Conference of the ESREA Network on Policy Studies in Adult Education2026

The Conference

Adult Learning and Education (ALE) is embedded in national, international and supra-national policies. Accordingly, policy studies in Adult Education reflect and address the movements, developments and discourses of the formal policies and the more subtle narratives and ideologies applied in the field.

Keynotes:

• Global Adult Education Policies under pressure: Widening the scope of action from the Perspective of the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning – Dr. Isabell Kempf, Director of the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
• Adult Education Policies in the USA: Counterstrategies and resilience for democracy (confirmed) – Dr Liz Roumell, Associate Professor, Texas A&M University

The conference language is English.

The conference website: www.conferences.uni-hamburg.de/event/606/overview

Call for Papers

Guidelines for Submission of Proposals:

Anonymized proposals should be submitted to the conference management system. They should be typed, single spaced, in A4, include title and 5 keywords.

Paper proposals should not exceed 600 words including the title; 3-5 keywords; aims/objectives; main perspective or theoretical/conceptual framework; methods, research design, mode of inquiry; data sources or evidence; results and/or conclusions; significance to the field of policy studies in adult education.

Symposium proposals should not exceed 1200 words including title; 3-5 keywords; aims/objectives, significance for the field of policy studies in adult education, and short abstracts (approx. 200 words each) of all papers. They should also nominate a Chairperson and Discussant.

Abstracts should address the following aspects:

- Aims of the paper
- Main perspective or theoretical/conceptual framework
- Methods, research design, type of study
- Data sources or evidence
- Results and/or conclusions
- Relevance to the field of policy studies in adult education.

Abstract submission deadline: 15 October, 2025

All proposals will be blind reviewed by the scientific committee. Final versions of papers (no more than 5000 words including references) must be submitted by 1st of May 2026. Please use the APA (American Psychological Association) reference system.

Further information

Where and When?

The conference will take place from the 13 to 15 May 2026 on the premises of the University of Hamburg, Germany.

Edmund Siemers Allee 1
20146 Hamburg
Germany

Registration

Registration is available via the conference website: www.conferences.uni-hamburg.de/event/606/overview

Final date for registration: 25th April 2026

Conference Fees

Early registration Payment received 28th February 2026
Full fee: 260 EUR
Fee to ESREA members: 210 EUR
Fee to doctoral students: 110 EUR

Payments received after 28th February but before 25th April 2026
Full fee: 300 EUR
Fee to ESREA members: 260 EUR
Fee to doctoral students: 130 EUR

The conference fees include lunch and refreshments; they exclude the conference dinner, any airport/hotel transfers and hotel accommodation.

Contact

All correspondence regarding the conference should be sent to:
klaus.buddeberg@uni-hamburg.de