Dear colleagues and friends,

We warmly invite scholars to submit papers for the DPRK Cities Research Group’s 5th International Conference at the Soongsil Institute for Peace and Unification, Soongsil University, supported by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

We are pleased to announce Professor Sandra Fahy (Carleton University), whose work on everyday life, famine, and human rights in North Korea has been highly influential, as confirmed Special Guest of the conference.

This conference explores how marketization, technological change, and governance reshape civic space and everyday life in cities under authoritarian and transitional regimes. Moving beyond state-level analysis, it focuses on cities as key sites where control, adaptation, and agency are negotiated in practice.

While contributions on North Korean cities are particularly welcome, we strongly encourage comparative perspectives involving other authoritarian or transitional contexts.

The conference is designed as a small-scale, discussion-oriented workshop with limited presentation slots and dedicated discussants. We particularly welcome contributions from scholars with an active research agenda and aim to bring together established and emerging experts for focused, high-level exchange. Submissions will be competitively selected.

Date: November 19, 2026 (Thursday)
Location: Seoul, South Korea
Language: English (with simultaneous interpretation between English and Korean)
Deadlines: Abstract + short bio (max. 500 words): May 22, 2026
Full paper (max. 8,000 words): October 30, 2026
Support: Round-trip airfare and accommodation (2 nights: 18–20 November) will be provided for all presenters

We look forward to your submissions. Please submit your abstract to ssucrg@ssu.ac.kr.

Notification of acceptance will be sent by June 5.

Frank Moehring
(On behalf of the DPRK Cities Research Group)