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What’s in a good life? 3rd cross-sectional conference

What’s in a good life? 3rd cross-sectional conference

Welcome to the 3rd cross-sectional conference What’s in a good life? located at Ansgar University College in Kristiansand, Norway 14-15 June 2027. The topic of the 2027 conference is HOPE. We welcome you to explore questions about what nurtures hope in an all too often despairing world, from different perspectives and disciplines.

“What’s in a good life” is an open-ended question that reflects a humanistic approach to research within multiple fields. In this conference, we wish to shed light on the question from the fields of psychology, philosophy, theology, intercultural studies, music and arts. In addition to paper presentations from the individual fields, the conference will facilitate cross-sectional dialogues on the conference topic.

To be announced

Tentative program

Monday 14 June

  • 0930-1030 Registration, coffee and mingle
  • 1030-1115 Opening of the conference
  • 1130-1230 KEYNOTE
  • 1230-1330 Lunch
  • 1330-1500 Parallel sessions
  • 1500-1530 Coffee and mingle
  • 1530-1700 Parallel sessions
  • HOPE HIKES: Optional beach walk, local pilgrimage, or art expedition
  • 2000 Dinner
  • 2100 Concert

Tuesday 15 June

  • 0745-0830 Morning swim
  • 0830-0845 Morning chapel and the history of the chapel
  • 0830-0900 Coffee and mingle
  • 0900-0915 Artistic element
  • 0915-1015 KEYNOTE
  • 1015-1030 Coffee/leg stretch
  • 1030-1130 Parallel sessions
  • 1130-1230 Lunch
  • 1230-1400 Parallel sessions
  • 1430-1530 KEYNOTE
  • 1545-1630 Where to next? Concluding hope sessions
  • 1630-1700 Thank you and goodbye!

In today’s world, there are many reasons for despair. Fear and polarization challenge solidarity. In this context, we see hope as an act of defiance and courage. Hope can be experienced, explored and strengthened in various ways, and we invite scholars and practitioners from multiple disciplines to share their insights.

We welcome critical, creative, theoretical, and empirical contributions that engage with questions about hope and its role in a good life. Interdisciplinary perspectives and collaborative contributions are encouraged.

FORMATS:

  • Paper presentation (20 minutes)
  • Roundtable (sessions of 90 minutes). We encourage you to propose a roundtable together with other contributors. The conference committee may also suggest roundtables based on related topics among the abstracts.
    See tips: How to create a great roundtable
  • Workshop – creative/practical sessions (60-90 minutes)

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

  • Abstracts should present the project in a maximum of 300 words.
  • Please include your name, affiliation and correspondence details (as well as co-authors, if applicable), together with a short biography.
  • Please specify the preferred type of presentation in your submission.
  • Please include some questions you would like to discuss or get feedback on. We encourage presentations of “work in progress”.
  • Abstract deadline: December 15th 2026
  • Submit your abstract here.

You will receive feedback on submitted abstracts by February 1st 2027. All presenters of accepted abstracts are asked to register for the entire conference before the early bird registration closes on March 1st 2027.

Note: We will consider inviting selected abstracts to contribute to an anthology after the conference. Authors will be contacted about this, and those who are interested, will be able to meet at the conference to plan such a collaborative book on hope.

The conference will take place at Ansgar University College, located at Hånes in Kristiansand, 15 minutes by car from Kjevik Airport. Our campus has been newly extended, and we welcome you to dine with an ocean view in our new cafeteria.

Street address: Fredrik Fransonsvei 4, Hånes

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Ansgar Hotel is located within a 2-minutes walk from the Campus, with a beautiful view of the sea, and within a few minutes walk to the beach.

There are several alternative hotels in the city centre, for example, Thon Hotel Parken, which is close to the bus station (use bus line M2/Hånes-Sørlandsparken).

Scandic Sørlandet is close to the zoo, but further away from the city centre (use bus line M2/Voiebyen).

By air: Kjevik Airport is 40 minutes by air from Oslo. From Kjevik, you will reach Ansgar University College in 15 minutes by taxi.

By train: Kristiansand city centre is a 4,5 hours train ride from Oslo Central Station. You can get to Ansgar University College by bus or car from the city centre in 20-25 minutes.

Bus (from Oslo): You can get to Krstiansand and Hånes by bus with Vy or Konkurrenten. (Approximately 4 hours from Oslo.) You should choose to get off at Håneskrysset and take the local bus M2 from there to Hånes senter.

Local bus: You will get to Ansgar University College with the local bus M2. From the bus stop Hånes senter there is a five-minutes’ walk down-hill to the Campus.

Scientific committee

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Contact

Hildegunn Marie T. Seip, head of the conference committee: seip@ansgarskolen.no