Society for Latin American Studies Conference 2025

In line with previous conferences, SLAS 2025 will be an opportunity for explorations of any aspect of Latin American Studies, from any disciplinary and theoretical perspective. We have an optional conference theme that speakers are invited to address:

Alternative Futures in Latin America and the Caribbean

Latin America and the Caribbean have long been home to political, social and cultural movements that envision possible futures beyond established consensus. From acts of anticolonial resistance to early twentieth-century artistic avant-gardes, from Afrofuturist and indigenous futurist movements to emergent political collectives across national and cultural frontiers, the region has a rich history of future-oriented thinking. At this moment of uncertainty regarding global ecological, political and social futures, we invite participants to consider alternative futures from perspectives including (but not limited to):

• Technology and the digital humanities
• Political ecology and the environmental humanities
• Migration and mobility
• Activism and human rights
• The futures of the past and historical approaches to the topic
• The politics of language and translation

The conference will be held in person at the University of Bristol. In addition to traditional panel sessions, we encourage participants to propose alternative formats, such as workshops, readings, video essays, roundtables, etc.

Proposals may be submitted until 23:45 GMT (UTC) on 31 October 2024.
Notifications of acceptance or rejection will be sent via email by 30 November 2024.

Proposal Types and Guidelines

• Individual Paper

Papers may be authored by individuals or groups. Only the first author of the paper should submit the abstract (max. 250 words). Each paper should last no longer than 20 minutes.

• Panel Proposal

The panel proposal (max. 250 words) should be submitted by the session organiser(s). The proposal should consist of 3-4 paper presentations per session (plus a discussant if desired). Panel proposals can take up a maximum of 2 sessions (max. 8 paper presentations). Each paper should last no longer than 20 minutes. If you are submitting 2 sessions, please indicate “- Part 1” and “- Part 2” in the panel title, after the title (e.g. “Indigenous rights in Latin America – Part 1”).

• Alternative Format

We welcome proposals in other formats, e.g. roundtables, readings, screenings, workshops, etc. Please fill out the relevant sections of the proposal submission form with the details of your proposal.

Delegates can participate once as a paper presenter and once as a discussant, panel organiser or in an alternative format.

 

SLAS offers several grants to support participation at its annual conference, for Latin America-based scholars and postgraduate/postdoctoral members of the Society. For full details and deadlines please check the SLAS website.

If you have any questions, please contact the conference organisers at slasbristol2025@gmail.com.