
2027 IGU Urban Commission Annual Conference
Shared Horizons: Cross-Boundary Coordination for Resilient and Sustainable Cities
16 to 20 August 2027
Jointly Organized by IGU Urban Commission and the Department of Urban Planning and Design, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
Venue: Knowles Building, The University of Hong Kong
Hong Kong SAR, China
Call for abstracts:
In an era of polycrises and escalating geopolitical tensions, cities and regions are undergoing profound transformations and facing increasingly complex challenges. International and regional cooperation has become more critical than ever for addressing interconnected urban issues, including climate change, resource management, infrastructure resilience, social equity and wellbeing. This conference aims to foster dialogue on cross-border challenges, collaborative strategies, partnerships, and institutional innovations that can overcome territorial boundaries. By exploring governance solutions that promote resilience, sustainability, livability, and equity, the conference highlights the importance of cross-boundary coordination in advancing sustainable urban development, climate action, urban health and wellbeing through stronger collaboration beyond municipal and national borders.
To address these timely and important issues, we invite established and early-career researchers in geography and related interdisciplinary fields to submit abstracts. Submissions are encouraged to engage with the five key study domains outlined below by the IGU Urban Commission, although they need not be limited to these areas:
- Cities as drivers of, and driven by, transformational change
- Cities, urban systems and nation-states
- Urban areas under pressure of transformation
- Climate change, resilience, urban health and well-being
- Governance, institutions, urban policy
IMPORTANT DATES
Deadline for abstracts: 15 March 2027
Acceptance of abstracts/notification of authors: 10 April 2027
Opening of Registration & Payment: 10 April 2027
Deadline for early registration: 10 May 2027
Deadline for regular registration: 30 June 2027
Conference date: 16 to 20 August 2027
ABSTRACT SUBMISSION
Extended abstracts must be written according to the template attached at the end of this call. The submission link will be available soon.
Deadline for abstract submission: 15 March 2027
REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT
Light lunch, refreshment and site visits are included. The registration link will be available by April 2027.
Early registration (10 April – 10 May 2027):
Non-student: HKD 2,800 (i.e. EUR 300 / USD 350)
Student: HKD 2,300 (i.e. EUR 260 / USD 300)
Regular registration (11 May – 30 June 2027):
Non-student: HKD 3,200 (i.e. EUR 350 / USD 400)
Student: HKD 2,800 (i.e. EUR 300 / USD 350)
Additional fees for accompanying persons: HKD 1,200 (i.e. EUR 130 / USD 150)
Gala dinner (optional): HKD 400 (i.e. EUR 45 / USD 50)
EARLY CAREER RESEARCH AWARD
As a tradition of the IGU Urban Commission, the 2027 conference will organize a paper competition for Early Career Researchers in Urban Geography, offering EARLY CAREER RESEARCHER AWARD for best papers and runners up to be presented during the Annual Conference in Hong Kong.
Participation in the paper competition is open to all early career researchers (up to 5 years after completion of a PhD) who present their paper during the Annual Conference of the IGU Urban Commission. Only one paper per participant may be entered for the paper competition. To enter the paper competition, we do not expect a fully written paper, but a more extensive (6 pages long) abstract, following the general abstract guidelines and submitted through the normal abstract submission process for the conference. The deadline for submission of abstracts is 15 March 2027.
FURTHER DETAILS
Details about accommodation options, technical visits, and conference schedule will be supplied before the registration period.
ORGANISERS AND CONTACTS
Secretariat: IGUConference2027@hku.hk
Shenjing He: sjhe@hku.hk
Dani Broitman: danib@technion.ac.il
Natacha Aveline-Dubach: natacha.aveline@cnrs.fr
Local organizers:
- HE Shenjing, <sjhe@hku.hk>, Professor, Department of Urban Planning and Design, The University of Hong Kong, China
- QIAN Junxi < jxqian@hku.hk >, Associate Professor, Department of Geography, The University of Hong Kong, China
- ZHU Jin <jinzhu@hku.hk>, Assistant Professor, Department of Urban Planning and Design, The University of Hong Kong, China
Steering committee members & Scientific committee
C20.42 – Urban Commission of the International Geographical Union (IGU-UGI): Cities in Transition: Transformations, Resilience, and Policy. (https://www.igu-urban.org/)
- Dani Broitman – Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Israel (danib@technion.ac.il) – Chair
- Natacha Aveline – French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), France (aveline@cnrs.fr) – Co-Chair
- Markus Hesse – University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg (markus.hesse@uni.lu)
- Ludger Basten – TU Dortmund University, Germany (ludger.basten@tu-dortmund.de)
- Zaiga Krisjane – University of Latvia, Latvia (zaiga.krisjane@lu.lv)
- Herman Geyer – Stellenbosch University, South Africa (hsgeyerjr@sun.ac.za)
- Ivan Townshend – University of Lethbridge, Canada (towni0@uleth.ca)
- Shenjing He – University of Hong Kong, China (sjhe@hku.hk)
- Jun Tsutsumi – University of Tsukuba, Japan (jtsu@geoenv.tsukuba.ac.jp)
- Gulçin Erdi – French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), France (gulcin.erdi@cnrs.fr)
- Manuel Suárez Lastra – Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico (manuelsuarez@unam.mx)
- James Gregory – University of Pretoria, South Africa (jj.gregory@up.ac.za)