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Conspiracist World-Making: sandpit workshop
Join an informal, one‑day sandpit bringing Sussex researchers together to explore conspiracist narratives and world‑making, share ideas across disciplines, and connect around future conversations and collaborative research.
This event is a collaboration between the Summer of Research and the Sussex School for Progressive Futures within the strategic theme Human Flourishing.
Monday 15 June 2026, 10am–2pm
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1988270179630?aff=oddtdtcreator
Event description
The belief in conspiracy theories is a central problem of our times, affecting everything from public health and democratic processes to disaster relief and climate responses. Existing research on the emergence, spread and appeal of conspiracist thinking have drawn on expertise in folklore, gaming, and play, as well as communication studies, political theory, philosophy, sociology and psychology. Yet, there has been little attempt to bring these approaches into conversation with each other.
This one-day in-person workshop will bring together researchers from across the four faculties of the university who are already working on, or are curious about exploring, topics relating to conspiracist narratives and mindsets, loosely defined.
The facilitators are particularly interested in unpacking the appeal of conspiracist worldmaking and in moving beyond a pathologizing view of conspiracism to explore links to enchantment, myths, mysteries and games. However, the event is designed to provide an open space for ideas to emerge and come together, and all contributions are expressly welcomed. The aim is to build connections, identify shared interests and explore the appetite for future conversation and collaboration, including (but not limited to) a possible application for a Leverhulme Research Centre.
Image credit: "simple escher-style fish tessellation, v. 2 (backlit)" by EricGjerde is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/?ref=openverse.
Format
The workshop will be held as an informal sandpit event without a strict itinerary or formal speaker presentations. To start the conversation, the workshop will begin with short interventions by the facilitators, Sussex researchers and external researchers, whose work speaks directly to the theme.
Lunch and refreshments will be provided.
About the facilitators
The facilitators are Dr Hannah Richter (Politics) and Prof. Emily Robinson (Politics).
Hannah is a political theorist working at the intersection of critical political thought, democratic theory and environmental political theory. She has recently written on post-truth politics, the ideas of authoritarian populism and the anti-populist undercurrents of modern democracy. Emily is a historian of modern Britain, who specialises in political cultures, emotions, and identities. She has published on the emotional politics of Brexit, and is currently researching the circulation of ‘weird history’ narratives.
Please email h.richter@sussex.ac.uk or e.a.robinson@sussex.ac.uk with any suggestions or questions ahead of the event. Do also let the facilitators know if you are unable to attend but would be interested in being part of an ongoing conversation/collaboration.
Target audience
Cross-faculty academics working on topics relating to conspiracist narratives/logics/mindsets (loosely defined).
Summer of Research 2026
This event is part of the Summer of Research 2026, a two‑week festival of researcher‑led talks, workshops and events celebrating the breadth and impact of research at the University of Sussex. The festival brings together researchers, students and professional services colleagues to share ideas, build connections and explore opportunities for future collaboration.
Find out about and sign up for other exciting events here!