A very special thank you to everyone who participated in, or otherwise supported the realisation of, our 2020 HDCA Conference. Due to COVID-19 and the corresponding global need for strict social distancing, we had to shift gear and turn the conference into an all-online event. We were thrilled that it was so appealing to such a large number of presenters and audience participants, and that it went so splendidly. It was an incredible pleasure to e-meet so many fantastic people ツ

Hopefully, many of us will have a chance to meet non-virtually again in the near future. We hear that Antwerp is a beautiful place, among other locations.

As always, our warmest wishes from Auckland,
Your 2020 HDCA Conference Organisers

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REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED

To ensure you receive news and updates, please subscribe to the email list for our 2020 event. Send a message from your email account to sympa@lists.massey.ac.nz. Make sure the subject of your email is “SUBSCRIBE 2020HDCA” (without the quotation marks), otherwise the list server will respond with an error message. Here’s a screenshot that shows what your message should look like:

Alternatively, you can simply message the conference organisers at 2020HDCA@massey.ac.nz and they will add your address to the email list for you. The organisers are also happy to answer any conference-related questions at that address.

September 1-5, 2025

Hosted by the University of Bradford

“Culture, Peace and Capabilities”

At the heart of the capability approach (CA) is the idea of human flourishing. However, human flourishing is challenging, and in some cases, not possible, in a world of conflict and insecurity – whether between nations, or between groups within a country or between individuals at the micro-level of a society.

The foundational ideas of the CA (of both Sen and Nussbaum schools) envision a society where constitutional guarantees and deliberative public reasoning provide for the protection of minorities and disadvantaged individuals, and at a theoretical level these should be the starting points for building institutions to mitigate against conflict and to resolve conflicts where these appear.

As we welcome the community of the ‘Human Development and the Capability Association’ to the University of Bradford where the UK’s first Peace Studies Department was founded in 1973, the idea of connecting the CA with peace is an exciting and significant theme to explore. Bradford is also celebrating being the UK ’City of Culture 2025’. The year-long celebration recognizes the contributions made by generations of waves of immigrants over the last two centuries.

Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

With support from: