by Meetkumar Patel

In September 2025, the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change hosted a conference on The Power of Marxist Thought.  The event was organized under the auspices of the Marx Centre at York, formally known as Marxist Studies in Global and Asian Perspectives. The two-day conference from September 26-27 brought together faculty, graduate students, and international scholars to explore how Marxist approaches can be used to understand and examine political, social, economic and ecological issues.

EUC’s Dean Alice Hovorka, Associate Dean Research, Carlota McAllister, and Professor Dennis Pilon began the event with a warm welcome, setting a collegial tone for the day. The opening session “Thinking the Power of Marxist Thought” brought together colleagues, Professors Raju Das, Robert Latham, and David Fasenfest, volume editors of the book, in an engaging start.

Prof. Das addresses in his keynote the Marxist theory’s continued relevance stating, “Marxism is powerful because it is scientific, comprehensive, critical, radical, and a tool for systemic change.” His remarks helped anchor the conference’s purpose which was to explore the Marxist thought not merely in theory, but in practice in today’s pressing issues. The conference facilitated lively, interdisciplinary discussion, unifying intellectual rigor and real-world urgency. An expanded version of Prof. Das’ talk titled Ignore Marxism if you prefer barbarism has also been published.

Sessions throughout Day 1 revisited the Marxist foundation and how they are connected to current problems. Panels discussed Marxist philosophy and methodology, labour and exploitation, imperialism and global economic structures, and the analysis of fascism and authoritarianism. Later sessions engaged with technology and digital capitalism , urban housing, migration, intersectionality and ecology. The panels made cross-references between Marxist and non-Marxist thought and discussed what Marxist approach brings when examining topics including digital labour, climate catastrophe, and insecure housing. A clear strength of these sessions was the effort to connect theory with questions of ecology and social reproduction. Discussions examined how Marxist approaches explain environmental crisis as a structural outcome rather than a one off policy failure. Day 2 carried on the conversation with panels addressing value theory and the abstract domination of capital, the state and its transformations, class consciousness and subjectivity, and historical political economies in different regions. Together, these sessions invited comparison with non-Marxist approaches and examined what an explicitly Marxist emphasis adds to the analysis.

The conference was linked to a multi volume Brill project that shares the same title as conference. Volume 1 of The Power of Marxist Thought: Studies in Critical Social Sciences series is already in press and reflects the conference theme. The volume brings together contributors from across the social sciences who compare Marxist and non-Marxist approaches to shared problems and show where a Marxist lens clarifies causes and consequences. With further volumes planned, the program created a natural bridge between the ideas presented at York and forthcoming scholarly work.

Among the program’s stronger points was the spirit of collaboration that brought it to life. York’s Faculty members, graduate students, staff, volunteers worked side by side to shape every part of the program, with organizing committees playing a central role. A dynamic group made up of Greg Albo, Theryn Arnold, Raju Das, Carlo Fanelli, David Fasenfest, Robert Latham, Christopher Little, Joe Pateman, Ankit Singh, and Christopher Sorio formed the Planning Committee and played a key role in keeping things on track. While the Communication Committee, with Aishwarya Bhattacharyya, Raju Das, Jaivika Kataria, John Simoulidis, and Fatma Taran ensured the message reached far and wide. The Social Committee, with Sophia Ilyniak, Hyun Ok Park, Joe Pateman, John Simoulidis, Rajinder Singh, and Nadine Violette, helped foster the welcoming, comradely atmosphere that brought the experience to life.

The panels drew strong attendance, and conversations carried over into coffee breaks and lunch, where shared meals helped build a sense of connection. The Friday evening reception at Stong College and Saturday’s closing social event created space for informal exchange, allowing participants to unwind and engage more personally. While the conference was grounded in rigorous scholarship, many described it as equally social, a chance to meet fellow thinkers from around the world and explore ideas across borders. The international mix added depth to every discussion, broadening the lens through which participants approached each topic. Attendees remarked that the scale felt right for sustained engagement. It was large enough to bring in many perspectives and small enough to keep dialogue active.

The conference cultivated a space where ideas could stretch, where network could form, and where shared commitments found new energy. In bringing together voices from across disciplines and borders, the gathering underscored EUC’s role as a meeting ground for critical thought and global collaboration.

The event was organized by the Marxist Studies in Global and Asian Perspectives Research Group at York University and sponsored by Science & Society, Critical Sociology, Socialist Register, YorkU Global Labour Research Centre, Alternate Routes, Capital & Class, Faculty of Environment and Urban Change and the York Centre for Asian Research.

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Meetkumar Patel is pursuing a BSc Honours in Sustainable Environmental Management at the Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change at York University and currently working as a Special Projects Assistant in the Research Office.