About the Conference
Diaspora, Identity, and Belonging in the Digital Age
Date: April 29-30, 2026, 9am-5pm
Location: Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute Room 200A (Lambert Room)
The 21st century has been defined by large-scale global change driven by migration, exile, border reconfigurations, political upheaval, and shifting power dynamics – all of which have profoundly shaped debates surrounding human rights, identity, culture, and belonging. Furthermore, as digital platforms collapse geographic distance and intensify new forms of surveillance, nationalism, and exclusion, diasporic subjects must navigate complex landscapes of memory, language, race, gender, and political belonging. Questions related to these key themes are relevant not only to international or global studies but also to fields such as linguistics, medicine, environmental sciences, literary studies, cultural studies, queer studies, public health, and many others.
Attend the Conference
Submit Your Abstracts
This conference seeks papers and/or poster presentations that examine how identities are constructed, performed, co tested, and reimagined transnationally. Moreover, we welcome interdisciplinary approaches from the humanities, social sciences, arts, and related fields, and encourage work that engages critical frameworks such as postcolonial theory, migration studies, media studies, queer and feminist theory, and critical race studies. By centering student scholarship, this conference aims to foster dialogue about the evolving meanings of home, nation, and community in an increasingly digitized and interconnected world.
Information & Guidelines
Abstract Submission
Submission Deadline: March 20, 2026
- Only current undergraduate and graduate university students are eligible to submit
their abstracts for consideration. - Abstracts should be a maximum of 300 words.
- Academic bios should be no more than 100 words.
- Accepted submissions should be individual papers. Collaborative papers are
welcome, but only with fellow undergraduate students and/or graduate students. - We welcome poster presentations, especially from undergraduate students.
- Following the conference, awards will be given to the top presentations.
For inquiries, please contact:
imsistudentconference@gmail.com or IMSI’s Associate Director, Dr. Don Joseph (don.joseph@missouri.edu)
