Wisdom Days: Science for Sustainability Transformations | 6-8 May, 2026

We invite researchers, practitioners, policymakers, managers, and students to submit abstracts for presentations at the first-ever Wisdom Days conference. The conference accepts proposals for talks, speed-talks, posters, and workshops. The abstract proposals may be related to some of the sub-themes of the conference, but other themes related to sustainability transformations are also welcome.

Each parallel session will comprise 3 to 5 presentations (talks). Talks and posters will be thematically grouped by the organizing committee. Talk is a longer presentation and speed-talk is a shorter presentation, such as light overview or summary about research or project. We will inform about the schedule including minutes per presentation closer to the conference. We kindly ask the authors to be present in the poster session slot and to prepare a 2-3-minute informal presentation of their poster.

Workshops offer the opportunity to implement a practical, action-based, experiential, or embodied method or way of working. The duration of the workshop is maximum of 1 hour and 20 minutes of which part should be reserved for discussion and debriefing with the participants. Please see the detailed guidelines dedicated to workshop proposals before you submit your abstract.

To fulfill the conference program equally, event coordinators might offer you a different opportunity to present your work than what you initially proposed. We kindly request that participants remain flexible with their preferred type of presentation, and we believe that the format does not matter, as long as you keep it interesting!

All submitted abstracts will undergo a peer-review process conducted by the conference's scientific committee, with a focus on scientific quality and relevance to the conference. We encourage the submission of marginalized topics by promoting them as particularly relevant to the conference. Whether the topic is marginalized is self-assessed by the authors, and needs to be indicated in the abstract, along with a brief explanation. Information about accepted proposals will be sent to authors in January 2026, when the registration starts.

GUIDELINES FOR PROPOSALS

• If you propose a workshop, you may present another proposal for a talk, speed-talk or a poster.
• If you propose a talk or a speed-talk, you may present another proposal for a poster, but it needs to be clearly a different contribution / topic.
• You may participate as a non-presenting co-author as many times as you like.
• All submissions should be anonymous to ensure a fair review process. Please do not include your name in your abstract (only in the submission form).
• Proposals can only be submitted through the conference website by filling out the form for submissions. Submissions via email will not be processed.

Abstract preparation guidelines for both oral and poster presentations

• All abstracts must be submitted through an online form.
• They must include a title. Make sure the title of your abstract is informative and contains details that can help us identify the best session for your presentation. Please avoid using all caps for the title of the abstract.
• Abstracts should not be longer than 250 words. The word count does not include the title.
• All abstracts must be submitted in English.
• Proposals should be submitted directly by their authors.
• Abstracts are expected to bring details about the aims, methodology, findings, and significance of the research.
• Abstracts should not include figures, tables, or references.
• Indicate whether your preferred presentation form is talk, speed-talk, or poster.
• Note! We also invite Master's level students to send abstracts to propose a poster to present their Master's thesis.

If you would like to do a proposal for a workshop, please follow these guidelines:

Practical workshops offer the opportunity to implement a practical, action-based, experiential or embodied method or way of working. The workshop theme should be related but not necessarily limited to the themes of the Wisdom Days conference, such as sustainability transformations, multispecies relations, planetary wellbeing, co-creating sustainability through action, arts and agency or relating to economy and consumption. For example, the workshop can implement creative and experiential research or pedagogical/educational methods or deal with participants’ relationships to sustainability matters.

Facilitator(s) will implement the workshops independently for the participants without facilitation by the organiser. The focus of the workshop should be action-based, experiential and participatory, rather than lecturing or presenting. The duration of the workshop is maximum 1 hour 20 minutes of which part should be reserved for discussion and debriefing with the participants. The preferred language for a workshop is English, but Finnish or Swedish may be used if necessary.

Submit an abstract of the workshop describing the idea for your workshop. You will be notified in January 2026 whether the workshop has been accepted.

Abstract preparation guidelines for workshops

• Proposals for workshops are submitted by the workshop facilitator(s), who is/are also expected to act as the workshop coordinator(s).
• Workshop proposals are submitted using the same form as for other types of abstract proposals.
• Please provide the following information:
  • Name, email address, background organisation (if you want it to be included in the workshop description)
  • Descriptive title for the workshop
  • Minimum and maximum number of participants
  • Any space requirements you may have (large floor space, chairs, etc.).
  • An abstract with a maximum of 300 words, including workshop objectives, themes and methods to be used (this will be published as part of the Wisdom Days programme)
  • Whether you also have another presentation or responsibility at Wisdom Days, or anything else that the organisers should take into account

Inquiries and questions regarding the workshops can be sent to: tiia.t.kontkanen@jyu.fi

As the world faces escalating climate crises, biodiversity loss, and growing social inequalities, research on sustainability transformations has become more urgent and relevant than ever. Sustainability transformations refer to profound, systemic changes in societal structures, technologies, values and behaviors aimed at achieving long-term coexistence between humans and nonhumans, that supports their flourishing in ecological, social, and economic terms.

These transformations require shifts in governance, innovation, and cultural paradigms. Thus the Wisdom Days research conference on sustainability transformations invites together multi- and interdisciplinary scholarship that seeks to create knowledge, understanding, or solutions related to these challenges.

For this sub-theme, we invite works that explore transformative change through a systemic lens, focusing on the political, legal, and institutional shifts needed to navigate complex social-ecological challenges as well as studies on the sustainability and resilience of social-ecological systems. Among other topics, this covers studying leverage points and intervention points for transitions, natural resource governance and management; and identifying pathways for deeper change. The theme invites interdisciplinary dialogue and critical system analyses. It highlights justice as a central concern, encouraging critical and decolonial approaches that challenge dominant paradigms and redefine what transformation means.

This sub-theme invites submissions that explore how production and consumption system practices and the economic systems structuring them operate and can be changed for sustainability. This includes asking how circular economy practices can reshape production or how green consumption, sufficiency, and technological solutions carve transition pathways into different directions. The theme calls for critically examining the foundations of capitalism and its role in driving unsustainable patterns, while also considering the potential and limitations of technological solutions.

Broadly understood, this sub-theme welcomes works focused on biological diversity and our relations with it. We invite works from conservation science to cultural studies, the theme highlights the importance of plural approaches to sustaining biodiversity and redescribing relations between humans and the rest of natural world. The goal is to foster dialogue that bridges ecological understanding with ethical and relational dimensions of living with other species. The theme encompasses a range of topics from human-wildlife conflicts to reimagining ethics of coexistence through ecological and socio-cultural lenses.

For this sub-theme, we welcome research focused on well-being and its sustainability and multispecies perspectives. This includes holistic views that connect environmental, ecosystem, and human health; the role of nature connectedness in improving mental health; and studies on the sustainability of human well-being. The theme highlights the importance of achieving planetary well-being, recognizing that human flourishing must align with ecological limits but also enable the flourishing of other life. The bridging of well-being related disciplines and perspectives, the theme aims to advance research around planetary well-being and more transformative understandings of well-being.

This sub-theme invites submissions that explore, among other questions, how sustainability transformations are put into action and how to foster creative expression, grassroots initiatives, and individual and collective agency to contribute to societal transformations. The theme calls for works on community-driven action, pro-environmental behavior and behavioral change, and nudging strategies and education in fostering change. The theme also examines the role of media in amplifying or weakening sustainability discussions and narratives. By bridging arts, activism, and research, the theme invites transdisciplinary dialogue on environmental agency and co-creating sustainability.

For this sub-theme, we invite submissions that focus either on higher education institutes' (HEI) role in driving sustainability transformations or reducing HEI's negative impacts on nature. Topics can vary from measuring HEI's biodiversity footprint to living labs, education and biodiversity handprint. We also welcome research focusing on organizational or global Nature Positive goals that can be adapted to the HEI context. The sub-theme highlights HEI's role in achieving planetary well-being and supporting the implementation of Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).