DDD17 Conference: The Politics of Death

We’re thrilled to announce that the next hybrid International Death, Dying & Disposal Conference (DDD17) will be hosted at the University of Utrecht (Netherlands) and online from Wednesday 27 to Saturday 30 August 2025.

The theme of this year’s DDD conference is THE POLITICS OF DEATH:

Despite appearing as a universal biological event, death is and has never been neutral. Instead, it is deeply entwined with issues of (in)equality, access, and power dynamics. In today’s world, death is perhaps more politicized as it ever was before. Wars, environmental crises, global migration patterns, and failing states bring death close to our homes. At the same time, technological, digital, and medical advancements alter our approaches to dealing with, thinking about, researching, and working with death. Such developments are equally inherently political, both in their origins and their applications.

As practitioners and scholars, how do we navigate the political dimensions of death? How does the political shape our engagement with death? And how can we reflect on and potentially change our own positions within this political landscape?