Call for Papers 2027

Studies in Oral History, Issue No. 49

Editors: Mia Martin Hobbs and Geraldine Fela

Human Voices in a Changing World

Peer-reviewed articles

Contributors are invited to submit articles for peer review for the 2027 issue of Studies in Oral History, the journal of Oral History Australia (OHA).

Humankind are facing uncertainty across almost every landscape of life, with political, social, cultural, ecological, and technological upheavals. In times of intense change, how do we approach the practice of oral history, itself the study of change over time through human voices?

We invite papers that interrogate how changing environments shapes the practice and ethics of oral history, or which address broader issues that are evoked by the idea of human voices in a changing world. Contributions are invited across the following themes (but are not limited to these):

• Experiences of social, cultural, political, economic, climate and technological change
• Methods and ethics of integrating new technologies (e.g. Artificial Intelligence) into oral history practice
• Authenticity and artifice in the oral history interview
• How our current changing world changes how we think about the past

As all articles are subject to anonymous peer review, please ensure your submission contains no identifying material. Articles submitted to the OHA Editorial Board for peer review will first be assessed for suitability by the Editorial Board.

Please consult the Guidelines for Contributors, the Peer review FAQ and Journal Style Guide for further information.

Word limits and deadlines

To be considered for peer review, articles should be no more than 8,000 words, including references. Publication of the issue is anticipated in late 2027.

All articles must provide a statement in the first footnote outlining if and how they made use of artificial intelligence or any other research support, e.g. transcription (provide software), language translation, hired research assistance etc.

The submission deadline for articles for peer review is 3 December 2026.

Submission

Send submissions to: OHA Editorial Board, email: editorialboard.journal@oralhistoryaustralia.org.au.

Reports

Submissions are also invited for the reports section of the 2027 issue of Studies in Oral History. Reports may describe oral history projects conducted by museum curators, heritage professionals, consulting historians, community historians, academic historians and more. Projects may have resulted in public outcomes such as websites, exhibitions, podcasts, theses, articles or books. Please note the reports section is not peer-reviewed; notes from the field, updates on exciting new work, or reflections on the process and/or outcomes of oral history projects are encouraged. Reports which relate to the issue theme are welcome but not mandatory.

Word limit: 1,500 words.

Deadline for report submissions: 30 January 2027.

Please send reports to: reports.journal@oralhistoryaustralia.org.au

Please note that while the reports are not peer-reviewed, we cannot accept all reports for publication and accepted reports will need to be edited for length, clarity and adherence to the Style Guide. Reports will be selected on the basis of quality of writing, the diversity of oral history perspectives showcased across the reports section and relevance to the special issue theme. Please consult the Guidelines for Contributors and Style Guide for further information.

Issued 24 July 2026