"Diasporas: Building Bridges Across Nations" May 28-30, 2026 Urbana-Champaign, Illinois

Since the 19th century, Baltic diaspora communities from around the world have played a pivotal role in sustaining and preserving their countries of origin. From the streets of Chicago to Rio Novo in Brazil, the diverse transnational networks of Baltic diasporas have withstood empires, world wars, Soviet occupation, and the Cold War to help forge new identities and memory as independent peoples and nations. Therefore, it seems appropriate to reflect on the genealogies and the social, political, and cultural contributions of Baltic diaspora communities worldwide, as well as the experiences and perspectives of diaspora groups currently residing in the Baltic region.

Gathering at the 30th biennial conference of the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies (AABS), to be held on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on May 28-30, 2026, will bring together Baltic diaspora communities and Baltic Studies scholars from around the world. The conference will feature panels from all fields of the humanities and social sciences, education, technology, transnational security, safety, and well-being.