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Science and Participation in the Anglophone World – CALL FOR PAPERS

Conference | University of Lille | 18–19 June 2026

Science and Participation in the Anglophone World

Call for Papers, deadline – 15 January 2026

Participation has become a key term in discussions about science, whether to emphasise the opening up of knowledge to society, the enrolment of citizens in technological choices, or the promotion of co-construction of knowledge. The contemporary context – from the COVID-19 pandemic to the climate emergency, including the resurgence of discourses of mistrust toward science – makes this issue particularly crucial. Yet it is by no means a new one. This conference seeks to challenge the overly simplistic idea of a linear progression toward ever greater
inclusion and participation.

From Science and Technology Studies (STS) to postcolonial studies, the tensions between science and politics, as well as between different types of knowledge, are central to both historical and contemporary research on the relationships between science and society. Whether one studies the enrolment of science by political authorities or that of the public (for validation or contribution), the question of participation raises fundamental issues about the role of science in modern societies, about the links between science and democracy, and about the power dynamics inherent in the production, circulation, and implementation of knowledge and technologies.

This is not, therefore, a matter of positing a binary opposition between two separate categories – i.e. Science and Society – but rather of unfolding these categories to examine how authority is distributed among different disciplines and forms of knowledge.

Participation takes very diverse forms – from the simple dissemination of knowledge, through collective or “amateur” practices, to citizen science. The conference aims to explore the various meanings and manifestations of this notion in specific contexts. It also seeks to examine the power struggles, contestations, and negotiations that unfold within the very idea of participation.

To what extent is the dissemination of knowledge associated with the desire to enrol lay actors in technical or scientific projects (eg. farmers, patients, residents)? More generally, what are the modalities of engagement, recruitment, and assembly of actors within institutionalised scientific projects, circles, or networks? Who contributes, how, and under what conditions? What forms do different participatory mechanisms (eg. surveys, exhibitions, consultations, etc.) take, and does the notion of participation carry the same meaning across these contexts?

What types of knowledge are considered relevant? Who is included or excluded from the sphere of legitimate participants (eg. amateurs, women, Indigenous communities, among others)? Is lay participation a means of contributing to the co-construction of knowledge or of enhancing its acceptability? This conference will explore questions of legitimacy, credibility, and acceptability of various actors and their different forms of expertise, as well as, conversely, the dynamics of exclusion, resistance, or intrusion (or even the sudden irruption of agents).

Which contributions to knowledge have been recognised, and which have been rendered invisible? These questions directly engage the democratic stakes of participation, and more specifically, the participation of alternative forms of knowledge production – in the tradition of “popular science” or citizen and subaltern sciences – that, through non-elitist, sometimes openly critical and reformist approaches, have helped (de)construct or amend knowledge “beyond the walls of the temple.”

These issues also open onto the question of the participation of science itself in political processes, and of how scientific authority is negotiated in its interactions with politics. How have different types of knowledge sought to be included in, and to contribute to, decision-making?

Possible themes include:

  • The various forms of knowledge dissemination, their objectives, and the obstacles encountered
  • The contribution of non-experts to science
  • Power struggles surrounding participation in the construction and dissemination of new knowledge
  • Non-participation, whether deliberate or imposed
  • Collective forms of knowledge co-construction involving diverse actors
  • The participation of science in political processes

This conference aims to examine the place and role of science and knowledge within the Anglophone world (The United Kingdom, North America, the British Empire/Commonwealth) through the lens of this central issue. By exploring modalities of inclusion, exclusion, enrolment, irruption, or circumvention of various actors in their interactions with science, we seek to analyse forms of participation – real, anticipated, unexpected, or prevented – that have shaped science as a social, cultural, and political practice, from both national and transnational perspectives, and building on historical or contemporary case studies.

Submission Guidelines

Proposals should include an abstract of 300-400 words, accompanied by a title and up to five keywords, and should be sent by 15 January 2026.

Each proposal must indicate the author’s name, institutional affiliation, and contact details (email address and, if applicable, research laboratory).

Abstracts should be sent to the co-organisers:
@email, @email, and @email

Timeline

  • Abstract submission deadline: 15 January 2026
  • Notification of acceptance: 30 January 2026
  • Conference dates: 18–19 June 2026

Languages
Presentations may be delivered in English or French.

Publication
A selection of papers will be considered for publication in a peer-reviewed edited volume or special journal issue following the conference.

Organization and Contact
Conference co-organized by Lucie de Carvalho (Université de Lille), Arnaud Page (Sorbonne Université), and Marie Ruiz (Université de Picardie Jules Verne), and hosted by the Université de Lille. For further information, please contact: @email, @email, and @email

 

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