We are delighted to announce that the ninth Undergraduate Research Conference of the Jindal School of Liberal Arts and Humanities (JSLH) will be held on the 10th and 11th of April 2026 at O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat. This marks the continued success of our conferences from 2017 to 2025.

The present condition of the world has “uncertainty” written all over it. Although uncertainty and its manifold effects on human civilization are not new, its ramifications are more pronounced than ever before. From brutal political regimes being overturned by youth coalitions, to genocides and conflicts making geopolitics more fractured, to “freak” climate events shaping global events, uncertainty has become a much-abused word both in journalistic and popular parlance. Rapid changes precipitated by the unrelenting onslaught of artificial intelligence have contributed to this uncertainty as well. However, to despair and be immobilized by the sheer overwhelming nature of this current juncture is to overlook how uncertainty has historically stood as a mediator of profound changes in politics, philosophy and art. Hope is the other side of the coin as it radically invites us to interrogate, investigate and act on change. Therefore, as liberal arts practitioners and scholars, we need to pause and reflect on what the current predicament of uncertainty signals, how we can reconstitute the world and infuse it with new possibilities. Taking uncertainty as our inflection point, we look forward to asking questions that the humanities, social sciences, visual and creative arts have always been at the forefront of – how do we make sense of the world when the accepted wisdom of knowledge and knowing, of justice and ethics, of reality and its other, itself seems outdated and uncertain? How can art intervene humanely in a period of uncertainty? What does it mean to be hopeful in a period of uncertainty?

The JSLH Undergraduate Research Conference, 2026 invites papers, artworks, performances and poster presentations that broadly respond to this theme. We are interested in research that examines the specific conditions of this uncertainty as it relates to socio-economic, political, and artistic factors. Simultaneously, we are interested in uncovering how hope can be radically nurtured and shared among a group of motivated individuals. We invite empirical as well as theoretical work on these areas. We are open to young scholars, artists and practitioners taking a broad view of “uncertainty” and reflecting on its ontological, epistemological as well as practical possibilities.

Abstract submission form: Abstract Submission Form Undergraduate Research Conference, 2026

The Venue of the Conference will be O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana.

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