WINIR YOUNG SCHOLARS PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP ON GOVERNING EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES (ROME, ITALY, JULY 2026) — As technologies such as AI, blockchain, biotechnology, and data-driven systems increasingly shape economic, social, and political life, their governance reveals how institutions balance public interests—transparency, fairness, accountability—with private incentives.
WINIR YOUNG SCHOLARS PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP ON INNOVATION, ENTREPRENEURSHIP & INSTITUTIONS (PRAGUE, CZECHIA, SEPTEMBER 2025) — Institutional theory is at the heart of debates around post-growth paradigms in the Global North, sustainable development imperatives in the Global South, and the role of entrepreneurship across public, private, and cooperative sectors in driving social and environmental change. The Workshop seeks to explore how institutional dynamics influence and are influenced by the ways societies produce, consume, and thrive, fostering innovative and sustainable pathways for the future. Contributions should engage institutional methods
WINIR YOUNG SCHOLARS WORKSHOP ON AI AND INSTITUTIONS (ONLINE, MAY 2025) — Artificial Intelligence (AI) is profoundly transforming the global landscape, reshaping not only technological innovation but also institutional operations and social structures. This Symposium seeks to critically interrogate the intricate and multidimensional impacts of AI across diverse institutional domains. Specifically, it aims to explore the intersections of technological advancements and societal structures through the lens of institutional theory, considering how AI both disrupts and reconstitutes
WINIR YOUNG SCHOLARS PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP ON BRIDGING DIVIDES (PITTSBURGH, USA, SEPTEMBER 2024) — Institutional theory can be used as a starting point to help us look at how societies with deep cultural and political differences can coexist peacefully and thrive amidst the challenges posed by globalization and technological revolutions. It can help us scrutinise existing governance and social arrangements to manage growing disparities, exacerbated by information technology, immigration, and cultural exchanges, leading to a crisis in political and governance frameworks.
WINIR YOUNG SCHOLARS PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP ON TECHNOLOGY & INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE (CATANIA, ITALY, SEPTEMBER 2023) — Technological development has become a driving force in shaping and transforming societies, revolutionizing their structures, processes, and governance mechanisms. The complex dynamics between technology and institutional change is today a vital area of interdisciplinary research, involving economics, geography, law, sociology, philosophy, politics, among other disciplines.
WINIR YOUNG SCHOLARS WORKSHOP ON TECHNOLOGY & SOCIETY (ONLINE, MAY 2023) — Rapid technological progress has the power to unlock human potential while simultaneously disrupting social, political, legal, and economic processes. Institutional paradigms urge a reconsideration, to evaluate our understanding of the relationship between humans and technology/machines, and whether technology is itself an institution.