Frequently Asked Questions

No, proposals may be submitted by anyone, not just current members of the American Anthropological Association (AAA) and/or the Society for Linguistic Anthropology (SLA). However, please note that conference registration rates are different for SLA members and non-members. We encourage participants to consider joining or renewing their SLA membership. Proposals submitted by individuals who are not members of the AAA will also require a special code in order to complete their submissions. We will provide the necessary details upon request.

Visit the Contact page for information.

No, you don’t need to be registered for the conference in order to submit a proposal. Conference registration will take place via a separate process from the CFP. Please check out the Registration page for more information about registration rates and key dates.

For those who find it useful, we have created our Panel Matchmaker Forum to support potential session organizers or panelists in connecting with interested participants beyond their current networks. Check it out here!

Members are invited to submit a wide variety of proposals that address the conference theme. A description of submission types can be found here.

Because our time and space at the 2025 SLA Conference is  limited, participants can only participate in one presenter role (paper presentation, poster presentation, or lightning talk) and one secondary role (organizer, chair, or discussant). Participants in a Methods and Pedagogy Workshop may also participate in one other session type. For descriptions of role types, please see, “What are the responsibilities of session organizers and participants?,” below. Acceptance letters will not differentiate between participant roles or session types.

• Organizer: Each session type will have an organizer. The organizer is responsible for the following:

  • Create and submit the session proposal through the submission portal.

  • Ensure all participants are aware of the time and location of the presentation.

• Discussant: All panel discussants must register for the meeting to participate and appear in the program. Discussants will provide commentary and lead discussion on papers/presentations on the panel. Allotted discussion time is 15 minutes.

  • Review all the paper abstracts within the submission before the annual meeting.

  • In collaboration with the session Organizer, set a timeline for receiving Presenters’ papers/presentation materials.

  • Highlight and integrate contributions of the various presenters’ papers/presentations.

  • Provide general commentary on individual papers within the session, how they relate to each other, and how they help to advance the topic.

  • Lead the Q&A portion of the session, if there is time, up to 15 minutes.

Please Note: Only organized panels have a designated discussant role, though other session types (e.g., Community-engaged Skills Labs, Methods and Pedagogy Workshops, and Making and Doing Sessions) might also choose to include one or more discussants

• Presenter: Each session type has a presenter role. The presenter role responsibilities for each session type are:

  • Paper Presentation (either Individual or as part of a pre-formed Panel)

    • Present research or current work through an oral and/or visual presentation.

    • Prior to the meeting, register for the meeting.

  • Poster Presentation

    • Prepare and present research or current work through a poster no larger than 94 inches wide by 46 inches high (8 feet x 3.8 feet, 238 cm x 116 cm). Presenters are welcomed (and encouraged) to include raised images, braille, captioned audio-visual material, and other options for accessible engagement beyond the visual. Posters can embed multimedia and other interactive elements using URLs and QR codes created and hosted by the submitter.

    • During the Poster Plenary, be available near your poster to answer questions and discuss your work with fellow attendees.

    • Prior to the meeting, register for the meeting.

  • Lightning Talk

    • Present current projects or concepts within 5-minute time frame

    • Be available after your presentation to engage with the audience and answer questions.

    • Prior to the meeting, register for the meeting.

  • Presenter roles for Community-engaged Skills Labs, Methods and Pedagogy Workshop, and Making and Doing Sessions will vary depending on the format proposed by organizers.

• Chair: For Lightning Talks only. Lightning Talks will be assembled into panels by the Program Committee and external reviewers. Each panel will have a chair. The chair is responsible for the following:

  • Supervise the session.

  • Introduce each participant to the audience.

  • Manage time for the session.

All submissions and proposals go through a two-step process. The five members of the Program Committee will review all proposals and ensure that they adhere to the technical requirements stated in the Call for Proposals. Proposals that pass this stage will be shared with an anonymous panel of external reviewers. External reviewers will recommend the sessions to be accepted for the upcoming meeting to the Program Committee. Once all individual and group submissions have been reviewed, a sub-committee comprising members of the Program Committee, the Conference Steering Committee, and external reviewers will construct clusters out of individual Work-In-Progress Lightning Talk submissions and assemble selected Individual Papers into panels.

We will do our best to assemble a conference program that balances quality and thematic fit with an eye toward equity. We strongly encourage potential participants to strive to ensure a close fit between their submissions and the conference theme. The committee will also attempt to include sessions on a wide variety of scholarly, pedagogical, and professional subjects and approaches; consciously support the inclusion of panels focused on topics of concern to members of intersectionally marginalized groups and groups historically excluded from the status of legitimate knowers, thinkers, and doers; strive to balance its selections between topics of continuing interest and new topics to which little or no attention has been paid; and look for sessions in which scholars in different fields engage one another on a common topic. We will also strive to feature participants at a range of career stages and institutions (or without formal institutional affiliation).

Submitters will be notified by the end of February 2025 whether their proposals have been accepted.

Yes! Registration at the SLA meeting is open to the public, and the presence of engaged, enthusiastic audience members is an indispensable part of a successful conference. You can also get involved as a volunteer by contacting Summerson Carr (esc@uchicago.edu).

Remember, due to SLA’s new initiatives, the biennial conference is only one way to connect to and share work with the broader SLA community. In addition to the SLA Blog and social media platforms, our 2025 SLA Virtual Programming Coordinators, Andy Graan and Fadi Hakim, are working to develop a robust suite of digital-first and digital-only programs that will take place throughout the year. Beyond their existing plans to advance professionalization and mentoring workshops; workshops on methodology; and public discussions of social justice issues and contemporary political problems, Andy and Fadi are open to collaboration! You can reach them by email at andrew.graan@helsinki.fi and hakimf@uchicago.edu.

Yes, while we will be sad to see you go, we understand that it is not always possible or desirable to attend a conference without presenting or participating in an organized session. To request that your registration be withdrawn for a refund, contact Dominika Baran (dominika.baran@duke.edu). Refund requests must be received by April 30, 2025.

Check out our Contact page for details.