Dear JALT Sponsor,
The Intercultural Communication in Language Education (ICLE) Special Interest Group of the Japan Association for Language Teaching (JALT) will be hosting its annual conference in collaboration with the Iwate-Aomori Chapter (JALT) under the name of the ICLE-TILES 2026 Conference. Our goal is to create a space where language teachers and researchers can share experiences, challenges, and practical strategies for teaching in culturally diverse educational environments.
We have invited international and domestic educators, researchers, and classroom teachers to contribute to the conference. The call for proposals opened in mid-April, 2026, and closed on 31 May with 41 abstracts, including posters and workshop proposals.
Dates: Saturday, September 26 – Sunday, September 27, 2026
Theme: The Global Classroom: Navigating East–West Perspectives in Language Education
Venue: Hirosaki Gakuin University, Aomori Prefecture
Session types: 25-minute presentations, 60-minute poster sessions, workshops, and a plenary speaker talk. The conference also includes a Saturday afternoon cultural trip around Hirosaki and a Saturday night social dinner meant for networking. The plenary session, coffee time, regular and poster sessions will take place on Sunday. We plan to wrap up between 4-4.30 PM.
Our 2025 conference was a one-day event held at Keio University’s Hiyoshi Campus. We accepted a total of 30 proposals, including poster presentations, and welcomed 55 registered participants, excluding volunteers and SIG officers.
As you may have noticed, our SIG is growing rapidly. In response to this growth, we have decided to host a two-day conference this year at a location outside the Kanto region. We expect attendance to increase further and anticipate hosting at least 65 registered participants.
On behalf of the organizing committee, I would like to invite you to join us as sponsors of the upcoming 2026 conference. The event will be an excellent opportunity to share information about your latest products and projects with an enthusiastic audience of focused language education professionals. Sponsors interested in including material in the conference bags should discuss this with our JALT Sponsor Liaison, Susan Meike. We are particularly interested in materials that will have some utility to our attendees, such as sample materials, notebooks, branded stationery, and access to online tools.
Sponsorship – ¥30,000
● Entry to the conference for one representative.
● One 25-minute unvetted presentation slot on either Saturday or Sunday.
● Sponsor logos will be displayed on the ICLE SIG website, posters, online program, in printed programs, and in the coffee area.
● A table to display your products and services.
For the 25-minute presentation slots, sponsors will be required to submit abstracts, titles, and speaker details on the conference website. The program will note that such presentations are sponsored. Once sponsorship is confirmed, our conference team will coordinate with you on how to submit the necessary information. For any specific requests beyond the options listed above, we are happy to discuss potential arrangements.
To ensure a smooth process, we aim to have all sponsors confirmed and all sponsored presentations registered by September 1, 2026. Please contact us with any questions or requests you may have.
Yours sincerely,
Prateek Sharma, President, ICLE SIG
Jim Smiley, President, Iwate-Aomori JALT
** Please refer to the attachment for venue information and other details.