2026 Agential Capacities in Context workshop

Agential Capacities in Context Workshop 

University of Turku, Finland, August 20–21 2026

The cognitive sciences have made significant progress in our understanding of core cognitive capacities like motivation, self-regulation, and working memory. Many questions remain at the interface of these capacities: How are they related? Can one of them explain others? What is their relationship to human agency? And how is their operation altered by the agent’s practical context, such as structural conditions and social background? The two-day Agential Capacities Workshop will examine these questions. 

Turku, the oldest city in Finland, has a fascinating history, vibrant cultural scene, and beautiful natural surroundings. For more information, see https://en.visitturku.fi/. The two–day workshop is followed by an optional social day on August 22, with sightseeing.

Confirmed speakers:

Denise de Ridder (Utrecht University)
Marina Milyavskaya (Carleton University)
Santiago Amaya (Rice University)
Veronika Job (University of Vienna)
David Barack (Carnegie Mellon University & University of Pittsburgh)
Angelica Kaufmann (University of Milan)
Anssi Bwalya (University of Turku)
Frederik Junker (University of Copenhagen)
J-P Bermúdez (University of Southampton)
More coming soon…

CFP for early-career scholars

We invite academics across the cognitive sciences (including psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy) to present new work addressing these questions. We have a limited number of slots available, reserved for scholars who are current PhD students or within 2 years of defending their PhD. Speaker selection is based on a combination of abstract quality and diversity and fit of topics.

To be considered as a speaker, please submit an abstract of 500 words as an anonymized PDF file to agencyexperienceturku@gmail.com by March 15th. In the accompanying e-mail, please provide full author details (names and affiliations of all authors).

 Results will be communicated by April 2.

The workshop is free of charge for both speakers and audience. Two lunches, coffee, and one dinner are covered for all speakers. While we are unable to cover the travel expenses of all participants, funds are available to cover travel and accommodations for a limited number of speakers based on need. If you wish to be considered for travel assistance, please note that in the e-mail accompanying your submission. This in no way influences the abstract selection process. 

The event will be livestreamed, so the audience can also participate online. Information about registration for online and on-site participation will be circulated in April. Updates will be posted on the event’s web page at https://sites.utu.fi/agencyproject/2026-agential-ca…context-workshop/

If you have any questions about the event, please contact Anssi Bwalya at anssi.bwalya@utu.fi.

Traveling to Turku: The Turku airport has connections to a handful of European cities, including Stockholm, Gdansk and Vilnius. Turku is easily accessible by bus and train from the Helsinki airport, which connects to all major cities, and by ferry from Stockholm. 

The Agential Capacities Workshop is hosted by the Agency as Experience and Capacity: Social Mechanisms, Political Implications project at the University of Turku, supported by the Kone foundation. The event is organized by Polaris Koi, Anssi Bwalya and Juan Pablo Bermúdez.