CALL FOR PAPERS
Association of Global South Studies Annual Conference
12-14 October 2025
Mérida, Mexico
Conference Venue: Hyatt Regency in Mérida, Mexico
Conference Theme: “The Global South in Perspective: Shifting World Order and Postcolonial Dynamics”
Countries that make up the Global South have experienced socio-political changes in the Twentieth and Twenty-first centuries. Buffeted by colonial hegemonic legacies and slow economic growth in the postcolonial milieu, numerous countries depend heavily on the Global North for survival, economic growth, and social viability. However, others have endeavored to shed the shackles of colonial hegemonic ideologies and cultural identities. Such endeavors have triggered a shift in geopolitical power dynamics and upended international relations. In other words, various countries in the Global South continue their march towards less dependency on the Global North, seeking to restore their diminished sovereignties by championing specific group interests within the ambit of a North-South tussle over global hegemony. The emergence of a multipolar world is pushing the limits of the old order of bipolarity. How does this global trend affect international relations? How does multipolarity intersect with globalization? How does the postcolonial deracinate the colonial, and does this trend impact the process of globalization?
Typically, 75-minute panels consist of three to four presenters. The deadline for proposals is Tuesday, 12 August 2025. Proposals and presentations can be in English or Spanish. The deadline for registering for the conference is Tuesday, 26 August. If a proposal is rejected and the applicant has already registered for the conference and decides not to attend, the registration fee will be refunded if the site coordinators are notified before Tuesday, 26 August. The registration fee includes the Opening Reception (Sunday, 12 October), coffee breaks on Monday and Tuesday, and the Awards Banquet (Tuesday, 14 October). Extra tickets for guests not registered for the conference to attend the Opening Ceremony and the Awards Banquet can be purchased online before Tuesday 26 August. Conference participants are responsible for investigating the need for travel requirements such as visas. Applicants will be informed within one week of submission if their proposal has been accepted.
Register and submit proposals online at:
https://form.jotform.com/250754091407152
For registration and proposal questions, contact the program coordinators, Sabella Abidde at sabidde@alasu.edu and Joseph Bangura at jbangura@desu.edu.
Register for hotel rooms at the Hyatt Regency in Mérida at:
https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/group-booking/MERID/G-AGS4
For the conference venue questions, contact site coordinator Ryan Alexander at
alex006@plattsburgh.edu. Information about pre- and post-conference tours will be forthcoming. Conference attendees are encouraged to arrive on Saturday, 11 October to participate in the full-day cultural tour to be offered on Sunday, 11 October. The conference hotel rate is good from 10 October to 17 October.
2025 Conference Registration Fees:
- Option 1: Global North Resident, Standard registration: $200. This includes a complimentary one-year membership in the association.
- Option 2: Global South Resident, Standard registration: $80. This includes a complimentary one-year membership in the association.
- Option 3: Lifetime Member registration: $140. Please contact Danielle Smith, the treasurer, at daniellesmith@georgiasouthern.edu to obtain a $400 lifetime membership.
- Option 4: Student registration, all regions: $80. This includes a complimentary one-year membership in the association.
Cultural enhancement activities in Mérida, Mexico
The Mexican state of Yucatán is located in the northern half of the Yucatán Peninsula of southeastern Mexico. The state’s capital is Mérida. For the last few thousand years, the Maya peoples have inhabited the entire Yucatán Peninsula, as well surrounding regions. The physical “boundaries” of the ancient Mayan civilization spanned across a region that now includes parts of five nations. Since the Spanish conquest, Mérida has been the cultural capital of the Yucatán Peninsula. A delightful blend of provincial and cosmopolitan, it is a town steeped in colonial history. It’s a great place to explore, with narrow streets, broad central plazas, and museums. It’s also a perfect place from which to kick off your adventure into the rest of Yucatán state. It has excellent cuisine and accommodations, thriving markets, and events happening every night.
The Tren Maya, launched in 2023, connects Mérida to the rest of the Maya World.
A cenote is a natural sinkhole resulting when a collapse of limestone bedrock exposes groundwater. The term originated on the Yucatán Peninsula.
Cochinita Pibil in one of the most popular dishes in the region. The pork is marinated in citrus juice, adding achiote seed, wrapped in banana leaves, and cooked in an underground pit.
The Maya were the first people to harvest the cacao bean for the large-scale process of making chocolate drinks.
Uxmal is one of the most important Maya World archaeological sites in Mexico.
