Opening Panel:
Martin Eichtinger
(Director, Vienna School of International Studies)
Martin Selmayr
(Head, EU Delegation to the Holy See, San Marino and the Order of Malta)
Panel 1: Collapse – What Happens If the System Breaks?
Kate Fearon
(Director, OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre and Deputy Head of the OSCE Secretariat)
Gustav Gressel
(Military Expter, European Council on Foreign Relations-ECFR)
Alexander Klimburg
(Senior Research Fellow am Hague Centre for Strategic Studies-HCSS)
Panel 2: Transformation – Shifting Powers, Shifting Rules
Roger Hilton
(Media Presenter and Research Fellow, GLOBESEC)
Nikolaus Rottenberger
(Head, Military Diplomacy Division, Austrian Federal Ministry for Defence)
Klaus Vietze
(Envoy, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Austria)
Panel 3: Drivers of Disruption – Forces Behind the End of the Old Order
Misha Glenny
(Rector, Institute for Human Sciences-IWM)
Erin Jenne
(Professor and Chair, International Relations Department, Central European University-CEU)
Velina Tchakarova
(Geopolitical Strategist and Founder, FACE-For A Conscious Experience)
Peter Turchin
(Project Leader, Complexity Science Hub, Vienna; Research Associate, University of Oxford)
Panel 4: Renewal – Rebuilding Global Governance
Simon Ortner
(Head, Department of International and European Affairs, Office of the Provincial Government of Lower Austria)
Claudia Reinprecht
(Head, Tech and Innovation Diplomacy, Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs)
Frank Schuster
(Head, European Investment Bank-EIB Group Office in Austria)
Hannes Swoboda
(President, International Institute for Peace-IIP)
The DASICON 2026 departs from the premise that the current world order is undergoing a profound transformation. Drawing inspiration from structural theories of historical change, such as Peter Turchin’s cliodynamic model in End Times, the conference does not ask whether the international system will change, but rather how.
Are we headed toward collapse, a chaotic reordering of power, or a new era of cooperation and institutional renewal? What role can diplomacy play when the path forward is unclear, and the assumptions underpinning international relations begin to erode?
Through high-level panels and interactive formats, DASICON 2026 will examine the disruptive forces shaping our time — from elite fragmentation and inequality to climate shocks and technological upheaval — and explore how diplomacy can adapt to navigate this age of uncertainty.
This event will also be streamed live via https://www.da-vienna.ac.at/Live.
The application deadline has already expired! Applications are not possible any more.