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Join an immersive summer school experience designed for early-career researchers exploring quality of life, happiness, wellbeing, and sustainability. Gain cutting-edge training, personalized mentorship, and meaningful international connections through the ISQOLS and WISER networks.
Call for Applicants
The International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS)and Wellbeing In Sustainable Economies Revised (WISER) invite applications for the First ISQOLS–WISER Summer School, to be held at the University of Siena, Italy, from Saturday 5 September to Wednesday 9 September 2026, immediately before the WISER Conference, held from 9 to 11 September 2026 in Siena.
The Summer School is designed for early-career researchers, especially PhD students, working on topics related to quality of life, subjective well-being, happiness, societal progress, sustainability, and the social foundations of human flourishing.
WISER is an EU Horizon funded project with nearly 30 partners from around the world.
Why participate?
The ISQOLS–WISER Summer School offers a unique opportunity for advanced instruction, to develop a research project in dialogue with leading scholars, and to become part of an international community working on quality of life, well-being, and sustainability.
Participants will leave Siena with new research tools, detailed feedback on their work, professional connections, and the opportunity to continue presenting and developing their research through ISQOLS and WISER events.
Themes and Lecture Topics:
The Summer School will cover key theoretical, methodological, and policy issues in quality-of-life and well-being research, focusing on the WISER project. Planned lectures include:
·When economic growth improves well-being ·Measuring societal progress ·The labor market benefits of well-being ·Micro–macro simulation fundamentals for sustainable well-being ·Defensive growth | ·The use of AI and big data in well-being science ·How to get published in the Journal of Happiness Studies ·Qualitative and place-based approaches in urban quality-of-life research & well-being - the role of green and blue spaces ·How to deal with measurement critiques of subjective well-being (e.g. Bond and Lang) |
Application Process
Applicants may apply for one of two tracks:
TRACK 1* includes:
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Who should apply?
We welcome applications from early-career researchers working in economics, sociology, psychology, political science, public policy, environmental studies, statistics, and related fields. The Summer School is for applicants whose research addresses one or more of the following themes:
·Subjective well-being, happiness, and life satisfaction; Quality of life and societal progress;
·Well-being economics and beyond-GDP measurement; Sustainable development and environmental well-being; Social capital, inequality, institutions, and well-being; Green and blue spaces, local well-being, and territorial inequalities; Innovative data and methods for well-being science; Policy applications of quality-of-life research.
*Apply to track 1 if you wish to develop a research project with feedback from lecturers and peers, present the project at the WISER Conference, and get feedback at the ISQOLS Winter Conference.
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 | The International Society for | Address: Email: |