Call for papers 2025

“Soft Power and Human Rights: The Geopolitical Impact of Financial Initiatives by the US, China, and the EU”

Theme Overview:

In today’s global landscape, financial aid, development funding, and economic partnerships have become powerful tools of soft power, allowing nations and political blocs to exert influence without direct military intervention. The strategic allocation of funds through institutions such as USAID (United States Agency for International Development), China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), India, and the European Union’s Global Gateway raises critical questions about how financial initiatives shape human rights, governance, and sovereignty worldwide.

This year’s edition of Panoply Journal will explore the interplay between geopolitics, finance, corporate vs. state interests, human trafficking, and the impact of COVID-19 on human rights, examining how economic statecraft and financial influence impact political systems and civil rights in recipient nations.

TOPIC EXAMPLES

• Post-Cold War Financial Influence & USAID – How aid expanded post-1991 and shaped human rights (e.g., Afghanistan case study).
• China’s BRI & Economic Sovereignty – Debt diplomacy, labor rights, and governance challenges.
• EU’s Global Gateway – Development financing as a counterbalance to China.
• Corporate vs. State Interests – How businesses influence international development and human rights.
• Human Trafficking & Development Aid – Exploitation, migration, and labor rights in foreign-funded projects.
• COVID-19, Finance, and Human Rights – Vaccine diplomacy, post-pandemic economic control, and digital authoritarianism.  

Call for Submissions

We invite students, scholars, researchers, and policymakers to contribute original articles exploring the nexus of finance, soft power, human trafficking, corporate influence, and human rights. Submissions may include:

• Empirical case studies on the effects of financial aid.
• Theoretical discussions on economic statecraft and human rights.
• Policy analyses on how governments navigate foreign financial influence.

 Submission Deadline: 30 November 2025

 For submission guidelines, visit: www.ciris.info/panoply

This year’s theme will provide an interdisciplinary lens on the power of economic influence in shaping global human rights norms.