Future conferences

2024 – Bydgoszcz, Poland

Before the disruption caused by the COVID pandemic, the World Canals Conference had already been attributed to the City of Bydgoszcz, Poland, and will now take place on June 24-26 2024. The conference theme will be Challenges between ecology and economic use – sustainable revitalisation of canals focusing on nature. Refer to the conference website for programme details, call for abstracts and sponsors/exhibitors, etc.

Water runs through the history of Bydgoszcz and has contributed to its growth over the centuries. Construction of the Bydgoszcz Canal in 1773-1774 connected the city with the West of Europe, further stimulating economic growth. Today, the Bydgoszcz Canal is Poland’s oldest canal still in operation and the city sits at a crossing of inland waterways linking the east and west of Europe, including the navigable transport route known as Waterway E40, connecting the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea, and E70, which runs from Antwerp in Belgium to Vilnius in Lithuania.

2025 – Buffalo, NY, USA

Buffalo, NY, will host the WCC in 2025, to celebrate the 200th anniversary of opening of the Erie Canal, which changed the face of the young nation.

Invitations to host the WCC from 2026 onwards are invited from interested parties.

There will be no full World Canals Conference in 2023, but possibilities are being examined for an alternative event to be held, partly streamed to be accessible to the widest audience.