Researching LGBTQ+ Ageing and Later Life in the Baltic and Eastern Europe and Beyond

The conference spotlighting studies on LGBTQ+ aging and later life in the Nordic, Baltic and Eastern European regions, and beyond.

Much of current scholarship on LGBTQ+ aging remains rooted in Anglo-American contexts. As Fredriksen-Goldsen & de Vries (2019) note, there is a need for “increased attention to the societal and cultural contexts in which aging occurs”. This two-day conference aims to spotlight studies on LGBTQ+ aging and later life that engage with differing and shifting contexts —particularly in the Nordic, Baltic and Eastern European regions, though also including perspectives from beyond. The event aims to examine how politics, history, and public discourse shape the lived experiences of older LGBTQ+ individuals, as well as the frameworks through which these experiences are studied. The conference is designed to promote dialogue, reflection, and exchange, rather than following a traditional academic paper format and will consist of round tables in a small and friendly setting.

Confirmed speakers include: Judit Takács, Rebecca Jones, Olga Żukowicz, Anna Siverskog, Ramona Dima, Sofia Smolle, Qing Shen, Tuula Juvonen, Dora Jandrić, Michal Pitoňák, Světlana Nedvědová, Pako Chalkidis, Rasa Kamarauskaitė, Chiara Bertone, Pauliina Lukinmaa, Valerie De Craene, Teri Szűcs and Tomasz Basiuk.

The conference is organized as part of the research project “Imagining Queer Ageing Futures: A Study of LGBTQ+ Ageing in Estonia, Poland, and Sweden and has been kindly sponsored by a grant from the Centre for Baltic and Eastern European Studies (CBEES), Södertörn University.