9th Annual Populism Specialist Group Workshop in collaboration with the Laboratory for the Study of Democracy (DemLab) and the Centre for the study of Democracy, Signification and Resistance (DESIRE)
Keynote Speakers
Judith Butler
University of California, Berkeley
Yannis Stavrakakis
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Venue: Aristotle University Research Dissemination Centre, Conference Hall III
https://kedea.rc.auth.gr/documents/kedea_brochure_en.pdf
The year 2025 marks forty years since the publication of Hegemony & Socialist Strategy by Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, and twenty since Laclau’s On Populist Reason. Both works represented theoretical and political breakthroughs, offering fresh insights into society and political mobilisation, and advancing one of the most influential accounts of populism. Their lasting impact is evident in the ever-growing body of critical literature, as well as the growing international network of scholars and research communities dedicated to engaging with and expanding upon this intellectual tradition.
This workshop revisits the theme of hegemony and emancipatory political strategy, including the suitability of populism as a political strategy in our current conjuncture. It seeks to rethink the contributions of Laclau and Mouffe and the broader post-Marxist and post-structuralist tradition, exploring their enduring significance while critically interrogating their limitations, pushing their boundaries and proposing new research directions. We invite both theoretical and empirical contributions, inspired by an interest in the above tradition broadly defined, that critically interrogate political strategy, populism, representation, reactionary politics and emancipatory politics today, and reflect on historical continuities and the specificities of the present conjuncture and the conceptual and strategic answers required to understand and move beyond it.
NOTE: One more day has been added to the workshop (1 October 2025) due to the large volume of proposals. The proceedings of that particular day will take place at the Dimosthenis Dodos hall, 1st floor, School of Political Sciences, 12 Vasileos Irakleiou Street, at the Thessaloniki city centre.
With the support of:
The programme of the workshop:
