Call for Papers
In 2025 the Conference on Baltic Studies in Europe (CBSE) will be held in Cambridge, United Kingdom and organised by the Baltic Programme at the Centre for Geopolitics, University of Cambridge. As in previous years, the 16th CBSE will cover a diversity of themes and disciplines as we consistently demonstrate and promote the achievements of Baltic studies in various areas. Time and again, CBSE brings together scholars from all disciplines and stages in their careers worldwide who share an interest in exploring the Baltic region from multiple perspectives and fields of research.
Conference Concept
At this conference, we invite scholars and policy practitioners to discuss and share their work on the Baltic region, defined broadly as the littoral of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Russia. Approaching the region as the place of converging paths between East and West invites us to look at interactions and transmission of ideas within the wider Baltic region and compels us to situate it in the global world. This is particularly important in times of geopolitical turbulence and climate change, when the need for multilateral and multidisciplinary perspectives can not be overestimated.
Participants are particularly encouraged to dwell upon the past, present and future of Baltic security, identity, the role of the Baltic region in shaping the policy of the EU and NATO, its contribution to the construction and maintenance of the rules-based international order, the place of the Baltic in the global political, social or intellectual history, literature and art, challenges for the region brought up by the war in Ukraine, or the role of Britain in the Baltic.
The conference aims to bridge the gap between the academic and the practical worlds by encouraging mixed panels of academics and policy practitioners.
Disciplines at CBSE 2025
Contributions are encouraged from disciplines including:
- Anthropology, Sociology, and Religion
- Communication, Media, and Journalism
- Digital Humanities, Museums, and Libraries
- Environment, Resources, and Sustainability
- Migration, Diasporas, and Public Diplomacy
- Higher Education, Science Policy, and Knowledge Management
- History, Memory, and Identity
- International Law, Economics, and Political Science
- Literature, Arts, and Culture Studies
- Language Studies, Education, and Psychology
- Social Development and Urban Planning
- International Relations and Security Studies
- Other
CBSE 2025 Cambridge Review Committee
Prof. David Abulafia (Medieval/Renaissance History)
Prof. Caroline Bassett (Digital Humanities)
Prof. Stanley Bill (Polish Studies)
Prof. Rosalind Polly Blakesley (History of Art)
Dr. Anita Bunyan (Literature, Arts and Culture Studies)
Prof. Mette Eilstrup-Sangiovanni (International Organization)
Dr. William O’Reilly (Early Modern History)
Dr. James Carleton Paget (Religion Studies)
Prof. Susan L. Robertson (Higher Education, Science Policy, and Knowledge Management)
Prof. Brendan Simms (International Relations, Modern History)
Dr. Jamie Trinidad KC (Law, International Law)
Dr. Sheila Watts (Language Studies)
Prof. Emma Widdis (Media and Communication)