ALN Conference 2026

Reimagining Openness in Academic Libraries

Sponsored by Online on 24th June 2026 and in person on 6th July 2026 at the Dalton Building, Manchester Metropolitan University.

Call for Papers

We invite you to submit a proposal for the 2026 ALN Conference

What does “open” really mean in academic libraries today? Is it a philosophy, a policy, a practice – or a provocation? In a landscape shaped by open access mandates, open research infrastructures, open educational resources, and open data, academic libraries are often positioned as champions of openness. But are we truly opening up, or simply reshaping the boundaries of control?

We invite submissions exploring any aspect of the topic and in the following formats: Workshops (in person day only), Short papers, Lightning Talks, Panel Discussion, or even a Wild Card format! We welcome submissions from all colleagues working within any institution, whether they are ALN member institutions or not. We encourage submissions from those who are looking to present for the first time and we particularly welcome submissions from people belonging to under-represented and marginalised communities and sectors, including but not limited to global majority and UK ethnic minorities, LGBTQIA+, those with disabilities and those who are neurodivergent.

Further details of the conference theme and sub-themes can be found here. We’ve also created this resource to support you when developing your proposal. This is aimed in particular at first-time presenters, but everyone is welcome to view it.

Proposals should be submitted via this form by 13th March 2026. You will be asked to answer a short set of questions, which will be combined to form an abstract.

If you have any questions about submitting a proposal, please contact us at alnconferenceteam@gmail.com.

Ticket Prices

Our Early Bird ticket prices are as follows:

ALN Members

Early Bird ALN member online day: £30
Early Bird ALN member in person day: £75
Early Bird ALN member both days: £85

Non-ALN Members

Early Bird Non-ALN member online day: £40
Early Bird Non-ALN member in person day: £110
Early Bird Non-ALN members both days: £125

Speakers are charged the Early Bird rate for whichever day they are presenting on.

From 18th May, the Early Bird ends and the prices change to:

ALN Members

ALN member online day: £40
ALN member in person day: £98
ALN member both days: £105

Non-ALN Members

Non-ALN member online day: £60
Non-ALN member in person day: £150
Non-ALN members both days: £165

Keynotes

Professor Stephen Pinfield, School of Information, Journalism and Communication at the University of Sheffield will be providing our keynote for the online day on 24 June 2026.