ICES Gender & Society International Conference
Prezentare evenimentEvent Presentation
We invite you to participate in an international academic event focused on gender and the challenges of gender inequalities. The conference is hosted by Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research (ICES), Romanian Academy, Iasi Branch, and will take place, on-site and online, from June 17th to June 19th, 2026.
Despite the undeniable progress that has been made in the past few decades, gender inequality remains embedded in the very fabric of our society. While women constitute roughly half of our population, they still face challenges, obstacles, and burdens unmatched by the challenges, obstacles, and burdens that the other half of the population is confronted with. The difference stems from the fact that almost every human society sustains and preserves a pattern of unequal opportunities at all levels of society, and almost everywhere in the world.
The driving principle of the conference is that gender, and the ways gender representations and society interact, are of defining importance for the growth and development of our world. We believe that understanding the relationship between gender and society historically and cross-culturally, and the changes in the roles of women and men in different social and cultural contexts, will provide better ways to advance gender equality. The conference will explore multidisciplinary topics such as social construction and the role of gender within various societies, the meanings of gender and sex in past and modern societies, women’s contemporary and historical experiences, and cultural practices that shape social identities and uphold structural inequalities. We will also welcome any approach that sheds light on women’s contribution to, experience of, and participation in different social, political, cultural, scientific, and economic fields, highlighting their valuable insights and perspectives.
The conference aims to provide an international forum for multi- and interdisciplinary dialogue, generating transformative knowledge that has the potential to inform policy, practice, and social change.
We encourage submissions that critically engage with diverse topics, including (but not limited to) the relationship between gender and: politics, economy, law, education, health, nature, intersectionality, sexuality, and violence. We are further interested in such issues as: gender in the digital age, historical perspectives on gender, literary and artistic representations of gender, contemporary feminist perspectives.
Each year, the conference will feature a guest symposium on a specific topic, including up to 10 peer-reviewed papers. This year, we host the 8th edition of the National Scientific Symposium The Paradigm of Consciousness – Multidisciplinary and Interdisciplinary Approaches, focused on “Gender and Mental Health”, aiming to explore the complex ways in which gender shapes mental health, illness, wellbeing, and access to care within psychological, social, cultural, and ethical contexts. Moving beyond purely biological explanations, the symposium brings together scholars and practitioners from the social sciences, humanities, medicine, and public health to examine gendered experiences of physical and mental health, health-related behaviors, healthcare inequalities, and policy implications. Through interdisciplinary dialogue, this year’s symposium seeks to advance a nuanced understanding of health as a gendered human experience and to promote more inclusive and equitable approaches to research, clinical practice, and health policy.
The official languages of the conference are English and Romanian. The conference is open to all participants free of charge. Please submit your abstract by April 15th, 2026, to the following address: cathy.raducu78@gmail.com. Submissions for the guest symposium should mention: “to be included in the Gender & Mental Health Symposium”. Once the abstract is accepted, the author(s) will receive a confirmation and can register for the conference. Full papers will be requested after the conference for publication as chapters in a volume to be printed by an academic publishing house.
Dată evenimentEvent Date
17/06/2026
Locul de desfășurareVenue
Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research (ICES), Romanian Academy, Iasi Branch
Instituții organizatoareOrganizing Institutions
Organizer:
Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research (ICES), Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Partners
IFSGen. The Romanian Network for Women’s and Gender History
The Center for the Study of Equal Opportunity Policies (CPES), University of Bucharest.
“George Bariţiu” History Institute, Romanian Academy, Cluj-Napoca Branch
A.D. Xenopol Institute of History, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
State University of Moldova, Chișinău
“Alecu Russo” Bălți State University, Republic of Moldova
“Henri Coandă” Air Force Academy, Brașov
Center for Counseling, Career Guidance and Social Inclusion, Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iași
Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași
Department of Philosophy and Department of Sociology and Social Work, Faculty of Philosophy and Social-Political Sciences, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași
Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, “Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu
“George Enescu” National University of Arts, Iaşi
Faculty of Psychology and educational Sciences, Hyperion University, Bucharest
Library of the Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Rural Development Research Platform, Iași, Romania
Coordonatori evenimentEvent Coordinators
Coordinators for the 2026 edition:
Cătălina-Daniela Răducu, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Cristina Maria Tofan, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Comitet organizatoricOrganizing Committee
Cătălina-Daniela Răducu, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Cristina Maria Tofan, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Ionuț-Alexandru Bârliba, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Lavinia Andreea Bejan, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Felicia Ceaușu, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Irina Frasin, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Alina Haller, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Laura Mocanu, Library of the Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Bogdan Olaru, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Vasile Pleșca, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Comitet științificScientific Committee
Dr. Vasilica Bălăiță, “George Enescu” National University of Arts, Iaşi
Dr. Ionuț-Alexandru Bârliba, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Eugenia Bogatu, State University of Moldova, Chișinău
Dr. Codruța Cuceu, “George Bariţiu” History Institute, Romanian Academy, Cluj-Napoca Branch
Dr. Krisztina-Melinda Dobay, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Anca Dohotariu, Faculty of Political Science, University of Bucharest
Dr. Aurora Hrițuleac, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Eugen Huzum, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Irina Frasin, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Daniela Matei, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Liviu-Adrian Măgurianu, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Cătălina Mihalache, A.D. Xenopol Institute of History, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Bogdan Olaru, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Vasile Pleșca, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Valentina Prițcan, “Alecu Russo” Bălți State University, Republic of Moldova
Dr. Cătălina-Daniela Răducu, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Dr. Alina Rusu, Doctoral School Education, Reflection, Development, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, Babeș-Bolyai University, and The Human-Animal Interaction Lab at USAMV, Cluj-Napoca
Dr. Marinela Rusu, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iasi Branch
Dr. Mirela Ștefănescu, The Multidisciplinary Research Institute in Art, “George Enescu” National University of Arts (ICMA UNAGE)
Dr. Cristina Maria Tofan, Gheorghe Zane Institute for Economic and Social Research, Romanian Academy, Iași Branch
Termen limită pentru abstracteAbstract Deadline
15/04/2026
Persoane de contactContact Persons
Cătălina-Daniela Răducu