Aloha! Our theme of Pac Rim 2021 is INNOVATE with nine topics. Given Pac Rim’s interdisciplinary nature, we also welcome proposals that span one or more topic areas. The unique timing and context of our conference creates both a need and an opportunity to highlight the following topics: inclusion, equity, and social justice, as well as COVID-19. We encourage submissions that include a discussion of the contextual interaction of these topics within the conference’s eight proposal areas.

By necessity, Pac Rim 2021 will be a virtual conference. However, we hope this format will also lower barriers to participation and facilitate inclusion of a wider array of viewpoints and voices. We anticipate that inclusion will be widely demonstrated in this year’s conference presentations. Our hope is that this will energize attendees to return to their communities to innovate, implement, and institutionalize inclusive practices worldwide.

COVID-19 has changed so many dimensions of our daily lives. Recent socio-political events have crystallized equity and social justice as among the most salient topics of these challenging times. Though often excluded, people with disabilities and their allies continue to strive to participate in and influence conversations around the global pandemic and social justice. We further encourage presentations designed to spark constructive solution-oriented conversations for innovation that advocate for equitable, just, and actionable structural change.

Challenging times may also offer remarkable opportunities. Work with us to create and deliver an inclusive conference that supports a collective recognition of both the fundamental challenges we face, and the unprecedented opportunities we have to build a brighter, stronger, more resilient future, one in which people with disabilities are naturally included as valued contributing partners in shared problem solving.