The Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Wah, in collaboration with the Department of Humanities, Wah Medical College, organized an International Conference on “War, Crisis, and Human Survival: Reimagining Medical, Social, Psychological, and Strategic Responses” on 18 June 2026 in hybrid mode at University of Wah.
The multidisciplinary conference brought together international and national scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and students to critically examine the medical, social, psychological, and strategic dimensions of war and crisis. The central focus of the conference was to explore human survival, resilience, and institutional preparedness in the context of contemporary global conflicts, with an emphasis on humanitarian, psychosocial, and strategic responses.
The conference was held under the patronage of Prof. Dr. Jameel-Un Nabi, Vice Chancellor, University of Wah, as Patron-in-Chief, and Prof. Dr. Muhammad Rizwan, Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Wah, as Patron. The event was organized by Dr. Jamil Ahmed Sheikh, Chairperson, Department of Sociology, University of Wah, as Chief Organizer, and Mr. Hassan Ali, Senior Lecturer, Wah Medical College, as organizer. Major Gen. (Retd.) Abdul Khaliq Naveed HI(M), Principal, Wah Medical College, served as Sponsor, while Rear Admiral (Retd.) Syed Faisal Ali Shah HI(M) graced the occasion as the Chief Guest.
The conference was structured around three key thematic tracks: Medical Paradigms and Survival Health Risks, Broken Societies, Trauma, and Psycho-Social Resilience; and Strategic Preparedness and Military-Civilian Response. These tracks addressed critical issues such as epidemic outbreaks in conflict zones, emergency healthcare systems, trauma and PTSD, refugee crises, psychosocial first aid, civil defense mechanisms, and strategic crisis preparedness.
The conference featured a distinguished panel of international keynote speakers, including Philipp Grimberg, Olga Kutsenko, Meike Lettau, Wizra Saeed, Abigail R. Hall, Zahid Ali Khan, Ori Swed, and Cao Zhihong.
National keynote speakers included leading academics and professionals such as Ms. Musarrat Ramzan, Mr. Aftab Alam Khan, Mr. Amanat Ali, Ms. Amna Mahmood, Ms. Tamkeen Saleem, Ms. Shabana Fayyaz, Mr. Muhammad Zaman, Ms. Bushra Khan, and Mr. Atiq-ur-Rehman, among others from diverse academic and policy institutions across Pakistan.
The conference received 44 abstract submissions from various regions of Pakistan, out of which 23 research papers were accepted for presentation, and 03 were presented as posters. Around 70 research presentations were delivered in technical sessions covering diverse disciplines, including strategic studies, Psychology, Economics, International Relations, Media Studies, Islamic Studies, Medical Sciences, and Public Health. Key themes discussed included information warfare, psychological trauma, energy and economic resilience, refugee crises, combat casualty care, PTSD, psychosocial rehabilitation, and post-conflict recovery mechanisms.
