ACLS Brings Global Scholars Together for 2026 Summer Institute for the Study of East Central and Southeastern Europe in Bulgaria

From June 3-19, 2026, the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) and the Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS) hosted scholars for the fourth Summer Institute for the Study of East Central and Southeastern Europe (SISECSE) at the American University in Bulgaria (AUBG) in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria.

Fourteen scholars from Eastern and Southeastern Europe and North America were selected to participate in the two-week residency, which provided time and space to dedicate to research and writing in a collaborative and interdisciplinary setting. The institute included a day trip to Rila Monastery, an optional research trip to Sofia, and a guest lecture by Lavinia Stan, Professor of Political Science at St. Francis Xavier University in Canada.

Scholars participated in a series of discussions focused on the topic “Autonomy, Institutions, and Transnational Networks.” They examined how and why creative and intellectual freedom has been constrained or tolerated across different East, Central, and Southeastern European contexts. Given the sudden shifts in the US government’s stance on institutional autonomy recently, they also looked to the region’s history for guidance: what can we learn from past efforts to maintain strong transnational networks, and what role have those networks played in protecting intellectual and creative life?

This year’s participants are researching a wide range of fields and geographies, among them the preservation of green space and historic architecture in Sofia, a comparative study of early twentieth-century military occupations in the Balkans, an account of abortion activism in Poland, and research on community-building among Roma communities in Southeastern Europe. Scholars came from institutions across Eastern Europe and the United States, including the University of Ostrava, the University of Tirana, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Texas State University.

The Summer Institute for the Study of East Central and Southeastern Europe will continue in 2027, thanks to the continued generosity of Carl and Betty Pforzheimer. More information on the next competition will be available in late July.