Call for Papers

Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have marked 100 years of independence, 100 years of de jure international recognition, and 30 years of the reestablishment of independence following a half century of Soviet rule. While acknowledging the past, the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies Conference in 2022 will look toward the future to explore how the Baltic States will move forward into the next century, as a crossroads between Europe and Asia, Nordic and Eastern Europe. Similarly, the field of Baltic Studies is at a crossroads between new and old diaspora communities negotiating the implications of what it means to advance the study and research of the Baltic States into the next century.

The conference will build on the deep connections with the Baltic Studies and the Baltic Communities in the Pacific Northwest. The University of Washington (UW) is the only Baltic Studies Program in North America, offering courses in all three Baltic languages and different aspects of Baltic Studies. The conference will promote intersections of academic disciplines, scholarship, and community by focusing on the implications for the Baltic States in the future at the crossroads of different regions, cultures, religions, and historical perspectives. We will discuss the role of Baltic Studies in the next century as Soviet legacies fade and European futures are solidified. How does the region fit into larger European and transnational trends? What types of innovations do we see in the Baltic States? Where are the Baltic States headed in the future? The conference will showcase the latest cutting-edge Baltic research and highlight connections to local diaspora and the tech industry in the Pacific Northwest.

The conference will bring together scholars interested in Baltic studies from all over the world and foster collaboration between Baltic and Pacific Northwest researchers. The three-day program, to be held at the University of Washington campus May 27-29, 2022, will feature panels, roundtable discussions and workshops open to all UW affiliates. The conference will also include numerous public events, such as keynote talks by leading Baltic scholars, film screenings, exhibit openings and tours of UW’s Baltic collections.

We are no longer accepting papers and submissions for the conference. Look for the final conference program posted to the website this spring!

The 2022 AABS Conference’s program is divided into nine broad divisions:
-History, Memory, and Jewish Studies
-Politics, International Relations, Security
-Sociology, Anthropology, and Gender Studies
-Communication and the Media
-Literature and Language
-Arts, Music, and Religion
-Economics and Business
-Libraries, Archeology, and Museums
-Education, Digital Humanities, and Technology