The 28^th ESHET Summer School in History of Economic Thought, Economic Philosophy, and Economic History, will be hosted by CIRED – International Research Centre on Environment and Development (CNRS, ENPC-IPP, AgroParisTech-UPSaclay, EHESS, CIRAD) in Nogent-sur-Marne (Paris area, France), from August 31 to September 4, 2026. It will be sponsored by the European Union via the ERC ETRANHET project, and co-organized with PHARE (University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne) with the support of BETA (University of Strasbourg) and the Gide Association.
The main theme of the 2026 edition will be: “Environmental Sustainability and Energy Transitions in the History of Economic Thought.”
Whereas the lectures given by senior scholars will deal with the Summer School’s main theme, there is no specific theme for PhD students’ and young scholars’ presentations. Proposals on any topic in the history of economic thought, economic philosophy, and economic history are eligible. Approximately 20 proposals will be selected for presentation. The submission guidelines are provided at the end of this call.
 
Scientific rationale:
In light of climate change, biodiversity loss, resource scarcity, and more broadly, the transgression of all planetary boundaries, environmental sustainability and the energy transition are among the major challenges of the 21^st century. Many economic options exist to address these challenges, ranging from green growth initiatives – relying on traditional incentives – to degrowth, which entails a fundamental reorganization of the economy. These options have been discussed at length in the literature. Although environmental, ecological, and energy economics became institutionalized fields in the 1970s and 1980s with the establishment of professional associations and journals, concerns about resources and pollution in economic thought date back much further.
In the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, a few scholars have pioneered the study of (far) past economic contributions to sustainability issues. In recent years, this historiography has significantly developed, offering new analyses of ecological issues from the 18^th to the early 21^st century. The literature has also dramatically expanded in economic philosophy and economic (and energy) history. (An indicative list of references and resources is available on the school website at: https://www.centre-cired.fr/eshet-2026-summer-school/)
This growing body of research has been accompanied by conferences and workshops on the history of economic thought and economic philosophy, particularly in Europe, which have also begun to address sustainability issues. For example, the 2022 STOREP conference in Viterbo was titled “Economics and the Economic System: The Ecological Transition,” the 2023 International Conference on Economic Philosophy in Lille focused on “Economic Philosophy in the Age of the Anthropocene,” and the 2025 Gide Association Workshop in Dijon examined “The Relationship between Economics and the Environment in the History of Economic and Philosophical Thought.”
The 28^th ESHET Summer School will provide an opportunity to review the current state of research on the history and philosophy of economics as they relate to environmental sustainability and energy transitions (origins of modern environmental and ecological economics, ancient perspectives on natural resources and pollution, recent developments in biodiversity and climate analysis, associated epistemological, ethical, and normative issues). There will be lectures delivered by keynote speakers from various European countries (see below). In addition, young scholars will be invited to present their own papers (on any topic in the history of economic thought, economic philosophy, and economic history) during PhD sessions, and will receive feedback from discussants and senior tutors.
This edition will feature a special session devoted to research practices in an ecologically constrained world. Participants will collectively discuss what it means to conduct sustainable research in the history of economic thought and economic philosophy, considering career requirements and methodological needs, such as the collection of distant sources and computational needs for quantitative methods and the use of AI.
For more than 25 years, the ESHET Summer School has been an incredible opportunity to foster connections between generations of historians and philosophers of economics, as well as to foresee the future of the field. The 2026 edition will be no exception.
 
Practicalities:
The 28^th ESHET Summer School will take place on the stunning campus (see pictures below) of the Cité du développement durable in Nogent-sur-Marne(Paris area, 15 minutes from Paris’s city center by RER train) – https://www.cite-developpement-durable.org/.
The Summer School will take place over four and a half days, from Monday, August 31 (early morning), to Friday, September 4 (early afternoon). The registration fee will be 150€. It will cover daily lunches, as well as the social dinner, social activities, and materials. For participants not based in Paris, free accommodation will be provided from Sunday evening (August 30) to Friday morning (five nights in a single room with breakfast). Participants will be expected to make their travel arrangements and cover their own travel costs. Whenever possible, train and other low-carbon modes of transportation will be particularly encouraged. Paris has train connections with most European cities.
 
Submission guidelines:
Papers from PhD students and young scholars (thesis defended after January 1, 2024) will be selected from extended abstracts (750 words) written in English. Abstract proposals, together with a CV and a letter of recommendation from a supervisor, should be sent by email to both antoine.missemer@cnrs.fr and louise.villeneuve@cnrs.fr before April 15, 2026. Applications that do not include all required documents will not be considered. Decision of acceptance (or not) will be notified by May 15, 2026. Full papers and the payment of registration fees will be expected by June 30, 2026.
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Check updates:
https://www.centre-cired.fr/eshet-2026-summer-school/
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Already confirmed guest speakers:
‪Inge Røpke, Aalborg University, Denmark
Béatrice Cherrier, CNRS, CREST, France
Michiru Nagatsu, University of Helsinki, Finland
Daniela Russ, University of Leipzig, Germany
Organizing committee:
André Lapidus, PHARE, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
Rintaro Matsuda, CNRS, EHESS, CIRED Paris, ERC-ETRANHET, France
Antoine Missemer, CNRS, CIRED Paris, ERC-ETRANHET, France
Lucie Rondeau du Noyer, CNRS, EHESS, CIRED Paris, ERC-ETRANHET, France
Nathalie Sigot, PHARE, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
Louise Villeneuve, CNRS, CIRED Paris, ERC-ETRANHET, France
Scientific committee:
Çinla Akdere, Middle East Technical University, Turkey
Sandye Gloria, Université Côte d’Azur, France
Pedro Texeira, Universidade do Porto, Portugal
Harald Hagemann, Universität Hohenheim, Germany
Herrade Igersheim, CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, France
André Lapidus, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
Jean-Sébastien Lenfant, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
Paolo Paesani, Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata, Italy
Javier San Julián Arrupe, University of Barcelona, Spain
Nathalie Sigot, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
Michel Zouboulakis, University of Thessaly, Greece