Queer Ecology and the Supernatural A Two-day Symposium and Exhibition at Loughborough University 18th-19th September 2026 This symposium will consider the connections and intersections of queerness, feminism, identity, folklore, the supernatural, ecology, natural history and their artistic and cultural manifestations. Tracing the roots of historical politics, statecraft and resistance to societal expectations through the corporeal, spiritual and divergent communities. The symposium is a two-day event with keynote speakers Catriona Sandilands and Callum Angus, and invited artists and writers. The symposium will be accompanied by an exhibition and performances that will draw on the local significance of the Holywell spring and East Midlands folklore. We are opening the symposium to papers and artworks that relate any of the below themes and areas and are specifically interested in artists and writers that work in local and vernacular queer ecologies that are located on the fringes of the United Kingdom. Areas of interest but not limited to: Queer Ecology Weird Ecology Feminist Ecology Queer Supernatural Queer Folklore Queer and Feminist Connections to Witchcraft and Paganism Art and Extraction Land, Enclosures and Histories Ecofeminism Queer Readings of Natural History Art Practice and Connections to Covens and Rituals Art Practice and the Supernatural Art Practice and Weird Ecologies For papers, please email a 300-word abstract and 100 word bio. For artwork's, please email up to 3 images or links for video or performance and a 100-word bio. Please note that we cannot pay for the transportation of artworks, however we can support with some printing and AV to display video, those with substantial physical works will be required to deliver them in person to Loughborough University. Please send proposals to [email protected] and [email protected], by the 3/08/2026. The event is free and there are no registration costs.