Academic CentreCAT-ferences started off as meeting places for urban geographers, but they gradually evolved into multi- and interdisciplinary events. The 2023 edition will be the tenth one, and both the CAT network and the CAT-ferences have expanded significantly since the first event, which was held in Lund (Sweden), where it was nested within the Inaugural Nordic Geographers’ Meeting. Since then, both the Nordic and the CAT events have been thriving. In 2007, the CAT-ference became "independent" and was held in Stockholm, Tallinn and across the Baltic Sea. Then came Tartu (2009), Bucharest (2011), Tbilisi (2013), Prague (2015), Kyiv and Dnipro (2017), Belgrade (2019) and Budapest (2022). A key ingredient in all CAT-ferences is the 2-day field trip.
In 1993, cities across CAT-space (Central and Eastern Europe and beyond) were in turmoil. Economies were in free fall, societies were being redrawn, nations were being built and, for a short moment, Russia seemed to be approaching civil war. And yet, a sense of optimism prevailed: huge steps had been taken towards the establishment of lively democracies, and the Communist totalitarian behemoth had been defeated. Thirty years on, we find ourselves in a new period of radical uncertainty, a critical juncture that will likely influence Europe for decades to come: Russia is waging war against Ukraine and has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism by the European Parliament, economies are severely strained by high inflation and energy uncertainty, and democratic backsliding, autocratisation, or worse, are the prevailing trends in the region. As usual, cities are where the drama is played out most conspicuously.
Like in past CAT-ferences, the thematic and geographical scope of the event will be open, but contributions are expected to relate, more or less explicitly, to the following two keywords: Cities and Central and Eastern Europe (extending into northern and central Eurasia). In practice, however, CAT events are about cities frequently referred to as "post-socialist". As such, contributions considering (post-)socialist cities elsewhere in the world (e.g., in Laos or Mongolia) are also welcome.