Past ECSS Conferences

The European Conference on the Social Sciences (ECSS) brings together delegates from many different national, cultural and linguistic backgrounds to Brighton, UK, to present new research and exchange ideas. This exceptional platform welcomes speakers and delegates working in any area of the social sciences, from academics and theorists to policymakers and practitioners, in both the private and public sectors, for challenging debate and stimulating discussions around the latest concepts and newest approaches.

IAFOR’s social sciences programme is developed by leading scholars, and in partnership with some of the world’s leading academic institutions, including University of Sussex, University of Michigan, Nihon University, University of Tokyo, Birkbeck, University of London, Lehigh University, University of Indonesia, Virginia Tech, Waseda and Duke-NUS Medical School. These partnerships attest to the excellence of our programme, but also mean that our conferences are exceptional platforms to disseminate your research.


ECSS2018

Conference Theme: "Surviving and Thriving: In Pursuit of a Sustainable World"

July 6–7, 2018 | The Jurys Inn Brighton Waterfront, Brighton, UK


ECSS2017

Conference Theme: "East Meets West: Innovation and Discovery"

July 7–9, 2017 | The Jurys Inn Brighton Waterfront, Brighton, UK


ECSS2016

Conference Theme: “Justice & Sustainability”

July 7–10, 2016 | The Jurys Inn Brighton Waterfront, Brighton, UK


ECSS2015

Conference Theme: “Power”

July 13–16, 2015 | Thistle Brighton, Brighton, UK

Conference Report

The European Business and Management Conference (EBMC2015) was held alongside The European Conference on Politics, Economics and Law (ECPEL2015), The European Conference on the Social Sciences (ECSS2015), The European Conference on Sustainability, Energy & the Environment (ECSEE2015) in Brighton on the picturesque South Coast of the United Kingdom.

This international and interdisciplinary conference week brought together over 220 delegates from 40 countries under the conference theme of Power to discuss new directions of research and discovery across business and management, politics and law, the social sciences, and sustainability and environmental scholars. We were greatly encouraged to see the well-attended sessions challenge and inspire serious debate in a climate of mutual respect.

IAFOR would like to thank our Keynote, Featured and Spotlight Speakers at our joint conference; Chancellor of the University of Glasgow and Chairman of the National Trust for Scotland, Sir Kenneth Calman, Business Editor of the Sunday Herald Colin Donald, Professor Ruth Johnson Carter, Dr. Ingeborg Raastad and Professor Andreas Gruener, Bauke de Vries, Dr Tom Houghton, Dr Raymond Li, Professor Lino Briguglio, Dr. Patricia Blazey and Dr. Hope Ashiabor, and Professor Paul Higgins. Again we salute the fantastic role played by the Conference Chair and Chair of the IAFOR International Advisory Board Professor Stuart D. B. Picken. We look forward to seeing you all next year at ECERP2016 and ECP2016 in Brighton.


ECSS2014

Conference Theme: “Individual, Community & Society: Conflict, Resolution & Synergy”

July 9–13, 2014 | Thistle Brighton, Brighton, UK

Conference Report

July of this year saw a return to Brighton, United Kingdom for ECSEE and ECSS. In 2014 the program was extended to include ECPEL and EBMC, conferences that were not available in our inaugural 2013 series.

The first weekend in Brighton of our second annual European Conference series was held between July 3, to July 6, 2014 at the Thistle Hotel. The European Conference on Sustainability, Energy and the Environment (ECSEE), The European Conference on the Social Sciences (ECSS), The Inaugural European Business and Management Conference (EBMC), and The European Conference on Politics, Economics and Law (ECPEL), were joint events that drew over 200 delegates from over 35 countries who came together under the conference theme of “Individual, Community & Society: Conflict, Resolution & Synergy,” to present research, build networks, discuss and share views surrounding the interplay between individuals, communities, and societies, as in an unstable world we look to work together in the interdisciplinary creation of a sustainable future.

IAFOR was honoured to have as our ECPEL 2014 Keynote Speaker, Professor Arthur Stockwin, Emeritus Professor at The University of Oxford, who from his British perspective spoke on the changing constitutional and security environment facing Japan during this time of the Shinzo Abe administration. We were also honoured to have with us as our EBMC 2014 Keynote Speaker, Mr Jun Arima from the London office of the Japan External Trade Organisation, who gave the delegates an insightful look at the restructuring underway within the Japanese political economy. The plenary session was completed by a special panel on the current direction of Japanese politics lead by the ECSS/ECSEE 2014 Featured Speaker and Chair of the IAFOR Advisory Board, Professor Stuart D. B. Picken, who was joined by Mr Arima and Professor Stockwin for a fascinating and spirited discussion which enable delegates to further understand not just political complexity in Japan, but also the repercussions for the wider Asian region.

We were also pleased to have a full program of high-level spotlight speakers as part of our joint conference program. IAFOR wishes to thank Akira Yonekura (Heriot-Watt University, UK), Hannes R. Stephan, (University of Stirling, UK), Jeffrey D. Hockett, (University of Tulsa, USA), John Kane, (Griffith University, Australia), and Ruth Johnson Carter, (Georgia College State University, USA). We were also pleased to spotlight three youth delegates from Toynbee Hall in London who with their mentor Rys Farthing (The University of Oxford, UK), presented the findings of their research project “Children and Young People’s Political Agency in 2014: The View from Young Women from the East End”. IAFOR also wishes to thank its co-conference chairs Professor Jerry Platt (EBMC/ECPEL), and Professor Stuart D. B. Picken (ECSEE/ECSS) for their work in making the conference an engaging event and look forward to seeing you once again in Brighton in 2015.


ECSS2013

Conference Theme: “Society, Environment & Trust: Towards Sustainable Systems of Governance”

July 4–7, 2013 | Thistle Brighton, Brighton, UK

Conference Report

The European Conference on Sustainability, Energy and the Environment (ECSEE), was held with the European Conference on the Social Sciences (ECSS) on July 4–7 2013 in Brighton, the start of six new Europe based IAFOR conferences over three weekends. Though this joint conference was the smaller of the European events, with an attendance of 125, the energy was nevertheless palpable as the conference began with a wide-ranging speech by Jun Arima (pictured left), Director General of the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) in London, seconded by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). Mr Arima covered issues of economic regeneration, environmental sustainability, and governance on both the national and international level, and as someone who has been engaged at a very high level in shaping some of these debates, his words carried extra weight. From 1992 Mr Arima served in the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy (ANRE). In 1996, he was sent to the OECD as Councilor (energy advisor), to the Permanent Delegation of Japan. He served in senior positions in ANRE following his return to Japan. From 2002, he spent four years in Paris as Head of the Country Studies Division for the International Energy Agency (IEA). His activities in international climate and energy issues have seen him recognised internationally, most recently as Japan’s chief negotiator at the UN Climate Talks in Cancun, Mexico in 2010.

The conference also included a number of featured presentations. Professor Jay Friedlander spoke on “Sustainable Enterprise: Unlocking Innovation & Preparing for the Next Economic Wave”. Professor Friedlander is the Sharpe-McNally Chair of Green and Socially Responsible Business at College of the Atlantic (COA) in Bar Harbor, Maine, USA, and founder of COA’s Sustainable Business Program. Professor Peter Oakley of the Royal College of Art is Research Leader for the School of the Material, and his work addresses the luxury goods sector from a social science perspective. His spotlight speech was on “Immanence vs. Provenance: Fairtrade Gold and the Social Complexity of Substance Identities”. Another featured presenter on sustainability was Professor George Martin, currently visiting professor at the Centre for Environmental strategy at the University of Surrey, and a sociologist specializing in urban sustainability looked at just that in his paper: “Urban Agriculture’s Synergies with Ecological and Social Sustainability: Food, Nature, and Community.”

Addressing the ECSS conference theme of governance was featured speaker, Dr Rob Gill. Dr Gill is the Discipline Leader for Public Relations and Advertising at Swinburne University of Technology, where he has worked since 2007. Rob completed his doctorate in 2006 on the theme “Employer of Choice and building a positive Corporate Social Responsibility reputation for the Australian Financial Sector.” and he gave a thought-provoking address entitled, “Using Corporate Storytelling to Build Internal and External Trust”. Professor Dan Sullivan, Cowles Chair in Media Management and Economics at the University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication, delivered the conference closing presentation on “Unrecognized Conflicts Between the Online Revenue Strategies and Social Media Strategies of Major Newspapers in the United States and Europe”. Professor Sullivan’s research involves helping advance the thinking of traditional media organizations regarding how they deal with change in the communities they serve and with changes in technologies that are altering their competitive and business landscapes.

We look forward to expanding and continuing the discussions next year in both Japan and the UK.