We’re pleased to announce that Transitions is co-organising a pre-conference event at the 11th European Communication Conference (ECREA 2026) in Brno this September — in partnership with researchers from Lund University’s Communication, Defense Willingness and Democratic Resilience (CDR) research environment.
Communication and Democratic Resilience: Perspectives and Pathways will bring together scholars and practitioners to explore the communicative dimension of democratic resilience — how communication practices, media systems, and civic engagement contribute to strengthening democratic mindsets and institutions in times of political polarisation, disinformation, and societal uncertainty.
The event is endorsed by the ECREA Communication and Democracy thematic section and aligns with the conference’s overarching theme “Shifting Grounds – Paths, Connections, and Futures.”
For Transitions, this collaboration is an opportunity to contribute concrete lessons learned from our work in media development and media literacy across Central and Eastern Europe to the growing body of research on democratic resilience communication.
Call for abstracts — open now
We’re inviting contributions from researchers and practitioners across disciplines. Topics include (but are not limited to):
- Fostering resilience in democratic societies through media and communication
- Strategies to counter disinformation and strengthen trust in public institutions
- Empowering citizens and marginalised groups through participatory communication
- Democracy and the role of affect, emotions, and passion politics
- Inclusive communication for vulnerable communities
- Innovative approaches to communicative resilience
- Case studies on communication supporting democratic resilience
Key details:
- Date: Monday, September 7, 2026
- Location: Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Abstract deadline: April 12, 2026
- No registration fee — ECREA membership and conference registration are not required
- Submit: 250–500 word abstract + author bios (max 100 words each) to CDR202609@gmail.com
Organised by Cecilia Cassinger, Nils Gustafsson, and Isabelle Karlsson (Lund University) together with Jaroslav Valůch (Transitions).
We especially welcome submissions that bring practitioner perspectives into dialogue with academic research. Informal inquiries can be sent to Isabelle Karlsson at isabelle.karlsson@iko.lu.se
The full call for papers is available at: Pre- / Post-Conferences – Call for Abstracts | ECC 2026 | 11th European Communication Conference
#ECREA2026 #DemocraticResilience #StrategicCommunication #MediaLiteracy