Call for Papers

Young Scholars Conference 2026

The Fudan-UC Center on Contemporary China, together with the 21st Century China Center and The Carter Center, is convening an academic conference on “Emerging Trends in China’s Society, Politics, and Economy.” This year’s Young Scholars Conference invites submissions that explore emerging trends reshaping contemporary China across society, politics, and the economy. We particularly welcome research that captures new local dynamics, examines the political economy of technology, or analyzes evolving social/cultural practices that illuminate deeper transformations in Chinese life.

Possible topics include—but are not limited to—local governance and policy implementation, industrial and digital innovation, internet culture and platform economies, migrant workers, gender, green and AI technologies, and shifts in everyday values and consumption patterns.

The Carter Center is calling for papers that explore the impacts of these domestic trends on China’s posture toward the United States and the world. Themes might include the international implications of contradictions within China’s high-tech industries, changes in internet or popular culture reflecting China’s global position, or what domestic political economic pressures mean for China’s global outreach and its efforts to usher in a new age of multipolarity. All methodologies are welcome for consideration, including theoretically oriented papers. 

We especially encourage papers grounded in fieldwork or other forms of empirical inquiry that reveal how technological change, social adaptation, and local experimentation are collectively shaping China’s future in the 21st century.

The Fudan-UC Center’s Young Scholars’ Conference convenes each year to bring together young scholars studying China from China and North America. We invite advanced graduate students, post-doctoral scholars, and junior faculty to submit applications. Applicants should attach PDFs of their abstract, brief cover letter, and CV to the form found on this QR code. If selected, each presenter will receive a travel (e.g. airfare and lodging) subsidy of up to $1,000. 

Applications must be submitted by Jan. 16, 2026. Selected participants will be informed by no later than Feb. 6, and completed papers should be sent to the conference organizers by April 20th.  

International applicants needing a visa may request review of their submissions earlier so that, if selected, they have sufficient time for visa applications and travel preparations.

Email any questions to fudanuccenter@ucsd.edu.

https://china.ucsd.edu/events/academic-conferences/index.html