Duration
01 Apr 2026 - 02 Apr 2026
Background and Rationale
Year 2026 is marking the forty-five years in force of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), as it entered into force in 1981, and the fifteenth years since the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention) was opened for signature in 2011. This international conference we are organizing in early April in Dubrovnik, Croatia, seeks to critically reflect on the evolution and the future of women’s rights within the international human rights framework. The last decades have witnessed significant normative advances in the protection of women’s rights. Yet, progress is increasingly threatened by longstanding structural inequalities, by persistent political and ideological oppositions to gender equality, and by emerging global transformations such as technological change, economic insecurity, environmental crises, and new forms of violence and backlash. These developments call for a renewed commitment to the universality, indivisibility, and enforceability of women’s human rights.
This conference aims to critically reflect on the legacy, challenges, and future of two landmark conventions in the protection and promotion of women’s rights; to reaffirm and strengthen international human rights standards as the cornerstone of gender equality policies; and to hold governments accountable for their obligations under CEDAW, the Istanbul Convention, and related human rights instruments.
By bringing together scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and civil society representatives, the conference will create a space for critical dialogue on the future of women’s rights and explore how international and national actors can resist regression of rights and reinvigorate commitments to gender equality and women’s empowerment. Ultimately, the goal is to reinvigorate the global gender equality agenda at a time of profound social, political, and economic shifts, to ensure that the hard-won gains of the past decades are not only preserved, but transformed into new momentum for equality and freedom from violence for all women and girls.
Organizing Committee
Associate Professor Antonija Petričušić, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law, president of the Organizing Committee
Professor Olja Družić Ljubotina, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law
Professor Nina Gumzej, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law
Associate Professor Ana Horvat Vuković, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law
Dr Ivana Radačić, Ivo Pilar Institute of Social Sciences in Zagreb
Dr Dubravka Šimonović, former UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls
Scientific Board
Professor Violeta Beširević, Union University Law School Belgrade
Professor Anita Blagojević, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Law
Dr Elena Caruso, University of Bristol Law School
Professor Emerita Rebecca Cook, University of Toronto, Jackman Faculty of Law
Professor Ivana Dobrotić, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law
Professor Melina Grizo, Ss Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Iustinianus Primus Faculty of Law
Associate Professor Barbara Havelková, University of Oxford, Faculty of Law
Assistant Professor Ranka Jeknić, University of Split, Faculty of Law
Professor Emma Lantschner, University of Graz
Professor Mathias Möschel, Central European University, Department of Legal Studies
Professor Maja Munivrana, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law
Professor Petra Roter, University of Ljubljana
Professor Judit Sandor, Central European University, Department of Political Science and Department of Legal Studies
Dr. habil. Kyriaki Topidi, European Centre for Minority Issues
Professor Inga Winkler, Wageningen University, Department of Social Sciences
Dr. Adriana Zaharijević, Institute for philosophy and social theory, University of Belgrade
Registration
Applications are open until 29 February 2026 via the IUC online system.
Accommodation
Accommodation for selected conference participants will be secured in IUC dormitories and must be covered by students. Details available at: https://iuc.hr/accommodation
Every conference participant is required to cover their own travel and accommodation expenses and to pay the IUC participation fee (55 euro).
