Instytut Europy Środkowej | ul. Niecała 5, 20-080 Lublin, Polska | +48 81 532 29 07 | biuro@ies.lublin.pl | Rzecznik prasowy: 661 677 007
The Editorial Board of the Yearbook of the Institute of East-Central Europe invites submissions of articles and reviews for the general issue of the journal (No. 1/2026), scheduled for publication in 2026. Manuscripts addressing broadly understood issues related to Central and Eastern Europe should be submitted by 30 May 2026 to the Yearbook’s correspondence address: yearbook@ies.lublin.pl.
Issue No. 1/2026 will be devoted to the historical and humanistic dimensions of research on Central and Eastern Europe, as well as to studies on international relations in Central and Eastern Europe and the role of Central and Eastern Europe in international relations. Given the interdisciplinary character of research on Central and Eastern Europe, the Editorial Board also welcomes submissions from authors of political science, sociological, economic, philosophical, and other related studies.
We encourage the submission of original theoretical and empirical works in both Polish and English.
Manuscripts should not exceed 60,000 characters (including spaces and the bibliography) and must be prepared in accordance with the author guidelines available on the journal’s website: https://ies.lublin.pl/en/yearbook/guidelines/
Submissions are accepted on an ongoing basis, i.e. from the date of the call for papers until the stated final deadline. The initial editorial decision regarding further processing of the manuscript should not exceed two weeks.
Special Issue: Memory, Society and Power: Social Frameworks, Political Conflicts, Cultural Practices
Editors: Agata Domachowska, Agata Tatarenko, Szczepan Czarnecki
Interdisciplinary Annual Journal on Memory Studies
We are pleased to invite submissions for the upcoming issue of the Yearbook of the Institute of Central Europe Memory, Society and Power:Social Frameworks, Political Conflicts, Cultural Practices an annual interdisciplinary journal. This issue aims to explore the diverse roles of memory in shaping individuals, communities, and societies. The journal provides a scholarly forum for innovative research on collective memory, memory culture, and the politics of remembering across different historical, social, and geographical contexts. We welcome contributions from scholars working in history, sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, political science, media studies, literature, art history, philosophy, and related disciplines. The issue is particularly interested in articles that examine how collective memory is constructed, negotiated, and transformed over time, and how these processes influence identities, cultural practices, and political realities.
Topics may include (but are not limited to):
We welcome both theoretical contributions and empirically grounded case studies. Special consideration will be given to interdisciplinary work and innovative methodological approaches.
Submission Guidelines
Timeline
Submission & Contact
Submissions and inquiries should be sent to: yearbook@ies.lublin.pl
Please include “Memory and Culture – Submission” in the subject line. Detailed author guidelines and further information.
Critical Geopolitics and Imagined Geographies in Central and Eastern Europe
Issue editors: Spasimir Domaradzki, Bartłomiej Krzysztan, Jakub Olchowski, Damian Szacawa
Deadline for articles: 30.06.2026
The fundamental issue addressed in this special issue is that of space. Using critical geopolitical studies as a basis and referring to the idea of the so-called spatial turn and the concept of imagined geography, we wish to critically reflect on and discuss the deterministic and realistic nature of the relationship between space and politics. We are interested in the constructions and representations of imagined geographies and their impact on the perception of contemporary political relations. Imagined geography is a concept that allows for the analysis of political and social aspects of the perception of space (space of power – private space, space of the Other, cultural territory) in the dynamically changing structure of contemporary political relations. Paradigmatically, the idea of a special issue refers to Edward W. Said’s (2018) imagined geography concept, which is based on Michel Foucault’s post-structural ontology and his perception of the theory of power and governmentality. This way of thinking about space is part of the so-called spatial turn, which assumes that the space in which humans’ function is not objective, but is a cultural construct resulting from historical, political and social processes. The resurgence of Russian imperialism, whose radical kinetic manifestation is Russia’s full-scale aggression in Ukraine, is one of the factors that has restored the relevance of political realism in theoretical reflection. Along with this return of politics, which also resonates in the West, geopolitics is also experiencing a peak of interest, often in its simplified form, i.e. deterministic and ahistorical, treated as a cognitive master key. The question of interpreting the relationship between space and territory and its connection with the population is also one of the most important determinants of the deep crisis, and at the same time an element legitimising neo-imperial, neo-colonial, violence-based political practices that postulate a complete transformation of the international order or the maintenance of the anti-modernist stagnation of the rotten order of corporate capitalism. In this context, we propose critical reflection, taking into account both empirical analyses and theoretical interventions. We encourage submissions in the fields of political science, international relations, geography, history, including the history of ideas, sociology, anthropology, literary studies and related disciplines, reflecting on, among other things:
– theory and methodology of critical geopolitical reflection in Central and Eastern Europe
– critical reflection on area studies and macro- and meso-regional political divisions
– case studies of the application of imagined geographies from the mesoregions of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Caucasus, and Central Asia
– studies on the relationship between maps and territories, both in the context of shaping real policies and political ideologies and discourses of power
– studies on historical territories, states and entities and their impact on the present day (unrecognised states, transnational lands (Galicia), spaces of nostalgia and non-existent lands (Kresy, Recovered Territories)
– reflection on critical proposals for describing the imagined spaces of geography (including Todorov, Wolff, Kroutvor, Kundera, Schöpflin, Miłosz, Riabczuk, O’Toal)
– irredentist and imperialist mythologies and ideologies and their implementation in politics, including memory policies
– the history of concepts and definitions of imagined spaces and territories
– the relationship between identity, memory and space
– the instrumentalisation and politicisation of maps and territory in contemporary and historical international conflicts
– postcolonial and postimperial conditions for the deconstruction of geopolitical relations
– imaginary geographies and processes of state and nation building in Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Caucasus, and Central Asia
– theoretical reflections on the weakness of geopolitics
– case studies of the failures of geopolitical visions and geostrategies
Potential authors are kindly requested to contact us by email (bartlomiej.krzysztan@ies.lublin.pl) to discuss whether their proposed article fits the thematic scope of the special issue.
Submission Guidelines
Length: 6,000–12,000 words (including footnotes and references)
Abstract: Please include an abstract of up to 250 words
Keywords: 5–7 keywords
Languages: Articles should be submitted in English
Formatting: It is also crucial that the text is written in accordance with the guidelines for authors.
Timeline
Submission deadline: 30th June 2026
Publication date: November 2026
Please submit your paper proposal of 250–500 words no later than 31st March 2026. Accepted manuscripts are due in 30th June 2026 and should adhere to the editorial guidelines.
