforts at international collaboration. Topics include the theoretical foundations of grand strategy, case studies of strategic decision-making in historical and contemporary conflicts, and the role of alliances, coalitions, and institutions in shaping wartime outcomes. By rethinking how war is theorized and practiced, this panel aims to deepen our understanding of strategic behavior and the potential for cooperative security in a divided world.

• Beyond the State

  BEYSTA

  From insurgent groups and militias to multinational corporations, NGOs, and transnational movements, non-state actors are increasingly shaping the political, economic, and security landscape. In doing so, they often challenge or circumvent traditional state authority. This panel examines the diverse roles, strategies, and impacts of non-state actors on security governance. Whether operating in failed states, fragile democracies, or global markets, non-state actors are redefining the boundaries of power and legitimacy. The panel will draw on various theoretical and methodological approaches to offer a nuanced understanding of this critical shift in global politics.

• War Abroad

  WABRO

  In an era marked by shifting global alliances, protracted conflicts, and emerging threats, the role of foreign military engagement is more complex than ever. This panel examines the evolving dynamics of military intervention, international assistance, and peacekeeping operations across the globe. Papers can explore the political, ethical, and strategic considerations behind intervention—from crisis response and coalition-building to post-conflict reconstruction and long-term peacekeeping. Papers will bring to bear a variety of theoretical approaches and methodological tools to address how states and relevant actors project power, offer support, and strive to maintain peace in volatile regions.

• Military Transformation

  TRANS

  Modern militaries are undergoing rapid transformation in response to technological advancements, shifting geopolitical threats, and evolving modes of warfare. This panel explores how armed forces around the world are adapting their structures, doctrines, and capabilities to meet 21st-century challenges. From cyber warfare and autonomous systems to force modernization and organizational reform, this panel will explore what
  transformation means in strategic and operational terms from a military modernization perspective. The panel will examine these subjects as states prepare their forces for conflicts that are increasingly multi-domain, data-driven, and asymmetric.

• Non-Traditional Security Challenges - Climate

  NTRAD1

  Security today extends far beyond the battlefield. This panel delves into the increasingly urgent and complex realm of non-traditional security challenges, focusing on the intersections of climate change, sustainable development, and gender dynamics. These issues are reshaping global security priorities, particularly in vulnerable and conflict-affected regions. However, they are also conditioning the policy agendas of powerful economic and global actors. Open to a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, this panel will explore how these cross-cutting challenges impact stability, peacebuilding, and resilience. Key topics include the security risks of climate-driven displacement, the role of development in preventing conflict, and how integrating gender perspectives changes security policy and scholarly approaches to security.

• Non-Traditional Security Challenges - Gender

  NTRAD2

  Security today extends far beyond the battlefield. This panel delves into the increasingly urgent and complex realm of non-traditional security challenges, focusing on the intersections of climate change, sustainable development, and gender dynamics. These issues are reshaping global security priorities, particularly in vulnerable and conflict-affected regions. However, they are also conditioning the policy agendas of powerful economic and global actors. Open to a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, this panel will explore how these cross-cutting challenges impact stability, peacebuilding, and resilience. Key topics include the security risks of climate-driven displacement, the role of development in preventing conflict, and how integrating gender perspectives changes security policy and scholarly approaches to security.

• Digital Transformations 1

  CYBER1

  Digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence, cyber capabilities, and digital infrastructures (e.g. data centres, cloud computing infrastructure, undersea cables), have become increasingly entangled with our physical reality, confronting scholars with both
  novel questions and age-old debates. In our ‘information age’, the transformative potential of digital technologies introduces complex questions for both policymakers and academics. From the individual to the global scale, the tactical to the strategic levels, and the virtual to the physical realms, this panel explores: what are the global, political, social, legal, and economic dimensions and consequences arising from these developments? Encouraging a diversity of perspectives and approaches, this panel seeks proposals which may originate from different disciplines and can bring to bear a wide set of theoretical and methodological approaches.

• Digital Transformations 2

  CYBER2

  Digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence, cyber capabilities, and digital infrastructures (e.g. data centres, cloud computing infrastructure, undersea cables), have become increasingly entangled with our physical reality, confronting scholars with both
  novel questions and age-old debates. In our ‘information age’, the transformative potential of digital technologies introduces complex questions for both policymakers and academics. From the individual to the global scale, the tactical to the strategic levels, and the virtual to the physical realms, this panel explores: what are the global, political, social, legal, and economic dimensions and consequences arising from these developments? Encouraging a diversity of perspectives and approaches, this panel seeks proposals which may originate from different disciplines and can bring to bear a wide set of theoretical and methodological approaches.

Open Panels

Open Panels are meant to broaden the range of existing themes in the EISS and to provide greater latitude to the participants to contribute to the definition of the EISS program.

• NetSec I: Cyber and Digital Sovereignty

  NETSEC1

• NetSec II: Regional Security in the Balkans

  NETSEC2

Poster Session

Roundtables

Keynotes