After four years of collaboration, the TRACTS COST Action has officially come to a close. It has been an incredible journey—bringing together researchers, artists, practitioners, and activists from across Europe and beyond to explore how traces—material, social, and digital—shape our understanding of the past, present, and future.
Over this period, TRACTS has grown into a vibrant research ecology, fostering new conversations on trace within and across Social Justice (WG2), Climate Change (WG3), and Technology (WG4), and building a supportive network of over 300 members from 31 countries. We have accomplished so much: organizing more than 30 international meetings and five training schools, supporting over 55 scholars, artists, and activists through grants, co-editing four books and two toolkits, and developing the forthcoming Spectropia book series and online platform (Counter)Atlas of Trace.
I am deeply grateful to all who contributed to this network, including our Working Group Leaders (Lee Douglas, Nikita Chiu, Ivan Šulc, Sanja Horvatinčić, Karolína Pauknerová, Petr Gibas, Alberto Berzosa, David Bevan, and Bahanur Nasya), Management Committee Members, Co-Chair Karolína Pauknerová, former Action Chair Aimée Joyce, the grant coordination team (Tina Palaić, Miguel Errazu, Rui Gomes Coelho), communications officers (Eliza Proszczuk and Magdalena Zych), the University of St Andrews as Grant Holder Institution, and our grant administrator Sarah Frankowski. Your dedication, creativity, and collaborative spirit made this Action possible.
TRACTS has been more than a research network—it has become an inspiring community, connecting early-career and senior researchers, academics, artists, and activists, translating complex research into accessible, socially engaged, and experimental outputs. I am certain that TRACTS will leave a lasting impact on the emerging field of critical trace studies, and that the research partnerships and friendships formed here will inspire new ideas and projects in the years to come.
Goodbye and see you soon!
Magdalena Buchczyk
Action Chair
