1st International Conference – “FOSTERING CONSTITUTIONAL UNDERSTANDING IN SOVEREIGN STATES”

1. Constitutional Resilience in Times of Crisis

Sub-themes:

• Emergency powers and constitutional safeguards
• State responses to pandemics, wars, and natural disasters
• Limits of executive authority during national emergencies
• Impact of international human rights instruments on domestic constitutional law

2. Digital Constitutionalism and the Future of Rights

Sub-themes:

• Algorithmic governance and constitutional legitimacy
• Data privacy, surveillance, and constitutional protections
• Emerging rights: digital dignity, neurorights, online freedom of expression
• Legal frameworks for artificial intelligence and state accountability

3. Judicial Power, Accountability, and Independence

Sub-themes:

• The evolving role of constitutional courts and tribunals
• Courts as defenders of rights of vulnerable groups and civil liberties
• Threats to judicial autonomy in populist and authoritarian regimes
• Judicial activism vs. minimalism in constitutional interpretation
• Judicial control of executive overreach

4. Environmental Constitutionalism and Intergenerational Justice

Sub-themes:

• Constitutional recognition of environmental rights and duties
• Climate litigation and the role of constitutional courts
• Rights of nature, indigenous ecological knowledge, and sustainability
• Intergenerational equity in constitutional interpretation

5. Equality and Constitutional Inclusion

Sub-themes:

• Constitutional accommodation of ethnic, linguistic, and religious diversity
• Gender-sensitive constitutional language and frameworks
• LGBTQ+ rights and constitutional protections
• Balancing national unity with cultural pluralism

6. Sovereignty vs. Supranationalism: Navigating Global Legal Obligations

Sub-themes:

• Tensions between domestic constitutions and international treaties
• Role of international courts and tribunals
• Indigenous sovereignty and transnational rights
• Sovereignty in post-colonial and decolonisation contexts

7. Constitutional Reform: Process, Politics, and Participation

Sub-themes:

• Inclusive constitution-making and amendment mechanisms
• Populism, referenda, and the weaponisation of constitutional change
• Public participation, education, and transparency in constitutional processes
• Best practices in constitutional drafting and reforms

8. Constitutional Culture, Civic Education, and Public Participation

Sub-themes:

• Democratisation of constitutional knowledge
• Teaching constitutions in schools and universities
• Building public trust and awareness of constitutional principles
• Youth engagement in constitutional debates and reforms
• Role of media and civil society in shaping constitutional understanding

9. Any other sub-theme relevant to the broader theme of this Conference. The listed sub-themes are only suggestive.