The Institute of Contemporary History and the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences invite proposals for a two-day international conference bringing together historical scholarship and contemporary reflections on civic activism and democratic resistance.
\nHeld on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of Charter 77\, the conference does not seek merely to commemorate a landmark of Czech and Czechoslovak history. Rather\, it aims to reassess Charter 77 as a historically situated yet internationally significant experiment in civic resistance\, and to explore its changing meanings in an era marked by democratic backsliding\, geopolitical fragmentation\, and the transformation of the global human rights order. The conference seeks to foster dialogue across disciplinary\, geographical\, and generational boundaries between scholars and civic actors concerned with the past\, present\, and future of democracy and human rights.
\nCharter 77 emerged in 1977\, during the normalization period in Czechoslovakia\, as a culturally and politically distinctive act of civic resistance &ldquo\;from below&rdquo\; in defense of fundamental human rights. It soon became not merely a symbol but an enduring platform of democratic opposition to late communist dictatorship\, whose language\, practices\, and moral authority resonated far beyond Czechoslovakia.
\nRecent scholarship has highlighted both Charter 77&rsquo\;s rootedness in the political and intellectual context of the late Cold War and its lasting significance as a distinctive experiment in civic resistance. Today\, when the international order shaped by the Helsinki process is undergoing profound transformation\, when global consensus on human rights is increasingly contested\, and when democratic institutions face mounting pressure\, Charter 77 offers an important historical perspective for rethinking questions of human dignity\, civic responsibility\, pluralism\, and nonviolent resistance.
\nThe notion of social imagination\, understood as the capacity to envision alternative forms of political and civic life\, lies at the heart of this conference. Likewise\, the idea of the (post-)global age refers to an increasingly fragmented international landscape in which universal aspirations coexist with renewed geopolitical rivalry\, regionalization\, and competing visions of democracy\, sovereignty\, and human rights.
\nThe conference will bring together scholars from history\, philosophy\, political science\, legal studies\, cultural anthropology\, sociology\, and related disciplines alongside contemporary civic actors. It aims to explore the intellectual and political legacy of dissent\, its transformations after 1989\, and the ways in which the Chartist ethos may illuminate current debates on democracy\, human rights\, civic engagement\, and nonviolent resistance.
\nThe program will move across three broad\, interconnected registers: the historical legacy of Charter 77 itself\, situated within Czech/Slovak\, Central European\, and global frames\; the trajectories of contemporary anti-authoritarian and democratizing movements across Eastern Europe (from Serbia and Belarus to Russia and Georgia)\; and the wider global dimensions of present-day human rights and democratization struggles. Contributions are welcome that speak to any of these registers\, or that move between them.
\nWe invite proposals addressing\, among others\, the following themes &ndash\; though contributions are by no means limited to this list:
\nCharter 77 in comparative perspective: dissidence\, opposition\, and civic initiatives across socialist Europe.
\nEastern Europe and international human rights organizations: historical links between dissidence and its contemporary forms.
\nHuman rights and the transformation of the international system: the evolution of international norms from Helsinki to the present.
\nReligion\, ethics\, and human rights in dissident thought.
\nSocial imagination and the language of resistance: how concepts of human dignity\, solidarity\, and civic responsibility continue to shape contemporary activism.
\nTransnational solidarity across political regimes: historical dissident networks and contemporary forms of digital mobilization.
\nLaw\, institutional independence\, and civic oversight: dissident legalism\, authoritarian legality\, and contemporary legal resistance.
\nThe ethics of nonviolence and the limits of civil disobedience: theory and practice across different historical contexts.
\nCultural opposition and artistic imagination: forms of cultural dissent\, past and present\, and the question of creative freedom under conditions of digital surveillance and platform capitalism.
\nThe memory of dissent in public space: institutionalization\, contested narratives\, and the relationship between history\, politics\, and activism.
\nPolitical order and civil resistance in the age of artificial intelligence: surveillance\, disinformation\, repression\, and democratic resilience in historical perspective.
\nCivic engagement after 1989: continuities\, transformations\, and forgotten traditions of democratic participation.
\nSubmission Guidelines
\nPlease submit:
\nan abstract of 300&ndash\;500 words outlining the research question\, methodology\, sources (where appropriate)\, and principal argument\;
\na brief biographical note.
\nSubmission deadline:6 September 2026
\nPlease send submissions to: Charter77Conference@usd.cas.cz
\nNotification of acceptance:30 September 2026
\nPractical Information
\nConference language: English
\nPresentation length: 20 minutes
\nFormat: On-site
\nTravel and accommodation: Covered by the organizers
\nOrganizers
\nInstitute of Contemporary History\, Czech Academy of Sciences
\nInstitute of Philosophy\, Czech Academy of Sciences
\nOrganizational and Media Partners
\nCzech Radio (Český\; rozhlas)
\nInstitute for Human Sciences (IWM)\, Vienna
\nDemocracy Institute\, Central European University (Budapest)
\nLibri Prohibiti (Prague)
\nCzechoslovak Documentation Center\, National Museum (Prague)
\nFor inquiries\, please contact Klá\;ra Řihá\;ková\; or Michal Kopeček at Charter77Conference@usd.cas.cz.
\nWe look forward to receiving your submissions.
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