Dear Members of the Work and Family Researchers Network,
Our leadership team heard from members expressing deep concern about travel to the United States. This was very troubling for our international organization, with approximately 40% of our members residing outside of the United States.
In response, we consulted a group of work-family scholars residing outside of the United States. These scholars affirmed the concerns expressed and strongly advised us to reconsider whether the 2026 conference should be held in the United States as originally planned.
The WFRN Executive Board considered our available options and determined that it is in the best interests of members and the WFRN to relocate the 2026 WFRN conference to Montréal.
We are aware that Montréal presents its own difficulties for members living in the US who do not feel safe traveling internationally and for members who require a visa to visit Canada, who are likely to face long visa processing times. I encourage members who are negatively impacted by the move of our 2026 conference to Canada to contact us at info@wfrn.org. We will do our best to address your specific needs.
Our conference will take place June 17th-20th, 2026 at Concordia University, the same venue as 2024. We realize that this conflicts with Juneteenth, which is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. Unfortunately, we had little choice in dates given our late change of venue. We were very fortunate that Executive Officer Stephen Sweet was able to secure this location, which is the best option for a vibrant, accessible, and affordable event where all members will be assured the academic freedom to freely share their work. A call for papers will be announced this July.
On behalf of the WFRN Executive Board
Jennifer Hook, WFRN President