Call for Papers

Academic Conference 2026

University of the Bundeswehr, Munich, 17-19 June

"Science and Intelligence in Europe: Responding to a New Era of Uncertainty"

In a time of geopolitical upheaval and rapid technological change, the study of intelligence has never been more urgent.

The 2026 ICE Academic Conference brings together experts in Intelligence and Security Studies from across Europe.

Its aim is to advance Intelligence Studies as a discipline and to strengthen ICE as a central hub in the European research network.

Submit your abstract now
About the ICE Academic Conference

The ICE Academic Conference is held under the auspices of the rotating Presidency of the Intelligence College in Europe, in close consultation with its Academic Advisory Board. Previous conferences took place in Salamanca under the Spanish Presidency in 2024 and in Bucharest under the Romanian Presidency in 2023.

The 2026 Academic Conference will be hosted under the German Presidency at the University of the Bundeswehr in Munich, from 17–19 June 2026. It responds to the growing need for scholarly engagement with intelligence and security matters by bringing together experts on Intelligence and Security Studies in a pan-European academic context. The conference aims to boost the development of Intelligence Studies as an academic discipline in Europe and to establish ICE as one of the central nodes in the European Intelligence Studies network.

There is no registration fee. Catering will be provided, while travel and accommodation expenses are to be covered by the participants.

Call for Papers

The ICE Academic Advisory Board invite submissions of abstracts (maximum 200 words) for the 2026 ICE Academic Conference, held under Germany’s Presidency on the theme “Science and Intelligence.”

The Academic Advisory Board particularly welcome contributions that: 

  • Adress the science-intelligence nexus, especially in light of Europe's current technological and geopolitical transformations
  • Adress the challenges faced by European countries in this evolving context
  • Take an interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary perspective, drawing on diverse methods (quantitative , qualitative or mixed)
  • Consider intelligence not only from the perspective of science, but also examine science through the lens of intelligence analysis and practice
Indicative Topics and Subjects

INTELLIGENCE PEDAGOGY and SCHOLARSHIP

  • Innovations and trajectories in European Intelligence Studies teaching and programs
  • Research methods in Intelligence Studies 
  • Academic-practitioner collaboration for intelligence 
  • Practical and real-world impact of research on intelligence
  • Challenges and benefits for engagement of intelligence services with science and vice versa

THE HUMAN and ORGANIZATIONAL DIMENSIONS of INTELLIGENCE

  • Quality of judgment in intelligence analysis
  • Trust and relationship building in recruitment and handling of sources
  • Intelligence failures and organizational learning
  • Producer-consumer relations in intelligence 
  • Impact of extremist propaganda and conspiracy narratives on intelligence practitioners 

INTELLIGENCE POLICY in DEMOCRATIC CONTEXTS

  • Drivers of European intelligence collaboration
  • Impact of disruptions in the transatlantic alliance on intelligence collaboration
  • Effective intelligence oversight / accountability of intelligence services
  • National intelligence cultures 
  • Intelligence services engagement with the public 
  • Intelligence and economic statecraft
  • Intelligence, strategic resources, and supply security

TECHNOLOGY and INTELLIGENCE

  • (Counter-)Intelligence and adaptation to emerging technologies
  • Use of new digital tools and innovation in collection and analysis
  • Commercial providers of intelligence and digital solutions for intelligence services

COMPUTATIONAL INTELLIGENCE and MULTILAYERED DECISION ANALYSIS

  • Computational OSINT
  • EDT-based Analytics
  • Data-driven DSS and Optimization
  • Visual Intelligence Analysi
  • Complex System Analysis (SD-based Intelligence Operations)

INTELLIGENCE and the THREAT ENVIRONMENT

  • Intelligence systems and the detection of hybrid threats
  • Impact of hybrid threats on intelligence practice 
  • Legal regulations of intelligence services responses to hybrid threats
  • Intelligence practice and research on extremism, radicalism, and terrorism
  • Intelligence practice and extremist infiltration and authoritarian transformation of democracy 
  • Critical intelligence studies and the evolving nature of international politics
  • Lessons learned from Cold War intelligence
Eligibility

Eligible contributors include academics from universities, research institutes and other higher education institutions located in a member state of the Intelligence College in Europe. Applicants must also hold citizenship of an ICE member state. 

Affiliation with an ICE member institution is not a prerequisite for participation.

Deadline for Submissions

Please submit your abstract to


ip@hsbund-nd.de






























by Friday, 14 November 2025.

 

For questions or additional information, please contact:
Prof. Lars Berger (Academic Adviser to ICE)
📧 lars.berger@hsbund-nd.de