Last year we gathered in Ottawa, where the maples were turning, the air was sharp, and the whole conference had a back-to-school energy. This year, we’re heading west.
WordCamp Canada 2026 is taking us to Vancouver — coast to coast, one connection at a time. On November 5 and 6, we’ll be at UBC Robson Square in the heart of downtown, with the Pacific to one side, the mountains to the other, and a whole community of WordPressers ready to share what they’ve learned.
And we want to hear from you.
The WCEH2026 Call for Speakers is open!
Whether you’ve spoken at twenty WordCamps or you’ve never stood on a stage. Whether you build for a living or contribute on weekends. Whether you write code, write copy, or write people into the community — we want your proposal.
Three pillars. One community.
WordCamp Canada 2026 is built around three values that make WordPress more than software: Connections, Community, and Contributing. Every talk, every workshop, every hallway conversation should ladder up to at least one of them. So when you’re thinking about what to submit, start there.
01. Connection
Bridging the gap between mentors and newcomers, students and seasoned developers, designers and devs. Talks under this pillar might explore:
- Pair programming, code review culture, and what makes a good technical mentor.
- AI as a connector — how AI assistants and connectors are reshaping how devs, designers, and content people collaborate on a build.
- Onboarding patterns for new contributors to a plugin, theme, or agency codebase.
- Cross-discipline collaboration: designers ↔ developers, writers ↔ devs, agencies ↔ in-house teams.
- Intentional pathways into open source — moving people from “WordPress user” to “WordPress contributor” on purpose, not by accident. What’s actually worked?
- Where’s the next generation? Look around the room at most WordCamps and the centre of gravity is 35+. Talks on generational continuity in the WordPress community: what’s drawing — or failing to draw — students, new grads, and early-career folks in.
- Hiring, mentoring, and inspiring young devs — agency apprenticeships, paid internships, school and bootcamp partnerships, junior tracks. The honest mechanics of what makes these programs stick.
02. Community
WordPress powers 43% of the web, but it’s the people behind the screen who matter. This pillar is the human and economic side of the project:
- The state of open source in an AI-saturated industry — what does “free as in freedom” mean when the toolchain includes ChatGPT, Claude, and copilots?
- Sustaining plugin and product businesses in 2026: pricing, licensing, support, and AI competition.
- Diversity, accessibility, and belonging in WordPress spaces — including how AI tooling is changing accessibility work for the better (or worse).
- Building and running a healthy meetup, agency, or contributor team.
- Open-source governance, ethics, and the awkward conversations we should be having.
03. Contribution
Every contribution counts — and a lot of them are code. Talks under this pillar could cover:
- Hands-on with the Abilities API: exposing site capabilities to AI agents, what’s possible today, what’s coming.
- Building AI connectors for WordPress — MCP servers, agent integrations, REST endpoints that AI can actually use.
- New core features in the latest releases — what shipped, what it unlocks, and how to build on it.
- Block development in 2026: dynamic blocks, the Interactivity API, block bindings, custom block patterns.
- FSE, block themes, and global styles in production — patterns that hold up on real client work.
- Headless WordPress, the REST API, and pushing the platform somewhere new.
- Non-code paths to contribution — design, content, marketing, support forums, learn.wordpress.org, photography, video, podcasting, event coverage. The project needs more of all of it, and the on-ramps are friendlier than people think.
- Showing up as contribution — organizing or volunteering at WordCamps and meetups, running a contributor day, answering questions in #core or your local Slack. Stories from the people who keep the lights on, and what it takes to start.
- Documentation, translation, accessibility testing, and the unglamorous work that keeps WordPress moving.
- How agencies and product companies sponsor contribution time — and how to make the case to your boss.
Don’t feel boxed in by these — they’re prompts, not prescriptions. The best WordCamp talks usually surprise the schedule.
Session formats
WordCamp Canada 2026 packs two full days of talks and workshops. We’re keeping things flexible this year, with one preferred default:
Talks and workshops — 45 minutes
Our recommended format. Forty-five minutes gives you room to set up a real problem, work through it properly, and leave time for questions or hands-on work — without forcing you to either rush or pad. Use it for a focused technical talk, a case study with depth, or a guided workshop where the room codes along.
Got an idea that doesn’t fit?
We’re open. Lightning talks, panels, fireside chats, demo-driven sessions, two-speaker debates — if you’ve got a format in mind that fits the content better than 45 minutes would, pitch it. Describe what you have in mind on the application form, or drop us an email, and we’ll talk.
What should I talk about?
We’re hungry for substance. Show us something we can actually use, learn from, or argue with on Monday morning.
A few directions worth pitching:
- The Abilities API — what it is, how to wire it up, what you’ve built with it, and what it means for the future of WordPress as an agent-friendly platform.
- AI connectors and MCP — exposing WordPress to AI tools, building MCP servers against the REST API, agent workflows that touch real production sites.
- What’s new in core — the recent releases have shipped a lot. Block bindings, the Interactivity API, the new Site Editor flows, performance and accessibility wins. Pick a feature, go deep.
- Block development at the next level — dynamic blocks, server-side rendering, advanced patterns, the Interactivity API in production, building blocks that don’t suck to use.
- AI-augmented dev work — how AI is actually changing how we build WordPress sites and plugins, beyond the hype. Workflows, pitfalls, prompt patterns, code review of AI output, what to never let it touch.
- Headless and decoupled WordPress — REST, GraphQL, Next.js / Astro / SvelteKit front-ends, when it pays off, when it’s a distraction.
- Performance, security, and observability — boring, important, often underrepresented on the schedule.
- Accessibility and AI — automated testing, AI-assisted remediation, where humans still have to step in.
- E-commerce and membership — WooCommerce extensions, subscription patterns, the state of payments in 2026.
- An opinionated take — a thing you think the community gets wrong, a process you think we should drop, a tool you think is overhyped. Bring receipts.
Whatever your topic, the bar is the same: tell us something specific. The most memorable talks aren’t the ones that explain what something is — they’re the ones that show you using it, breaking it, fixing it, or rethinking it.
How many proposals can I submit?
Up to two. If you’ve got two ideas, submit the form twice — once per topic. Need to withdraw or have a question? Just get in touch.
Do I need to be an experienced speaker?
Not even a little. Some of the most memorable WordCamp talks have come from first-time speakers. WordCamp Canada draws a big audience, so if you’re a seasoned speaker this is a great stage — and if you’re new to it, this is also a great stage. If you feel ready and excited, go for it.
Support for underrepresented speakers
WordCamp Canada 2026 is committed to diversity, inclusion, and creating a welcoming space for everyone. From organizers to volunteers and sponsors, we’re passionate about hearing from new voices and fresh perspectives.
If you’re part of an underrepresented group, please apply. We’ve got your back with guidance and feedback from experienced speakers and community members — from your first slide draft to your final round of applause. Your insight is too valuable to leave on the table.
What you get in return
Submitting alone earns you the thanks of the organizing team. Most of us have submitted talks ourselves, and we know it takes work and a bit of courage.
If you’re accepted, you’ll also get:
- A free conference ticket (if you already bought one, just let us know when you reply to your acceptance email)
- A secure green room to drop your bag and gather your thoughts
- A speaker support team to help you prepare and deliver the best version of your talk
Plus the lasting gratitude of a community that wouldn’t exist without people like you.
Timeline
- April 2026 — Call for Speakers opens
- June 2026 — Submissions close
- July 2026 — Speaker selection and applicant notifications
- August 2026 — Schedule released and speaker lineup announced
- October 2026 — Slide delivery deadline
- November 5–6, 2026 — WordCamp Canada, Vancouver
Ready? Set… Apply!
If you’d like to propose two topics, submit the form twice — once for each (two’s the cap).
We’re heading west, and we want to hear what you’ve got. See you in Vancouver. 🍁
