Call for Papers:

Heritages 2027
UNESCO Perspectives: Cultural Pasts – Urban Futures
July 6-8, 2027
University of Porto, Portugal
https://amps-research.com/conference/porto-heritages/

Deadline for submission of abstracts: December 10, 2026

This conference marks the fifty fifth anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Taking the Convention as its starting point, it picks up on the continually evolving definition of heritage UNESCO has offered throughout this time: artistic, natural, cultural and, more recently, through the lens of communities, tourism, technologies, medias, cultural industries and local economies. It now includes what some define as traditional forms of art, architectural and social history, as well as emerging practices in cultural studies and digital humanities. The result is that our current reading of heritage demands interdisciplinary knowledge, approaches and collaborations: artistic, architectural, social, technological and more.

Responding to this evolving notion of heritage, this conference opens itself to critiques, research projects and examinations of questions across the sector. Whether they reflect the emergence of digital heritage or the longevity of established art history methods; whether they examine the historical establishment of museums or explore the decolonizing of collections and archives; or whether they analyse the social impacts of tourism or the financial underpinnings of the art world.

The aim of the event is to better grasp the diversity of practices, ideas and concerns running through the heritage sector today. In doing this from the city of Porto, it does so from a place that characterizes by the complexity UNESCO outlines. A coastal city, and one of the oldest urban centers in Europe, it has traces of a Celtic, Phoenician and Muslim past. A world maritime centre in the 15th century, it developed unique cultural and culinary traditions, becoming Europe’s first protected wine region in the 18th century. Its core was named a World Heritage Site in 1996 and is now a National Monument of Portugal. Home to some of Portugal’s finest examples of art and architecture and digital heritage, it was European City of Culture in 2001.

RESEARCH AREAS

Art & Architectural History & Theory:
The pasts, presents & futures of architecture, cities, art & design…

Digital Art, Design & Mediated Heritages:
AI, technology & the body in conservation & preservation…

Museology, Archives & Collections:
Exhibition, engagement, design & the politics of display…
Socio-Cultural History:
Managing cultures, histories & contested readings of history…

Conservation, Preservation & Sustainability:
The sustainability of (in)tangible objects, practices & cultures…

THEMES

Organised by AMPS (Architecture, Media, Politics, Society) and the University of Porto, in collaboration with the Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave (IPCA), the conference has a number of strands.

Themes of specific interest to the University of Porto and IPCA include Museums & Archives; Technology & Digital Art; Cultural & Material Heritage; the Politics of Memory and Sustainability. Full details here

Broad thematic areas of particular interest to AMPS include Art & Architectural History; Global Histories; Societies & Cultures; Art & Design. Full details here

Critical Heritages Interdisciplinary:

The conference forms part of the AMPS Critical Heritages initiative that straddles two of its research programs: The Mediated City and Critical Futures. Under the remit of the Mediated City, AMPS explores how technologies and medias inform the various sectors including heritage, art and the built environment – as both sites of exploration and documentation. Under the remit of Critical Futures, we critique questions of heritage, cultures, communities and a range of social issues, people and place. Examples include heritage gentrification, social inclusion in sites of heritage and the sustainable development of both heritage and non-heritage sites globally.

In bringing together strands of thinking in these areas under the Critical Heritages Initiative, we seek to function as a site for exploration, knowledge exchange and the generation of new insights into questions of heritage from an interdisciplinary perspective. Examples of disciplines that have participated include:

Art History, Heritage Studies, Fine Art, Cultural Studies, Anthropology, Sociology, Urban Planning, Media and Communications, Film Studies, Landscape Architecture, Ethnography, Human Geography, Area Studies, Architecture, Media Studies, Museology and more. [Full details at either of the links directly above]

COORDINATORS

Dr. Susana Barreto, Claudia Lima, Dr. Graham Cairns, Dr. Rachel Isaac-Menard, Raj Kumar

KEY DATES

Abstracts (Round One): 10 December 2026
Abstract Reviews: 10 January 2027
Conference: 6-8 July 2027
Full Paper Submissions: 25 August 2027
Full Paper Reviews: 10 November 2027

FORMATS

In-person: Live at the University of Porto

@Porto: For delegates visiting Porto but presenting virtually on Zoom

Zoom: Virtual presentations coordinated by AMPS

Pre-recorded: Pre-recorded presentations or films will be available permanently on the AMPS Academic YouTube channel

Written papers: In all cases, delegates can present full written papers for inclusion in associated conference publications

• In-person: (15-20 mins)
• @Porto: (15-20 mins)
• Zoom: (15-20 mins)
• Pre-recorded video: (15-20 mins)
• Written papers: (3000 words)

PUBLICATIONS

The publishers that AMPS works with include Intellect Books, Routledge Taylor & Francis, UCL Press, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Vernon Press and Libri Publishing.

Conference outputs include the AMPS Proceedings Series, ISSN 2398-9467; Special Issue Publications of the academic journal Architecture_MPS ISSN 2020-9006; Books from this event will be developed by Intellect Books, with short films available on the AMPS Academic YouTube Channel.

Written papers are optional. If submitted they should be 3,000 word length. Formatting instructions to follow after the conference. All papers are double- blind peer reviewed for the AMPS Conference Proceedings Series. Subject to review, selected authors will be invited to develop longer versions as articles in the academic journal Architecture_MPS or in specially produced conference books.

SUBMISSIONS & REGISTRATION:

Registration Delegate Fee: $420 USD
Audience Fee: $210 USD

Queries: [email protected]

Submit abstracts via the conference website:
https://amps-research.com/conference/porto-heritages/

ABOUT AMPS

AMPS (Architecture, Media, Politics, Society) is an international, interdisciplinary research organisation. It brings together people from different disciplines who find their points of contact in the places we inhabit, how we teach, and how we interpret the world around us. Its global conferences attract delegates from over 40 countries. It partners with six publishing houses. It has published over twenty books. Its academic journal has been published open access since 2011. Its academic YouTube channel has presentations from over 900 researchers from over 20 countries. It has three overarching research programs. They have served as a platform for over 2,000 researchers. It promotes debate on global issues, regional topics & local events.