Call for Proposals: 2024 Annual Meeting of the American Folklore Society

The American Folklore Society invites you to submit a proposal for its 136th Annual Meeting November 6-9, 2024 online and in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

The theme of the conference is Crossing the Global Storm: Networks, Solidarities, and Communities in Struggle. The proposal window is March 1-April 10. The global storm reminds us about the intimate connections among people who struggle across the globe and hemisphere. Crossing the Global Storm aims to bring together folklorists, culture bearers, culture workers, communities, and organizations in the fight to build networks of autonomy, commitment, and collaboration. The ongoing destruction of the planet and the dehumanization of people urges us to center folklore practice in building bridges and networks. 

Today we are opening the new proposal platform which allows us to make some improvements to our submission experience. Important changes for the 2024 CFP include:

• Registration will open later this spring. This year, you do NOT have to register to submit a proposal. 
• Our new proposal submission system is now live!  Take a moment to visit and prepare to submit your proposal here by April 10.  
• We have staff support available to assist and answer questions, and we have more information on our proposal webpages.
  • Please contact [email protected] with questions.
  • We will be available to provide support on Wednesdays in March in live Zoom Office Hours, held at different times to accommodate different time zones. 
    • Our first Office Hours will be held 3-4pm ET on March 6.
    • Here’s the link to register
    • We’ll publish future dates / times soon.
• Virtual opportunities are available for some of our proposal types, with some live streamed or hybrid programs. At this time, we do not have plans for a fully virtual component of the 2024 conference, though we are eager to support participants who cannot travel with some virtual presentation opportunities as part of hybrid programs in Albuquerque. More information on our proposal webpages.
• The review team is planning to schedule fewer total sessions, making proposal acceptance more competitive than in previous years. Consider skipping the traditional research paper proposal and planning for a more interactive type of engagement as a discussant or moderator, a poster presenter, or a participant in a special curated session. Our goal is to include as many options for participating on the program as possible for those at an important career stage or who need to present in order to access travel funding; at the same time, we’d like to reduce the overall number of concurrent sessions to reduce the many conflicts that can cause. 

With all of this in mind, please think creatively about how you would like to participate this year! 

The 2024 Annual Meeting of the American Folklore Society will bring hundreds of US and international specialists in folklore and folklife, folk narrative, popular culture, music, material culture, and related fields, to exchange work and ideas and to create and strengthen relationships and networks.   

Additional information for sponsors and exhibitors will be released later this spring. You can find more information about the meeting at 2024 AFS Annual Meeting.