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2026 International Academic Conference on the May 18 Democratization Movement and the Expansion of Democracy “Gwangju 5·18 and the Future of Democracy” to be Held at Korea University on March 27

- Seeking normative implications of the May 18 Movement amid the global crisis of democracy -

The May 18 Memorial Foundation (Chairman Yoon Mok-hyun) will host the 2026 International Academic Conference on the May 18 Democratization Movement and the Expansion of Democracy, titled “Gwangju 5·18 and the Future of Democracy,” on Friday, March 27, from 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM at the KU Centennial Memorial Hall, Korea University.

This conference is designed to reconfirm the historical significance of the May 18 Democratization Movement and to discuss the normative and political implications of Gwangju’s experience from international and interdisciplinary perspectives, particularly in light of the democratic crises currently facing the world.

The event will consist of keynote speeches, thematic sessions, and a general discussion:

• Keynote Speeches: Moderated by Lim Woon-taek (Professor at Keimyung University), the session features Sari Hanafi (Professor at the American University of Beirut and former President of the International Sociological Association), Jan Nederveen Pieterse (Distinguished Professor at UC Santa Barbara), and Lim Hyug-baeg (Professor Emeritus at Korea University). Their topics include “Can Democracy Expand Without Liberalism?”, “What Kind of Democracy? — A Tribute to Gwangju,” and “The Agora Democracy of Gwangju in May 1980,” respectively.
• Thematic Sessions: Moderated by Choi Jung-gi (Director of the May 18 International Research Institute), presentations will focus on “Democracy in Crisis and the Future of Democracy,” “Social Field Analysis Regarding the Enshrinement of May 18 in the Preamble of the Constitution,” and “Care in the Square and the Future Politics of the Excluded.”
• General Discussion: Moderated by Jang Won-ho (Professor at the University of Seoul and Chair of the 2027 World Congress of Sociology Organizing Committee), the discussion will continue on the spirit of May 18 and the spirit of the Constitution.

The May 18 Memorial Foundation expects this conference to re-examine the meaning of the May 18 Movement from comparative and global perspectives and to expand social discourse on its contemporary implications. Furthermore, the Foundation anticipates that the event will contribute to forming public opinion and social consensus regarding the ongoing discussion to enshrine the spirit of May 18 in the Preamble of the Constitution.