5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

Human and social life finds itself in the center of a huge global techno-economic mechanism shaping a society characterized, on the one hand, by a techno-sphere that becomes dominant in its relationship with the biosphere and the social sphere; on the other hand, by a growing entropy where many human beings are becoming mere externalities of a performative system that does not tolerate vulnerabilities or imperfections, with the risk of reducing social life to a technical matter.

In this frame, the sociological thought is challenged to adopt an internal point of view of the human condition which is globally faced in term of social life chances in a (un)sustainable world. A particular ‘border’ can be considered as a privileged space to rethink ‘social life’ and the knowledge on it: the border of fragility (in a broad, anthropological and social sense). In the Anthropocene era, fragility remains on the edges of social life, where what is inadequate according to the technical standards is confined. Moreover, even in situations of extreme deprivation, life is capable to flourish and to generate new forms of conviviality.

From this peripheral place, social sciences can contribute to shape the idea of what social life means. The call for participation is open to contributions in the social thought, global social theory, critical theory examining relevant theoretical approaches and significant case-based empirical material related to research projects in different fields (e.g., inequalities studies, migration studies, urban sociology, sociology of organizations, and religion, and education).