May 1 DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF ABSTRACTS FOR THE SAA RESEARCH FORUM
On behalf of the 2026 Research Forum Committee, we invite you to submit abstracts (of 300 words or fewer) for either 10-minute platform presentations or 5-minute lightning talks. Topics may address research on, or innovations in, any aspect of archives practice or records management in government, corporate, academic, scientific, or other settings.
The 2026 Research Forum will be conducted as two Zoom-based virtual sessions, each four hours long, on July 8 from 12:00 – 4:00 pm CT and July 15, 12:00 – 4:00 pm CT.
The 2026 Research Forum will be made up of 10-minute platform presentations and 5-minute lightning talks. A limited number of presentations will be accepted to allow for longer presentation times, extended Q&A periods, and opportunities for discussion between attendees. An abstract submission rubric will be used by the Committee to evaluate submissions. Before submitting, please review and adhere to the Norms and Recommendations of the American Archivist Generative AI Statement. The Research Forum webpage provides additional information about the schedule and links to past Forum proceedings.
The Research Forum Committee and CORDA encourage submissions on a range of topics, including:
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Rethinking archival training
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Demonstrating the value of archives
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Collaborating with communities
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Making archives more accessible
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Engaging with technology
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Responding to the climate crisis
These themes can be found in the SAA Research Agenda.
Abstracts will be evaluated by the 2026 Research Forum Committee convened by Emily Lapworth (University of Massachusetts Boston) and Jane Fiegel (Tulane University).
Deadline for submission of abstracts: May 1, 2026.
Proposals can be submitted online here. On the submission form, please indicate whether you intend a platform presentation or a lightning talk.
2025 Research Forum recordings, reports, and peer-reviewed research papers are now available online
We also encourage you to check out the 2025 Research Forum page for access to session recordings, slides, reports, and peer-reviewed research papers.
Best,
Emily Lapworth and Jane Fiegel
SAA Research Forum Coordinators
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Emily Lapworth
Digital Initiatives Archivist
University of Massachusetts Boston
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