The Information Architecture Conference welcomes contributions for the 2021 conference
Now is the time to (re)emerge.
We have a unique opportunity to ascend from the destruction, fear, and uncertainty of 2020 and forge a new vision for our community. Working together, we can emerge stronger, better, and more open-minded—but the prospect is risky. And success is not guaranteed.
The Information Architecture Conference is seeking speakers that will:
- Expand our perspectives on information architecture. Best practices can quickly become outdated practices. We need disruptors, experimenters, and visionaries that will help the community update our collective mental models around theory, practice, and research.
- Guide us toward a more inclusive community and an industry rid of -isms (racism, sexism, ageism, etc.). Amidst the turmoil, progress is being made. We need storytellers, bridge builders, and healers that will help us broaden the circle and shepherd us into a more reflective understanding of equity.
- Show us the future(s) of IA and expand its potential and its potency. While the past exists only in our memory, the future exists in our imagination. In the present, we need explorers, guides and weavers to bravely help us navigate the uncharted territories in IA.
This is a daunting challenge.
We are more likely to succeed together. Join us at the 2021 Information Architecture Conference.
Let’s emerge with a better version of ourselves. And our world.
— Conference co-chairs
Roles of Emergence
To arrive at someplace new, the roads we travel will bend, curve, and even intersect with other roads. This year, rather than conference tracks (which are usually parallel roads), we invite contributors to self-select into any of these roles below, or create your own. These roles criss-cross the three components of this year’s conference (expand perspectives, guide toward inclusive community, and show the futures of IA). Roles have been adapted from Deepa Iyer, SolidarityIs and Building Movement Project.
These roles are someone’s personal statement. They transcend the content.
Parse submissions by role to see what patterns emerge.
- Disruptor —My contribution seeks to shake up the status quo, raise awareness, and provoke discussion.
- Experimenter — My contribution seeks to innovate, pioneer, and invent. The journey is inherently risky and participants will be expected to help course-correct.
- Visionary —My contribution seeks to imagine bold possibilities, hopes and dreams, and remind us of our purpose.
- Bridge Builder —My contribution seeks to develop and implement ideas, practices, people, or resources in service of a collective vision.
- Storyteller —My contribution seeks to share stories, experiences, histories, and possible futures.
- Healer — My contribution seeks to nurture and nourish the community through joy, care, and connection.
- Explorer — My contribution seeks to find new territory, further explore or provide more details on old ones.
- Guide — My contribution seeks to teach, counsel, and advise, using my gift of well-earned discernment and wisdom.
- Weaver — My contribution seeks to connect people, places, organizations, ideas, and/or movements.
