Since 2022, STAND has organised virtual seminars for postgraduate and early-career scholars. The aim is to provide a constructive and friendly environment in which to discuss works in progress and recently published work. We warmly welcome the participation of both early-career and established scholars from all over the world! If you would like more information about the seminars or how to attend, please email STAND.ECR@gmail.com. The easiest way to receive regular updates, including links to attend the seminars online, is to subscribe to our mailinglist.
*** 2026-2027 Schedule ***
Thursday 24 September 2026, 2:00-3:00 pm CET:
SCIENCE DIPLOMACY AND SCHOLARS-AT-RISK. Scholars at risk are often discussed primarily through the lens of academic freedom and human rights, but their experiences also raise important questions for science diplomacy. This talk will explore how international scientific organizations, academic networks, mobility programs, and cross-border solidarity can support researchers facing persecution, conflict, and displacement. Drawing on both personal experience and work with at-risk and displaced academics, Encieh Erfani will discuss the possibilities and limitations of existing support mechanisms and the role of scientist-led networks and “science diplomacy from below.” Erfani will also consider what displaced scholars’ experiences reveal about the relationship between science, national borders, political power, and international scientific cooperation. Speaker: Encieh Erfani, Perimeter Institute in Canada.
Thursday 15 October 2026, 1:00-2:30 pm CET:
GOING BEYOND: INTERDISCIPLINARY CONVERSATIONS AROUND SCIENCE DIPLOMACY. Science diplomacy is increasingly being reassessed in light of growing geopolitical tensions, shifting global power dynamics, and renewed concerns about research security and scientific collaboration. Fifteen years after the Royal Society and AAAS first popularised the concept in 2010, both organisations have returned to the topic, recognising that science diplomacy has often been framed through an overly optimistic narrative that privileges cooperation while overlooking enduring realities of competition, contestation, and crisis. Similar reflections are emerging across policy communities, including within the European Commission, as actors grapple with the opportunities and vulnerabilities of international scientific exchange in a more fragmented global landscape. The three speakers explore what science diplomacy means in an era of geopolitical uncertainty and evolving definitions. Bringing together diverse disciplinary and professional perspectives, they invite reflection on the challenges, tensions, and possibilities shaping contemporary science diplomacy. We are delighted to welcome Angela Liberatore, Pierre-Bruno Ruffini, and John Webb, who will draw on their extensive scholarly and practical experience to offer short reflections on the field’s current trajectory. Their contributions will be followed by an open discussion with participants. Speakers: Angela Liberatore, European University Institute Florence; Pierre-Bruno Ruffini, University of Le Havre-Normandie; John Webb, Swinburne University of Technology.
Thursday 22 October 2026, 1:00-2:30 pm CET:
LOOKING BACK AND THINKING AHEAD: HISTORY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN PERSPECTIVE. Two leading scholars in the history of science and technology – John Krige and Carola Sachse – will participate in this event for a reflective conversation on the past, present, and future of the field. Drawing on their distinguished careers, Krige and Sachse will discuss major methodological developments, evolving disciplinary challenges and opportunities, and the ways geopolitical shifts have shaped historical scholarship over recent decades. They will also share their personal insights about how to navigate a rapidly changing academic landscape. Concluding with a Q&A, this online event will provide participants the opportunity to engage directly with both speakers. Speakers: John Krige, Sciences Po Paris; Carola Sachse, Vienna University.
Thursday 12 November 2026, 2:00 pm CET:
Making the “Global” List of Threatened Species: The Science Diplomacy of Francis Harper’s Report, 1935–1945. With Sotiris Mikros, CHSTM, University of Manchester.
Thursday 10 December 2026, 2:00-3:00 pm CET:
Atoms for Lake Recovery. Nuclear Desalting Diplomacy and Nabor Carrillo’s Texcoco Project in Mexico City. With Jose A. Nochebuena, Institute of History, University of Bern.
Thursday 14 January 2027, 2:00-3:00 pm CET:
How Thailand Became (and Then Refused to Be) an Experimental Laboratory of the Nuclear Age. With Kwanchanok Kittiwanich, Department of History, Faculty of Humanities, Chiang Mai University, Thailand.
Thursday 4 February 2027, 2:00-3:00 pm CET:
Solar Photovoltaics as a Contested Diplomatic and Geopolitical Tool in Late 20th-Century China. With Yijun Gai, University of Hong Kong and Southern University of Science and Technology.
Thursday 4 March 2027, 2:00-3:00 pm CET:
Nuclear Training in Cold War Geopolitics: Coaching Atoms Across Nations (discussion of first book in the STAND-initiated book series “Science, Technology, and International Affairs”). With Barbara Hof, Charles University in Prague.
>>> Further events will be announced in early 2027! <<<
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Publications by ECR Seminar Presenters
Annual ECS Prize
STAND awards an annual early career scholars prize. Find more information here.