Conferences
Martial Arts Studies Conference 2025: Call for Papers
The hardcore who made it to the very end of the 2024 conference. Lots had already left to catch trains and planes.
10 – 12 June 2025, Cardiff University, United Kingdom
The first Martial Arts Studies conference at Cardiff University took place on 10-12 June 2015. In 2025, exactly 10 years later, the 10th conference will take place – on 10-12 June 2025.
A decade ago, we asked:
What is martial arts studies?
What could it be?
Is it a specific new field or is it always going to be a subsection of other disciplines?
What are the possibilities and limitations of creating or developing martial arts studies?
What are its key concerns, problematics, theories, orientations, and methodologies, and why?
This year, we are still interested in such questions, and we would love to construct some panels that engage directly with them.
In addition, we are also interested in such questions as:
has there been any specific conceptual, theoretical and/or methodological development within martial arts studies?
Has the field been somewhere that new theories and new methodologies have been developed, or does it mainly use theories and methods imported from elsewhere?
(NB: We are also planning a special themed issue of the journal Martial Arts Studies on theory development within the field.)
However, we do not want to be restrictive. So, the conference remains open to presentations on any theme relevant to the interdisciplinary research nexus of martial arts studies.
This means we welcome proposals for 20-minute papers (or 3-paper panels) on any topic relevant to contemporary martial arts studies.
To give your proposal the best chance of being accepted, please ensure that you are clear on how your paper will contribute to current debates in martial arts studies and which relevant literature and/or methodologies it engages with or develops
To submit an abstract
Email one Word Document to Paul Bowman (BowmanP@cardiff.ac.uk). The document must contain:
The title of your paper (or the titles of all three papers, if your proposal is for an entire panel)
A 300-word abstract for your paper (or for each of the three papers in a complete panel)
A 50-150 bio-note for yourself (or for each presenter). NB: this will be made public
A reliable contact email for yourself (or for each presenter). This will not be made public
Deadline for Abstracts: 30th April 2025.
NB: decisions will be made on abstracts on a rolling basis. So you can expect to hear a decision on your proposal within two weeks of submitting your abstract.
Location and Venue
The conference will be held in Cardiff University’s world-renowned School of Journalism, Media & Culture (JOMEC)
NB: for those who attended our first conferences in Cardiff, please note that the physical location of JOMEC has moved since then. We are now located in the city centre (2 Central Square, Cardiff, CF10 1FS), in a purpose-built, state-of-the-art building, directly opposite Cardiff Central Station, close to the Millennium Stadium, and next door to the BBC
This location has everything that Cardiff City Centre has to offer right on the doorstep, including of course a large number of hotels
Address: Cardiff School of Journalism, Media & Culture (JOMEC). 2 Central Square, Cardiff, CF10 1FS
Programme and Events
Our programme and information about other events will be added asap, so please check here for info.
Registration and Prices
Registration is via Eventbrite – here
We understand that these are straitened times, so we have reduced the price of the conference this year. This year, standard registration is only £150 (plus Eventbrite charge – sorry)
We also want to support the attendance of students, those on low wages, those from the global south, and those who can only attend one day or less
Accordingly, we request that those who work in academia or who are in full-time employment pay the standard registration fee.
Student, unemployed, and single-day registration
We encourage students, people on low wages, those from the global south, or those who can only attend one day, etc. to contact Paul directly to discuss what level of financial contribution they might be able to make
To discuss a reduced price, email Paul at BowmanP@cardiff.ac.uk
Once a level of contribution has been agreed, please pay that via the ‘donation’ option so that a ticket can be issued
We request that students register for the conference using their university, college or school email address, in order to evidence the claim of student status
Sponsorship and Donations
This is a not-for-profit educational event which aspires to cover as many costs as possible for students, so we are keen to discuss the possibility of donations and/or sponsorship
Should any individual, company or institution wish to sponsor this event, perhaps in return for appropriate advertising, brochures or (e.g.) a publisher’s stall, please contact Paul at BowmanP@cardiff.ac.uk
NB: we reserve the right to decline sponsorship from inappropriate individuals or entities
A Not-For-Profit Event
This conference is self-funding and non-profit
It is priced solely to cover essential costs, such as catering
The price has been set as low as possible. It covers refreshments throughout each day, buffet lunches, and access to all academic events
Social Events
There will be a conference dinner and social event on the evening of 11th June. This is not included in the registration price and will advertised and charged separately
There will also (as always) be informal social events on the other evenings of the conference. There should also be some options for training together, and hopefully at least one demonstration and/or workshop
Headline Schedule Information
The event takes place in the School of Journalism, Media and Culture, which is located in front of Cardiff Central Train Station, next door to the BBC. It is approximately 1-2 minutes’ walk from Cardiff Central Train Station
There are numerous hotels, to match any budget, in walking distance from the conference venue
A full schedule will be sent in advance to everyone registered for the conference
The conference will commence on the afternoon of 10th June 2025 and conclude on the evening of 12th
All formal conference activities (presentations, panels, keynotes, etc.) will conclude each day by 5pm. Social events will be available afterwards
We understand that many participants are also practicing martial artists who would like to train together, so there may also be options available for this, but details cannot be confirmed yet (and the organiser is open to suggestions for suitable venues, demonstrations, displays or workshops, etc.)