2026 LACUS Conference
Call for Participation
The 2026 annual conference of the
Linguistic Association of Canada and the United States
will be held
ONLINE
July 8-10, 2026,
hosted by the Department of World Languages and Cultures,
The University Toledo, Toledo, Ohio

Invited speakers: TBA


The conference theme is: Linguistics and Language Future: Generative AI, Multilingual Repertoires, and Linguistic Justice. Across linguistics, applied linguistics, language teaching, and cultural studies, the following urgent questions are converging:

  • How are generative AI systems reshaping linguistics, language use, literacy, learning, assessment, translation, and research practice?
  • How do we understand multilingualism, translanguaging, and multimodality as everyday repertoires in classrooms, workplaces, communities, and digital platforms?
  • What does linguistic justice require from decolonial research ethics and epistemic justice to language policy, accessibility, and equitable technologies?
  • How can language scholarship speak to wider “future” conditions (e.g. mobility, inequality, sustainability, environmental crisis, and digital governance)?

Abstracts. While abstracts presenting empirically grounded investigations in any theoretical framework into aspects of the conference theme are especially welcome, LACUS invites abstracts representing a broad range of approaches to language, including interdisciplinary topics and innovative ideas.  The following list of topics is intended as suggestive rather than comprehensive or restrictive. Please limit abstracts to 250 words.

  • Environmental Linguistics
  • Sociolinguistics
  • Ethnolinguistics
  • Context and Meaning
  • International Communication
  • Group Interactions in Different Settings
  • Linguistic Justice
  • Online Communication
  • Political Discourse
  • Discourse and Social Distancing
  • Generative AI and Linguistics
  • Personal / Media Bias in Communication
  • Other Topics in General / Historical Linguistics

The Ruth Brend Fund provides financial support to help defray costs of attending LACUS meetings for members from countries with weak currencies. The Presidents' Prize Fund helps pay for prizes awarded to the best student and post-doctoral papers presented at each annual LACUS conference.

Important Dates
  • 1 JANUARY 2026: Abstract Submission Opens (Online)
  • 28 FEBRUARY 2026: Final Abstract Submission Deadline
  • 15 APRIL 2026: Notification of Acceptance / Rejection
  • 15 MAY 2026: Deadline for Receipt of Presenter Registration & Membership Fees
  • 1 JUNE 2026: First Release of Preliminary Program
  • 8-10 JULY 2026: LACUS Conference
  • 8 JULY 2026: LACUS Board Meeting

Presenters are required to be members of LACUS and to be registered for the conference. The online platform that will be used and links will be shared with the presenters in due time.

Contacts

Questions about Proposal Submission / Schedule / Program:


Questions about Registration / Membership: