North South University (NSU) has organised its two-day international conference on “Encountering the Human(ities): Anxiety, Storytelling, Futurity,” organised by the Department of English and Modern Languages (DEML) on 30–31 October 2026. Bringing together scholars, researchers and students from 29 countries, the conference explored contemporary questions surrounding human existence, technological transformation, cultural identity, and the future of the humanities. a press release said.
The second day’s program featured a keynote address by internationally renowned scholar Professor N. Katherine Hayles, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor Emerita of Literature at Duke University and Distinguished Research Professor of English at the University of California, Los Angeles, focusing on the relationship between humans and their nonhuman symbionts. Dr. Nazia Manzoor, Associate Professor and Chair; Dr. AQMA Rahman Bhuiyan, Professor; and Dr. Shakila Nur, Associate Professor, all from the Department of English and Modern Languages at North South University, were also present at the program.
Delivering the keynote address online from the United States, Professor N. Katherine Hayles presented her lecture titled “Cognizing Others: Human Futures with Our Nonhuman Symbionts.” The session, held at NSU’s Syndicate Hall on 31 October, explored a subject central to contemporary discussions about human futures and the relationship between human beings and nonhuman forms of life and intelligence.
Professor Hayles’s keynote speech was the highlight of the second day, bringing a critical perspective to the conference’s broader inquiry into what it means to be human amid changing intellectual, technological and ecological realities. Her presentation also complemented the conference’s overarching focus on the interconnected questions of anxiety, storytelling and futurity.
The second day’s academic program also featured three sessions, offering opportunities for scholarly presentations and discussion. Another major highlight was a plenary presentation titled ‘New Critical Frontiers in the Humanities’, delivered by Professor Firdous Azim, Professor of English and Chair of the Department of English and Humanities at BRAC University. The day’s program further featured a round table discussion titled ‘Stories of the Entangled World: Writing across Boundaries’.
The first day, held on 30 October, began with an inaugural ceremony at the NSU Main Auditorium, attended by distinguished university leaders and guests, including Benajir Ahmed, Former Chairman & Member of the NSU Board of Trustees; Professor Abdul Hannan Chowdhury, Vice-Chancellor of NSU; and Professor Muhammad Rizwanul Islam, Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences. The opening keynote address was delivered by Professor Banu Subramaniam, Professor and Chair of Women’s and Gender Studies at Wellesley College, USA. Her presentation, titled “Migrant Ecologies: Towards an Environmental Humanities of Place,” examined migration and environmental humanities through an interdisciplinary perspective.
The first day’s program also included a discussion titled ‘Encountering Our Present: English Studies Now’, a poster presentation session showcasing academic work and research, and academic sessions at different venues across the university. Two plenary presentations were delivered during the day. Professor AMM Hamidur Rahman of Daffodil International University spoke on ‘Storytelling to Alleviate Fear of Learning.’ At the same time, Professor Bokhtiar Ahmed of Independent University, Bangladesh, presented ‘Language as the Portal: Trailing History, Culture and Society through Stories.’
Through its keynote presentations, plenary sessions, roundtable discussions, and academic exchanges, the NSU-DEML International Conference 2026 provided a platform for interdisciplinary dialogue on the evolving role of the humanities in understanding human experiences, contemporary anxieties, and future possibilities.
