Conference

Image: Tsang Chung Yee

2025 American Political Science Association

Global Research Association of Politics in Hong Kong (GRAPH)

CALL FOR PAPERS

Submission Deadline: Jan 15, 2025

The 2025 Annual Conference of the American Political Science Association (APSA) will be held between September 11 and 14, 2025 in Vancouver, Canada. The conference theme will be “Reimagining Politics, Power, and Peoplehood in Crisis Times.”

We are excited that this is the first year for GRAPH to issue this “call for papers” as an official related group of the APSA. GRAPH invites paper and panel proposals on Hong Kong’s political identity, domestic politics, diasporas, and international relations consistent with the theme of “Reimagining Politics, Power, and Peoplehood in Crisis Times.”

The conference theme “Reimagining Politics, Power, and Peoplehood in Crisis Times,” provides a unique opportunity to delve into the evolving dynamics of Hong Kong politics. Few cities reflect the complexities of political crises and identity formation as vividly as Hong Kong, a city that has not fully emerged from the political unrest of 2019. As tensions between China and the US continue to escalate, Hong Kong remains poised on the brink of further crisis. Understanding these developments is crucial for reimagining political structures and identities, not only within Hong Kong but also in the broader context of global political instability. Since 2019, Hong Kong has experienced waves of migration and immigration, profoundly reshaping its population and political landscape. These demographic shifts call for a renewed examination of Hong Kongers’ political identities and how peoplehood is conceptualized amidst ongoing global and local crises. The National Security Law, implemented in 2020, has further complicated the issue, casting a long shadow over Hong Kong’s communities, both at home and abroad. This legal framework has intensified questions of state power, autonomy, and individual freedoms, presenting an urgent need for scholars to explore how peoplehood is both shaped and constrained under such conditions.

Misinformation and disinformation may have left far-reaching political impacts in Hong Kong, contributing to political polarization, cynicism, and a weakening sense of political efficacy. This has led to the fragmentation of public opinion and further entrenched divides, making it harder to foster collective action or maintain political and social trust. Such dynamics exacerbate a growing sense of helplessness among many citizens, undermining their belief in the possibility of meaningful political change. These ongoing forces demand scholarly investigation into how disinformation and misinformation shape political behavior and identity, and explore strategies for countering their corrosive effects.

We invite scholars from diverse methodological backgrounds to contribute to this conversation, particularly those employing innovative approaches to address the difficult causal challenges within Hong Kong’s political context. How do we explain the persistent tensions and shifting identities in Hong Kong? What can be learned from these dynamics to inform broader theories of power, governance, and resistance in crisis times?

We welcome proposals that engage with these pressing issues, offering fresh perspectives and fostering critical discussions on how we might reimagine politics, power, and peoplehood in Hong Kong and beyond.

Please submit your proposal here: https://convention2.allacademic.com/one/apsa/apsa25/ and select “Global Research Association of Politics in Hong Kong” as your desired division.

If you have any question, please contact us: graph.hk@gmail.com