The Polish Institute of Arts & Sciences of America (PIASA) is pleased to invite proposals for its 10th World Congress, which will be hosted by University of Łódź, from June 12-14, 2026. Proposals are solicited for complete in-person sessions or individual papers in any of the disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, or business/economics. The general theme of the conference is “Transformations.

Łódź is an ideal setting for a conference titled Transformations because it embodies the very processes the theme evokes: from its rapid rise in the 19th century as a multicultural industrial hub, through wartime devastation and postwar socialist rebuilding, to the economic and cultural reinvention it has undergone since 1989. As a city shaped by Poles, Jews, Germans, and Russians, Łódź reflects deep historical layers of coexistence, rupture, and renewal. It is also home to the famed Łódź Film School, whose graduates include such influential directors as Andrzej Wajda, Roman Polański, Andrzej Munk, and Krzysztof Kieślowski. Today, Łódź stands as a vibrant center of culture and memory work—its revitalized factories, public art, and memorial sites offering a striking backdrop for dialogue on change, resilience, and the future of Central and Eastern Europe.

Therefore, we particularly welcome panel and paper proposals which address these issues. Since we value comparative sessions that place the Polish and East Central European experience in context, papers need not focus specifically on Poland or Polish themes. Finally, papers do not necessarily have to address the main conference theme and are welcome for consideration in separate and cohesive panels.

Each session is scheduled for 90 minutes to accommodate three papers or about 20 minutes per paper, with suitable time left for discussion. As the conference language is English, all panel and paper submissions are expected to be in that language. All conference rooms will be equipped with AV for PowerPoint presentations. Presenters are invited to submit their final conference papers to be considered for possible publication in The Polish Review after the conference.

To submit a paper or complete session, please send the name, e-mail address, institutional affiliation, tentative paper title and brief one-paragraph abstract for each presenter to program organizers Patrice Dabrowski at pmd639@g.harvard.edu and Neal Pease at pease@uwm.edu. The deadline for proposals is February 1, 2026, although earlier submissions are welcome since capacity is limited. All participants are encouraged to pay the conference pre-registration fee of $100, discounted to $70 for students, by May 10, 2026, as the conference fees will increase after that date. Pre-conference tours, lodging options, keynote plenary and banquet speakers, and locations for the Friday evening reception and the Saturday evening awards banquet will be announced later.