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Call for workshop participants: Foreign policy in the age of Trump 2.0

an American flag and Trump flag flying in front of a nice blue sky

The Foreign Policy Working Group invites contributions for a one-day workshop at the University of Birmingham examining how the Trump administrations have reshaped the practice, meaning, and study of foreign policy.

The Trump administration’s foreign policy is challenging longstanding assumptions about alliance politics, multilateralism, diplomacy, expertise, communication, and the relationship between domestic politics and international strategy. Whether interpreted as disruption, reversion, innovation, or erosion, the Trump years are galvanising the need to better understand contemporary foreign policy practice.

We welcome contributions that explore, among others:

  • Decision-making processes and institutional change in US foreign policy

  • The role of leadership style, communication, performance and rhetoric

  • Alliance management, credibility, reassurance, or diversification

  • Economic statecraft, trade, and coercive diplomacy

  • Relations with China, Russia, India, NATO, the EU, or any other key regional or multilateral case studies

  • Multilateral governance, particularly in relation to climate or development aid

  • Domestic political drivers of foreign policy

  • How other states have adapted to or hedged against Trump-era policy

  • Implications for foreign policy analysis as a discipline

Contributions may be empirical, theoretical, comparative, or methodological, and may focus on the United States or on external perspectives on US foreign policy.

Submission process

  • Please submit a 300-word abstract by Monday 15 June 2026 to fpwg.group@bisa.ac.uk with the subject line “BISA FP-WG Trump Workshop Abstract”

  • Successful applicants will be notified by the end of July. Those who are not selected to present on this occasion owing to capacity constraints are still warmly welcomed to attend, chair panels, and participate in the discussions.

  • The workshop will take place on Wednesday 21 October 2026 at the University of Birmingham.

  • Refreshments will be provided.

  • Thanks to the generosity of BISA, we have five £100 bursaries for postgraduate students. Please indicate in your submission to fpwg.group@bisa.ac.uk if you are a postgraduate student and would like to be considered for the bursary.

  • At this time, we are unable to cover other travel expenses, so participants/attendees will need to make their own travel arrangements.If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact fpwg.group@bisa.ac.uk

Dr Robert Ralston, Dr Maísa Edwards, and Dr Hillary Briffa on behalf of the BISA Foreign Policy Working Group.

Find out more about the Foreign Policy Working Group