色色研究所

Call for papers

The interdisciplinary field of Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) studies has witnessed significant growth since the 1960s, not only within the U.S. but also on a global scale. Stimulated by the forces of globalization, LAC studies have evolved and now encompass new perspectives and topics. 
 
March of 2026, ISLAC is holding its third Global Symposium, and this year鈥檚 focus will be on Women, Gender and Families: Latin American, Caribbean and Latinos Perspectives Worldwide. The event aims to disseminate, exchange and showcase USF's research, teaching and practices among academic peers, special guests and our local and global community.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Call for Papers

We invite contributions that focus on Latin America, the Caribbean and/or Latino populations in the U.S. or worldwide that relate to the topic of the symposium. We encourage faculty, graduate students, practitioners and community organizations to propose papers in the following fields/topics (though not limited to):

• Women in the (formal and informal) labor market
• Gender and the care sector
• Family life, new family models and transnational families
• Women鈥檚 participation in social movements and politics
• Entrepreneurship and gender
• New family dynamics due to the feminization of migrations
• Gender violence and feminicide
• Gender and welfare policies supporting women and families in times of crisis
• Gender and Sexuality in Latin America, the Caribbean and among Latino populations
• Women in Higher Education in Latin America, the Caribbean and Latino populations
• Women and gender in democratic and authoritarian regimes
• Women, gender, culture and the environment
• Women in the arts, literature, architecture, music, etc.  
• Women and religion
• Autochthonous and Afro-descendant women

Proposals may be sent as a panel (up to 4 papers) or individual submissions to padillab@usf.edu. Make sure to include ISLAC Global Symposium 鈥� Paper Proposal as the title of your email. Deadline: January 30, 2026.

Call for Posters

We invite undergraduate and graduate students to submit proposals for posters that relate to the topic of the symposium. This is a unique opportunity for students to present their research and experience. ISLAC will recognize the best poster (one for undergraduate students and one for graduate students) to acknowledge outstanding contributions and innovations in research. Posters will be evaluated based on criteria such as clarity of arguments, visual appeal and relevance to the symposium theme. Send your abstract submission to padillab@usf.edu. Make sure to include ISLAC Global Symposium 鈥� Poster Competition Proposal as the title of your email. Deadline: January 30, 2026.

ORGANIZING COMMITTIEE

INVITED SPEAKERs

Laura Oso Casas

University of La Coru帽a, Spain

Laura Oso is a professor (catedr谩tica de universidad) in the Department of Sociology at the Universidade da Coru帽a. She was the coordinator of the Societies in Motion Research Team () from 2011-2024 and is deputy director at the Interuniversity Research Centre for Atlantic Cultural Landscapes, a unique, next-generation pioneering center for basic and applied research in the social and human sciences. She was vice-president for international affairs of the Spanish Federation of Sociology (FES) and was a member of the executive committee at the International Sociological Association (ISA) from 2018-2023. Currently, she is a member of the board of directors for the International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion network ().

Oso, who holds a PhD in Sociology from the Universit茅 de Paris I-Panth茅on Sorbonne, focuses her research primarily on gender, migration and transnational families. In particular, she has studied the gendered insertion of Latin American migrants into the Spanish labor market (e.g., domestic service, sexual work, ethnic entrepreneurship, etc.) in relationship with transnational household dynamics. She has conducted extensive research about transnational families from the perspective of intergenerational strategies and trajectories for social mobility, and she has served as a consultant for a variety of international organizations (e.g., the OECD, European Union, UN-INSTRAW, etc.), doing research stays in the United States, France and Latin America (e.g., University of California, Berkeley, Universit茅 de Paris I-Panth茅on Sorbonne, Universit茅 de Paris VII, Flacso Ecuador, Universidad de Buenos Aires).

Thais Fran莽a

Lisbon University Institute, Portugal

Thais Fran莽a is a researcher at the Centre for Research and Studies in Sociology Institute of the Lisbon University Institute (CIES-Iscte, Iscte), and a visiting professor at Brown University. Her research expertise focuses on migration, mobilities, gender, social inequalities and decolonial studies. Fran莽a coordinated the project 鈥淚nclusion+ Tackling the challenges of Erasmus+ mobility inclusion and diversity at higher education level,鈥� which was funded by Erasmus+.  
  
Fran莽a, who holds a PhD in sociology from the University of Coimbra, is a member of the board of directors for the IMISCOE network and coordinates the education and social inequalities standing committee. She serves on the editorial boards of two leading academic journals: 鈥淕ender, Work & Organization鈥� and 鈥淐omparative Migration Studies.鈥�

Carmen Mart铆nez Novo

Carmen Martinez Novo is Professor of Latin American studies and anthropology at the University of Florida and the editor in chief of 鈥淟atin American Research Review,鈥� the journal of the Latin American Studies Association. She has a PhD in anthropology and a master鈥檚 degree in historical studies from the New School for Social Research. She is the author of 鈥淯ndoing Multiculturalism: Resource Extraction and Indigenous Rights in Ecuador鈥� (2021, University of Pittsburgh Press), 鈥淲ho Defines Indigenous? Identities, Development, Intellectuals and the State in Northern Mexico鈥� (2006, Rutgers University Press) and editor of 鈥淩epensando los movimientos ind铆genas,鈥� (2009, FLACSO-Ecuador). She has co-edited journal issues and published numerous articles and book chapters on indigenous identities and politics in Mexico and Ecuador. She is currently working on a book manuscript on queer memory and cultural history in C贸rdoba, Spain during the Francoist dictatorship.