News & Events

Call for Abstracts | UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre 12th Biennial International Conference | 11-12th June 2026

Date Released: 6 January 2026

📣 Call for Abstracts | Submission Deadline: March 6th, 2026 (5pm)

Shifting Power: New Frontiers in Youth Participation

Across research, policy and practice, youth participation in decision-making is widely accepted as a core principle. While participatory and co-production mechanisms are in place, many have been criticised as consultative or sometimes tokenistic in nature. The extent to which young people are fully engaged as partners remains a challenge.  In response to a call from UNESCO (2023) member states were tasked to, “[t]ake existing youth arrangements to the next level, create new opportunities and arrangements where they do not yet exist and ensure that youth participation is effectively resourced”. A central focus of this conference will be on power and influence, to explore the ways in which meaningful youth engagement is understood, actioned and evidenced. Participants will be invited to chart the next steps in developing pathways for impact in their everyday practice, based on genuine power-sharing with young people.

In practice, youth participation is supported through a range of structures, processes and methods across formal and informal settings including youth work, education, child protection and welfare and youth justice services among others. Across these settings, areas for exploration include context-specific approaches (e.g. working with different population groups); systems and institutional factors and types of participation models (e.g. co-produced or youth-led).  As a future facing conference, it will identify gaps and challenges in existing participatory strategies and methodologies and identify, highlight and promote sustainable practices. Key insights and participant perspectives from the conference will be disseminated and utilised to inform future direct engagement with policymakers, practitioners and other key audiences.

Proposals are now welcome from delegates to present their work at the conference parallel sessions in presentation, poster or an interactive workshop format.  Abstracts are invited from the practice, policy, research and academic communities in relation to the conference themes: 

Adultism, power imbalances and resistance to youth participation.
Barriers to participation (incl. structural, cultural, language and other challenges).
Benefits and impact of meaningful youth participation.
Ethical issues (incl. the risk of harm).
The role of adult allies.
Equity (incl. knowledge equity), access and inclusion.  
Proven methodologies and approaches to measuring youth participation.

The active participation of young people in presenting your work is encouraged, where appropriate. Although we are calling for contributions under these sub-themes, other relevant topics are welcome, but all submissions must reflect the overarching theme of the conference. Abstracts must be submitted by March 6th, 2026, and will only be accepted if completed using the template provided . Further details on presentation types and the time allocated can be found on the submission template.

📄 Abstracts will undergo a peer-reviewed process with successful applicants notified by April 1st, 2026. Please note that all presenters are required to register for their attendance at the conference.

Submit your abstract here.

For regular updates and registration visit the conference website. 

📅 Important Dates: