8—11 June

Cumulus Glasgow 2027 - Life After Limits

Call for Papers

THE CUMULUS PHD NETWORK

Submission deadline: 10th January 2027.

The Cumulus PhD Network is launching a call for short papers, dedicated exclusively to PhD students, inviting them to share their doctoral research during the Cumulus Glasgow 2027 conference in a dynamic Pecha Kucha format (20 slides advancing automatically every 20 seconds).

The call is open to current PhD students only (excluding post-doctoral researchers). Submissions must be made individually, without the participation of supervisors, tutors or co-authors.

The PhD Network Track does not follow a specific topic and is not linked to the conference themes. It is intended for PhD students who wish to present their research and receive feedback from the Cumulus Network community in an engaging, live, multi-national setting. Authors should submit an abstract (maximum 500 words) and a short paper (maximum 2000 words) describing their research via the Cumulus Glasgow 2027 submission system.

Submitted proposals will undergo a double-blind peer review process prior to acceptance. Selected papers will be presented in one or more dedicated sessions during the conference and published in the Cumulus Glasgow 2027 conference proceedings. Presentations are strongly encouraged to take place in person; however, a limited number of online presentation slots will be made available to accommodate participants who are unable to travel to Glasgow.

Formatting and submission requirements are detailed on the Submission platform.

Submit
Templates

Conference presentations

Conference Dates: June 8–11, 2027

These presentations would be included within the Conference proceedings or may feature in a special edition of a journal, if an appropriate publication can be identified and collaborated with. As such, suggested presentations for these sessions, either individually or by pre-identified groups of presenters, will also be double blind peer-reviewed.

Cumulus Glasgow 2027 proposes a new format aimed at enhancing dialogue between members of the Cumulus global community, both institutional and individual. Cumulus seeks to share the global expertise of acknowledged experts relating to the topic under discussion. We wish to host 3 sessions (one each on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday) on themes of interest to member Schools. For each dialogue we would seek up to 4 presenters who would wish to contribute a presentation of 10 minutes, using images and visual materials, before participating in a curated conversation on the theme.

The proposed themes are:

  1. The Future Curriculum: redesigning education

  2. The Innovation of Economy: the technological transformation of creative work

  3. Emerging Ecologies: new ways to live with Nature

Please indicate the theme to which you are submitting.

Submit

Abstracts submission deadline: November 30, 2026

Abstracts evaluation and recommendation: November 30 - December 17, 2026

Full Papers Submissions: January 7, 2027– March 14, 2027

Full papers evaluation: March 14 - April 7, 2027

Papers

Cumulus Glasgow 2027 Life After Limits will accept submissions in a range of recongised formats. These include Academic Papers, X-Formats and Poster Presentations.

We are in need of a paradigm shift from human-driven development to planet-centred design as the basis for an interdependent coexistence between humans and non-humans. The history of how we have impacted our planet leads us through the current Anthropocene epoch, which significantly questions how we can design with meaning and consciousness. […] Emergent technologies are changing geopolitical and social conditions rapidly. […] Artificial intelligence, synthetic biology and cognitive sciences are transforming our way of living and what we understand as humans. Information surveillance and related augmented technologies are post-human realities. Designers are well positioned to seize the opportunities offered for this disruption by envisioning possible futures and working in transdisciplinary teams that enable creativity in preferred directions and thus promote critical thinking as well as design action.

- The Cumulus Design Declaration 2025

Cumulus Glasgow 2027 is a global forum for advancing knowledge, innovation and practice in creative education. You can submit your paper to one of the avenues proposed below from which conference tracks will be formulated by the Scientific Committee.

Avenues of Exploration:

Life After…?

  • The Biological Body 

  • Disciplinary Expertise and Education

  • Nature

  • Nations, States and Cities

  • The Human Mind

  • Planet Earth

  • The Future 

  • Excess

  • Certainty

  • Life

  • Materiality 

Submit
More info on Themes

  • These are intended for completed research. 

    • Step 1 – Abstract (from October 5, 2026, until November 15, 2026) : Abstracts should be not more than 500 words long including keywords, 5-10 bibliographic references and anonymous.

    • Step 2 – Full paper (From January 7, 2027 until March 14, 2027) : Authors of approved abstracts will be notified and invited to submit their full academic papers. All academic papers will be restricted in length to between 4,000 and 6,000 words (excluding references). Files should be submitted in both a PDF and an editable Word file (docx) based on the template provided. Academic papers will be published digitally in the conference proceedings.

    Templates

  • We welcome submissions that propose new, experimental formats that actively involve 15+ participants and let them come together and discuss, debate, play, paint, scratch, bend, tear apart, or X a specific topic. The format should be engaging, social, inclusive, cooperative and highly interactive.

    Format X sessions should last 30 minutes.

    • Step 1 – Abstract (from October 5, 2026, until November 30, 2026): Abstracts should be not more than 200 words description, visuals, an optional bibliography and anonymous.

    • Step 2 – Full paper (From December 1, 2026 until February 15, 2027): Authors of approved abstracts will be notified and invited to submit their full X-format papers. All X-Formats should be submit with a 500-word final description. Files should be submitted in both a PDF and an editable Word file (docx) based on the template provided. X-Formats will be published digitally in the conference proceedings

    Templates

  • These submissions represent a format for acknowledging or sharing research or project work currently in progress, but not yet sufficiently resolved for presentation as a conference paper:

    • We welcome poster submissions that leverage the power of visual communication in relation to design artefacts, documenting tangible research methods and results.

    • Posters should present the research in a visually rich format, containing visuals (photographs, drawings, tables and diagrams etc) and an abstract of up to 500 words, to be inserted into the Ex Ordo submission management system.

    • The poster size is 70 x 140cm.

    • Authors of accepted poster contributions should complete the Cumulus Glasgow 2027 delegate registration process in order to exhibit their posters.

    • Posters will be exhibited for the entire duration of the conference.

    • Poster participants will have the opportunity to pitch their posters in 30 seconds, either live in a co-ordinated event or via a pre-recorded video. Authors will have the opportunity to explain their posters during dedicated poster sessions.

    • Posters will be published digitally as part of the conference proceedings.

    Templates

    Submission deadlines:

    • Step 1 – Abstract (by 30th November 2026): Abstracts should be not more than 500 words long including keywords, visuals, an optional bibliography and anonymous.

    • Step 2 – Full poster (From 10th December 2026 until 12th March 2027): Authors of approved abstracts will be notified and invited to submit their final version poster. Submissions should be of the complete poster, and anonymous to support blind review. Files should be submitted in both a PDF based on the template provided.

FAQs

  • Yes, you are welcome to submit more than one paper/presentation. 

  • Yes. As soon as we receive your abstract/paper, we will see how we think that it can be best assigned to a conference track.  

  • The Cumulus Glasgow Call for Papers aims to invite papers that demonstrate academic quality, contribute to debate regarding the conference theme and display academic and intellectual rigour. Papers may also make robust use of visuals or contain links to external materials (such as audio or video files, Miro boards, etc.).  

    Please note that all the submissions should follow the paper template provided on the main conference website. 

    Template 

  • The abstract should be no more than 500 words. The text should be up to 5000 words. 5000 words are about 15 pages including images.  

  • You are free to add short appendices, e.g. in the form of tables or short texts. Appendices are not included in the overall word count. To avoid compromising the double-anonymous review process, please ensure any appendix content or citations of external sources are appropriately anonymised or described in the third person. 

     

  • Yes 

  • Yes

Please register for the conference and upload your submissions below: 

Register or Submit