Call for Proposals – 2026 Atlantic Canada Studies Conference

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Call for Proposals – 2026 Atlantic Canada Studies Conference

 Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island from June 3rd-5th

Proposal Deadline: December 19, 2025

Acadiensis looks forward to receiving submissions resulting from the 2026 Atlantic Canada Studies Conference that will be held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island from June 3rd-5th. This conference is being held in conjunction with meetings of the Canadian Historical Association (June 1st-3rd) and the Canadian Catholic Historical Association (June 3rd-4th).

From Harbour to Horizon: Recharting Atlantic Canada Studies, Call for Proposals

From Harbour to Horizon: Recharting Atlantic Canada Studies

The Faculty of Arts at the University of Prince Edward Island is pleased to host the 2026 Atlantic Canada Studies Conference in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, from 3-5 June, 2026. The meeting will overlap with the final day of the Canadian Historical Association (CHA) which meets from 1-3 June. Although there may be extra historians in town, we welcome papers and other sessions from all scholars and practitioners whose work concerns the Atlantic region. For over fifty years, the Atlantic Canada Studies (ACS) Conference has provided a space for both celebrating and challenging what defines the region and its cultures. Such a forum is especially necessary as new forms of economic and population growth, increases in climate change and extreme weather events, and a wide range of other factors, impact the Atlantic region. As in previous ACS conferences, proposals that deal with any topic or theme and from any discipline focused on the study of the Atlantic region will be considered.

The time is right for recharting. As the CHA acknowledged in its call for papers, 2026 will mark 150 years of the Indian Act. This policy oppressed and continues to have profound impacts on the Indigenous people of Atlantic Canada. We especially welcome contributions that explore these impacts and that reflect on efforts to decolonize and to meaningfully advance Indigenous ways of knowing in our academic and public humanities institutions.

Next year will also be the anniversary of other external events that were designed to shape the Atlantic region. For mainland Maritimers, July 1876 marked the opening of the Intercolonial Railway and the concerted efforts to realign the region’s economy with Canada’s. Moving into twentieth century anniversaries, Newfoundland was made a more independent Dominion by the Balfour declaration of 1926, only to find itself soon back into Britain’s orbit. In that same year New Brunswick and Nova Scotia’s federal election results marked a high point in the Maritime Rights movement.

In the century that followed, scholars in the humanities and social sciences have wrestled with ideas of regionalism, governance, and Atlantic Canada’s relationship with Canada and the world. They have also reflected on the work of Atlantic Canadian writers, artists, and other creators. Along with colleagues in public humanities, they have explored Indigenous and local ecological knowledge and asked what makes a good life in Atlantic Canada. We also point to the work of many scholarly presses and regional journals that emerged between the late 1960s and early 1980s, such as ISER Books, Acadiensis and the Journal of Newfoundland and Labrador Studies, and we will be pleased to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Island Magazine in 2026. Part of recharting Atlantic Canada Studies includes reflecting on similar contributions and asking what the region’s humanities and social sciences publishing should look like for the next half century. The uncertainty facing tenure in the academy and the precarious employment of those looking to begin careers as humanities scholars in our region adds to the importance of having these conversations in 2026.

The deadline for submission of proposals is December 19, 2025. Proposals can be in one of three modes: papers, panels, or roundtables. Individual paper proposal abstracts should be fewer than 250 words, and the author should include a one-page c.v. Panel proposals should include abstracts of fewer than 250 words and a one-page c.v. from each of the participants, plus a brief abstract capturing the panel theme. Being a less structured format, roundtable proposals (fewer than 250 words) should explain the roundtable topic as a whole, with a list of participants, and should include a one-page c.v. for each participant. Sessions for all three modes will typically be 90 minutes in length. While the selection of papers is rigorous, the ACS conference prides itself on bringing together internationally-recognized academics, junior scholars, students, and independent researchers in productive and collegial sessions.

Those submitting proposals should expect to hear back from conference organizers by the end of January 2026.

To submit proposals, please email them to: 2026atlanticcanadastudies@gmail.com

Program Committee

Joshua MacFadyen (chair), Applied Communication, Leadership, & Culture, University of Prince Edward Island

Hannah Lane, History, Mount Allison University

Simon Lloyd, Robertson Library, University of Prince Edward Island

Mark McLaughlin, History and Canadian Studies, University of Maine

Sasha Mullally, Historical Studies, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton

Fiona Polack, English, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Zachary Tingley, History and Politics, University of New Brunswick, Saint John

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Josh MacFadyen

Associate Professor at University of Prince Edward Island
I am an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair at the University of Prince Edward Island where I teach in the Applied Communication, Leadership & Culture Program in the Faculty of Arts. My research focuses on the history of biomass energy and agriculture. From 2012-2014 I was the NiCHE project coordinator, and I served on the NiCHE editorial board until 2018.

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