At DrupalCon, our speakers and participants represent the diverse and vibrant Drupal community, including end-users, translators, organizers, executives, marketers, editors, content strategists, designers, developers, and more.
Your contribution of knowledge and expertise plays a crucial role in driving Drupal's ongoing growth and success. Speaking at DrupalCon provides a unique opportunity to enhance your visibility and establish yourself as a thought leader.
Before you submit your session, please review the following information. Additionally, add speaking@association.drupal.org to your contact list to stay informed about important updates regarding your session.
The Drupal Association reserves the right to add sessions and/or speakers that are topical and part of the organization's strategic direction.
- 4 August 2026 - Call for Speakers submissions open
- 20 October 2026 - Call for Speakers submissions close
- 10 December 2026 - Accepted Speakers and Facilitators notified
- 15 December 2026 - Accepted Speakers and Facilitators confirmation
The Drupal Association is dedicated to creating an event that is welcoming and inclusive to everyone, regardless of age, body size, caste, disability, ethnicity, gender, language, nationality, physical appearance, race, religion, sexuality, or socioeconomic status.
We strongly encourage submissions from speakers and facilitators who have been marginalized due to racism, misogyny, transphobia, ableism, and other forms of globalized oppression.
- Sessions should share knowledge and enrich the community — not promote products or services
- Priority given to unique content not readily available online
- Experienced speakers are encouraged to collaborate with other community members, including cross-organization partnerships (e.g., service providers + clients) for panels and co-presentations
- Panels must include representation from underrepresented communities
- Speaker/facilitator count per session is limited — see Session Types
- Maximum 2 session proposals per speaker; maximum 2 sessions per speaker/facilitator, only 1 of which may be solo
- Rooms include LCD projector/screen, laptop dongle/adaptor kit, and podium mic
- All speakers and facilitators must read and follow the DrupalCon Code of Conduct
- Registration is complimentary for accepted main stage speakers/facilitators — max 2 comp tickets per session, non-transferable
- Submissions can be edited until the submission deadline
First-Time Speaker Restriction
First-time speakers, those without prior DrupalCon, DrupalCamp, or other Drupal event speaking experience, may only submit to the Poster Session & Lightning Stage pathway. Main program tracks require confirmed prior Drupal event speaking experience.
50-minute sessions:
- Workshop: Workshops provide active and in-depth learning through hands-on activities. Participants should leave with a tangible skill or product. (1-2 Facilitators and speakers)
- Fireside chat: Fireside chats are casual conversations between a facilitator, an interviewee, and the audience, without the aid of slides. (1 facilitator and 1 interviewee)
- Lecture presentation: Your typical conference presentation. Q&A is highly encouraged. (1-2 speakers)
- Panel: Panels bring together diverse perspectives for spirited debate and discussion between panelists and participants without the aid of slides. Panels are not a series of short presentations. (1 facilitator and up to 3 panelists)
NOTE: Your submission may be considered for use in an Industry Summit or Industry Training.
Poster Session & Lightning Stage:
- A visual format for first-time DrupalCon speakers who have no previous experience speaking at a DrupalCamp or other Drupal events.
- If accepted, the Drupal Association will provide a design template, print your poster (36"×24" on poster), and display it during the Monday evening welcome reception.
- Accepted Poster Talks will be given a 10-minute time slot on the Lightning Stage during DrupalCon with your poster used as slides — just you and your ideas in a conversational setting. (1 speaker)
NOTE: Poster Session & Lightning Stage do not qualify for a complimentary speaker ticket. Selected Poster Authors will receive a 25% discount on Early Bird tickets.
Community Health: This track focuses on promoting the happiness and health of open-source community members at work. Sessions may include ideas about increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion, fostering productive teamwork, lessons from other communities and providing insights into improving mental and physical well-being.
Content and Marketing: We’re looking for sessions about content strategy best practices, digital marketing techniques, and creative examples of achieving digital campaign goals. We’re open to sessions about working with third-party marketing tools, multichannel publishing, measuring content success, open-source technologies, as well as Drupal-specific solutions.
Development and Coding: Content for front-end and back-end developers alike, including how to turn requirements into solutions, including key topics like security, migration, decoupling, and more. We’d love to hear about Drupal and adjacent technologies and how your team is innovating.
DevOps: For the behind-the-scenes experts who focus on deploying high-quality code continuously. Topics include infrastructure, quality assurance, and testing, performance, and scaling.
Leadership, Management, and Business: For agency leaders, executives, and people and project managers. Share your business strategy and development ideas, human resources, staff management, and project management best practices.
Next-Gen Drupal and the Open Web: The launching pad for the future of the platform and its place in the modern digital ecosystem. Tailored for active and prospective Core, CMS, and Strategic Initiative contributors, this is where we map out big ideas, technical roadmaps, and the practical steps to achieve them. If your session focuses on pushing the boundaries of Drupal Core, shaping the new Drupal CMS, or driving groundbreaking strategic initiatives—such as Drupal AI, Drupal Canvas, or ECA—this is your track. Join us to debate where the open web is heading and engineer how Drupal will lead the way.
Site Building: For those who build and manage websites. We welcome submissions on best practices and techniques for site builders, everything from how to select and configure Drupal modules, low code/no code solutions, and adjacent technologies that can empower site builders.
Success Stories and Innovation: Inspire your peers and shine a spotlight on your recent work! We’re seeking case studies that delve into project intricacies, team involvement, processes and methodologies, and challenges or opportunities addressed. We’d love to hear what role Drupal played or what the Drupal community can learn from your project. Please note that this track is about showcasing, not selling.
User Experience, Accessibility, and Design: Let's make digital experiences more user-friendly and accessible. We are looking for talks about building better design processes, techniques to improve usability and accessibility, and creating design systems that work across digital channels and technologies.
|
Content Focus |
Beginner |
Intermediate |
Advanced |
Anyone |
|
Community Health |
I am new to the Drupal community, and looking for ways to plug in |
I am an experienced community member who is actively contributing |
I am a community leader/subject matter expert |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
Content and Marketing |
I am new to content strategy & marketing but want to learn more |
I am familiar with content strategy & marketing but want to improve my knowledge |
I am an experienced content strategist and Drupal CMS user |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
Next-Gen Drupal and the Open Web |
I am new to Drupal and looking to learn more about Core, CMS, and/or a specific Strategic Initiative. |
I am familiar with Drupal and looking to more deeply engage with Core, CMS, and/or Strategic Initiative work. |
I am an experienced contributor who is actively looking to engage with Drupal Core, CMS, and/or a Strategic Initiative. |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
Development and Coding |
I am a junior developer or student looking to become a developer |
I am a developer with experience in Drupal and associated technologies |
I am an experienced developer with expertise in Drupal and associated technologies |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
DevOps |
I am a junior developer or student looking to become a developer |
I am a developer with experience in Drupal and associated technologies |
I am an experienced developer with expertise in Drupal and associated technologies |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
Leadership, Management, and Business |
I work in an agency team or business that uses or is looking to use Drupal |
I am a senior team member in an agency or business that uses or is looking to use Drupal |
I am an agency owner or leader of teams that use or are looking to use Drupal |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
Success Stories |
I work in an agency team or business that uses or is looking to use Drupal |
I am a senior team member in an agency or business that uses or is looking to use Drupal |
I am a business leader or lead teams that use or are looking to use Drupal |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
User Experience, Accessibility, and Design |
I am a junior designer or I work with designers and interested to know more |
I am a designer or UX professional or work with design team to implement their designs |
I am an experienced designer or UX professional or work with design teams to implement their designs |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
|
Site Building |
I am new to building websites on Drupal but want to learn more |
I am familiar with Drupal as a CMS but want to improve my knowledge |
I am an experienced Drupal CMS user |
This session is appropriate for audiences of all levels |
A First Choice Submission |
A Second Choice Submission |
A Third Choice Submission |
| * The session has been cultivated to ensure it is accessible and inclusive of anyone who may be in the target audience. | The session is either accessible or inclusive, but not both. | The session is not accessible or inclusive. |
| Content of the session is very well-suited to the content area. | Content of the session is fairly well-suited to the content area. | Content of the session is hardly well-suited to the content area or not at all. |
| The session is highly engaging and interesting for an in-person audience. | The session is fairly engaging and interesting for an in-person audience | The session is hardly engaging for an in-person audience or not at all. |
| The session description contains a high level of detail that demonstrates knowledge of the content area, as well as facilitation style. | The session description contains some detail that demonstrates knowledge of the content area and/or facilitation style. | The session description is not very detailed, and/or content and facilitation style is unclear. |
| The speaker has self-identified as a member of a historically marginalized group and is highly qualified. | The speaker has self-identified as a member of a historically marginalized group. | The speaker has not self-identified as a member of a historically marginalized group and/or is not qualified. |
| The speaker has a strong connection to the content with which they are presenting and is identified as a content expert. | The speaker is connected to the content with which they are presenting, but may not necessarily be a content expert. | The speaker does not have a strong connection to the topic with which they are presenting. |
| * The session is novel: either is unduplicated or is the very best representation of a session topic. | The session is unduplicated. | Either the session is unduplicated, but not contemporary or it is duplicated and is NOT the best representation of the session topic. |
* This criterion is required for all first choice sessions