Conference Theme: Closed Borders and Global Connections: Being Global after Globalization

The world is changing, and the discipline of World History must respond to those changes.

In the 2005 article “Myths, Wagers, and Some Moral Implications of World History,” one of the founders of the World History Association, Jerry Bentley, noted that the world has been moving towards a state of globalization as long as the field has existed, noting that the general narrative is that “the intensity and range of cross-cultural interactions has generally increased over time.”  Yet he also praised modern historical scholarship for its “openness to examination and criticism from all angles.”  The world history he called for, he writes, “does not pretend to know the end of history.”

Indeed, we find ourselves today in a world that many world historians did not predict: one that remains  intensely interconnected through trade, migration, culture, and shared planetary futures, while globalization as a narrative and as a political project has faltered. Nationalism, protectionism, deportations, and regional conflict have all surged in ways that challenge the logic of global integration. In teaching and scholarly work alike, this reality asks us to rethink what it means to teach and study the global past  in a world that no longer embraces globalization as an ideal or inevitability.

The Program Committee of the 35th Annual Meeting of the World History Association, to be held in Incheon, Korea in 2026, invites proposals that explore this new terrain. We ask: how can we write, teach, and think about world history in a moment characterized both by global entanglement and anti-globalist politics ? What historical precedents —such as empires, invasions, epidemics, diasporas, trade routes, or cross-cultural encounters—might help us imagine a world that is connected but not necessarily globalized in the modern sense? What models of both interconnection and interdiction have emerged or persisted outside the framework of globalization? And how might the changing present force us to rethink historiographical frameworks about the past?

We especially welcome proposals that engage with Korea and Asia more broadly—not only as historical sites of cross-border connection, but also as important contemporary vantage points from which to rethink the global. Topics may include the history of Asian trade and exchange, transimperial and migration history, religion and cultural exchange, ecological frameworks, and communication infrastructures. We are particularly interested in papers that center Asian experiences and perspectives on global connectivity. We also encourage presentations that focus on models and lessons for the world from Korea, including in the realms of democracy, energy, and climate change.

Call for Proposals:

Our CFP will open soon, please keep an eye on our website and our mailing list for when submissions open.

Proposals may take the form of:

• Organized Panels (three to four panelists, one chair, and optionally, one discussant) - each paper should be a maximum of 20 minutes in length for three panelists; papers should be a maximum of 15 minutes in length for four panelists
• Individual Papers (not part of an Organized Panel) - each paper should be a maximum of 20 minutes in length
• Roundtable sessions (between four to six participants) – five-minute opening statements from each participant followed by conversational dialogue with the audience
• Workshop sessions (between one to four participants) – these are hands on sessions on specific teaching techniques or practices that often include handouts, breakout sessions and/or assignment creation/reflection
• Meet the Author sessions - an excellent opportunity for exchanges between authors and audiences, including explanations of methods and suggestions for use
• Innovative sessions - innovative teaching, research, or other formats not outlined above Proposals from the fields of anthropology, geography, political science, literature, art history and criticism, digital humanities, other humanities and social sciences, as well as natural or physical sciences that address global historical change are also encouraged.

Each organized session should include a 250-word panel proposal and a 250-word proposal for each paper along with a brief curriculum vitae and a short biographical statement for introduction by the session Chair. Individual papers and all other sessions should include a 250- word abstract, a brief curriculum vitae, and a short biographical statement for introduction by the session Chair.

PLEASE NOTE: Prearranged (organized) panels/roundtables/workshops are given priority in the program and receive earlier notification of acceptance. Individual papers will also be considered and, if accepted, are arranged into suitable panels by the Program Committee. Individual papers may receive later notice of acceptance, pending appropriate placement on panels.

Contact Email: info@thewha.org 

Professional Behavior Policy

Why We Have a Professional Behavior Policy 

The World History Association (WHA) is a professional association of scholars, teachers, and students organized to promote world history by encouraging teaching, research, publications, and personal interactions. As described in its constitution, its mission is to “promote activities which will increase historical awareness, understanding among and between peoples, and global consciousness.” Promoting understanding among and between peoples includes encouraging mutual respect, an ethical practice that is essential for the collegial camaraderie that has long been part of the WHA’s aims and vital for the continued health of the field of world history. The practice of mutual respect fosters a sustainable environment for freedom of expression and open inquiry. When a culture of mutual respect is not maintained, the field suffers by the voices lost and the diminished reach of the voices that remain. 

 

Annual Meeting

The principles and policies contained in this document apply to all attendees at the WHA’s annual meeting, a place where people come to exchange ideas and build intellectual and professional networks. All interactive venues of the annual meeting—in person, in hybrid sessions, through email and other electronic forms of communication, or on social media, and whether formal or informal—are shared professional spaces. In a professional space, attendees should comport themselves according to the values of nondiscrimination, dignity, and courtesy. The WHA is comprised of scholars, teachers, and students from all over the world; attendees should thus acknowledge the rights of all WHA members and other scholars to hold diverse values and opinions. 

 

Attendees should assume that all of their interactions during the meeting are professional, not personal. Keeping in mind that consent may look different to different individuals, the best practice is for all parties to agree freely and explicitly when interactions shift away from the strictly professional. 

Harassment 

The World History Association views harassment as a form of discrimination and misconduct by which the harasser asserts a relationship of power over the harassed through behavior that causes feelings of fear or distress. Harassment implies that an individual is not worthy of respect and that the views and person of that individual hold little or no value. Harassment may be overt or subtle, public or private, in-person or online, sexual or otherwise. All forms of harassment hurt the individual, the organization, and the profession in far-reaching and long-standing ways. The WHA is committed to creating and maintaining a harassment-free environment for all participants in the Association’s activities. 

Harassment includes demeaning, humiliating, and threatening actions, comments, jokes, other forms of verbal and/or written communication, body language, and physical contact, based on sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, age, religion, physical and mental ability, or any other characteristic. 

Sexual harassment includes but is not limited to unwanted sexual advances; requests for sexual favors; other verbal and physical conduct of a sexual nature; offensive or suggestive jokes or remarks; inappropriate personal questions or conversations; unwelcome or nonconsensual physical contact; display of sexually explicit, offensive, or demeaning images except for scholarly analysis; leering or ogling; sexual remarks about someone’s clothing or body; repeated requests for dates after having been told no; and retaliatory behavior. Sexual harassment does not refer to occasional compliments of a socially acceptable nature or consensual personal and social relationships without discriminatory effect. It refers to behavior that reasonably situated persons would regard as not welcome and as personally intimidating, hostile, or offensive. 

Bullying 

The United States government (https://www.stopbullying.gov/ ) considers bullying a serious problem. Bullying is characterized by direct or indirect intentional aggression that is physical, verbal, or social in nature, and a power imbalance between aggressor and victim. Bullying may include refusal to recognize the cultural and personal meaning of ideas and actions that are different from one’s own. In a professional setting, bullying of any sort can be considered workplace violence, whether this occurs at conferences or in digital spaces, and the WHA strongly condemns this. 

Social Media 

The WHA asks that attendees at annual meetings observe the principles of consent and respect when using social media. Express permission to post or tweet conference speakers’ work, images, and audio or video recordings must be secured in advance through session organizers or presiders (copyright law may well require this). Speakers reserve all rights to their work and related materials. Due to its immediacy and brevity, live-tweeting or blogging must strive for accuracy and avoid misrepresentation, misappropriation, and misunderstanding. Members participating in online conversations or public forums pertinent to annual meetings should practice respect and collegiality. The WHA considers doxxing, outing, online harassment, and stalking antithetical to its core values. 

Violations 

The World History Association will not take breaches of professional or ethical behavior lightly. At the annual meeting, the WHA will maintain a team to receive complaints from any participant who has experienced or witnessed violations of this policy. The contact information for team members will be made available on the WHA website and in registration materials. If you would like to report a violation of our Code of Conduct, please fill out this report form or call us at 413-275-3858. Reporting an incident does not obligate the reporter to pursue any further action. All communications are confidential and the details of such conversations will not be reported, except as required by law. Depending upon the severity and nature of the report, the team will take action appropriate to the particular context, in accordance with the WHA’s status as a membership organization, the policies of a host institution, and local, state, and national law. Neither the team nor any other WHA official can provide legal advice to individuals who make reports under this policy. 

Some text in this policy is taken from documents produced by the American Historical Association and the Medieval Academy of America, with their permission.