Explore Summit 2026
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October 29–November 1, 2026 |
Summit 2026: Building Our Futures
As queer, trans and Two-Spirit people, we’ve never had the privilege of complacency. When our health, personhood and relationships are threatened, we’ve always done what we must – rally around each other to create better futures for ourselves.
How do we do that? We build.
We build bonds, based on love and shared histories. We build support networks, founding groups, like CBRC, that now have decades long histories of action. We build solutions – conducting research and developing tools that help us lead happier and healthier lives.
We’ve done this time and time again. In the 1960s, we formed support and advocacy groups to build solidarity and resist discrimination. In the midst of inaction around HIV, we conducted our own research and stitched together our own systems of care. We developed and promoted sexual health interventions like PrEP, PEP and doxy-PEP alongside effective and long-acting HIV treatments. Today, our communities continue to advocate for better access to care and treatment on a variety of health issues impacting 2S/LGBTQIA+ people, including sexual, reproductive, and gender-affirming care, as well as mental health and substance use services and supports. Some organizations are developing improved health information systems, while others are building networks of care and community outside of urban centres – creating bridges between people in rural and remote areas. Two-Spirit leaders are recentering Indigenous ways of knowing, restoring and elevating traditions of healing and community with generations of impact.
Building can also mean re-building. The dismantling of outdated or oppressive systems to reshape them to work for us. Many of our organizations have had to reevaluate their role and mandate within broader 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities to respond to the needs of people beyond cis gay men. At the same time, decreased funding and increasing political uncertainty challenge the sustainability of this work. In this context, we are tasked with questioning long-held assumptions, rethinking our approaches, and adapting to the realities and pressures of the present.
Doing this work has come with much pain and loss, but it also means that we’re incredibly adept at finding creative ways to show up for our community’s needs – even when the resources available become more limited or precarious – and defining our own measures of success and even happiness outside the confines of mainstream society.
But just as something is built, it can be undone. In recent years there have been concerted efforts to defund research and organizations involved with queer, trans and Two-Spirit people, as well as introduce discriminatory policies that sow hate and division against the trans members of our community. Just as we develop new innovations, we must stay vigilant and find ways to protect the laws, programs, research and service work we’ve already put in place. This is especially true for the researchers, practitioners and community workers who gather at Summit annually.
By participating in Summit 2026, you are an essential part of those efforts. The projects and insights discussed at Summit are the latest in ways to help 2S/LGBTQIA+ people live happier, healthier and longer lives despite reactionary interests pushing back against equity, inclusion and our own liberation. Whether you are working from within systems to generate change or serving people at the margins of the mainstream, you are a necessary piece of that puzzle.
This is especially relevant in Summit 2026’s host city of Toronto. As Canada’s largest city and a major urban center, Toronto has been at the forefront of rallying for positive change for years. From decades-old protests of the bath house raids and low HIV/AIDS investment to today’s movements around harm reduction and culturally-competent care, Toronto is a crucial gathering point and now – for the first time in the event’s 20-plus year history – host of Summit.
Today, people are feeling the pressure. They are worried that we can’t build better ways forward in the same ways we once could. While it is true there are difficult challenges ahead, we still have the most essential ingredient: each other. Summit 2026 is our chance to remind ourselves that better is possible – that we go further together, and that together, we will build our futures.
Summit 2026: When and Where
When: October 29 - November 1, 2026
Where: The Westin Harbour Castle (Toronto, ON)
This year’s conference will take place in Toronto, also known as Tkaronto, on Treaty 13 territory, the traditional home of many nations, including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat peoples. This territory is cared for under 'the Dish with One Spoon' Wampum, an agreement between the Mississaugas, the Anishnabeg, and the Haudenosaunee to protect the land and share its resources responsibly.
We’re thrilled to host Summit at a new venue (The Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto) from October 29 to November 1, beginning with an opening plenary and reception on October 29 followed by three days of programming. This additional capacity means new conference programming, including space for ancillary events and exhibition tables and booths for community organizations and sponsors.
Harm reduction in Toronto
As some of our conference programming this year reflects, harm reduction is an essential part of queer life. We keep each other safe. Below is information you can use to orient yourself in Toronto in relation to safer drug use and overdose response. And if you choose to use while you're in Toronto, we want you to be able to do so safely:
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Where to get harm reduction supplies: There are a number of agencies in Toronto that offer harm reduction supplies, such as safer injection and safer inhalation supplies, as well as sharps disposal and naloxone. You can check out the Ontario Harm Reduction Distribution Program's map to find supplies — just put in an address and the map will show you the closest places to get supplies.
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Where to get free naloxone kits: Many pharmacies carry free naloxone kits. Use this map to find the closest pharmacy to you. You can also call ahead to check if the pharmacy has naloxone kits in stock.
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Drug testing: Curious about Toronto's drug supply? Toronto's Drug Checking Service offers people who use drugs timely and detailed information on the contents of their drugs, helping them to make more informed decisions. There are eight locations across the city (the closest one to the Summit venue is Fred Victor at 145 Queen Street East).
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Supervised consumption sites: The government of Ontario has pulled funding from many supervised consumption sites in Toronto. This means that only three sites remain open in Toronto — Street Health, Casey House, and Kensington Market Overdose Prevention Site. More information on available supervised consumption sites can be found here.
Register for Summit 2026
Registration to attend Summit 2026 is required. For more information and to register, click here.
Conference fees
- 4-Day Regular rate, $825 (e.g. healthcare providers, academic researchers, government officials)
- 4-Day Community and Non-profit rate, $475 (e.g. community-based organization staff, grassroots community organizers, students)
Travel and accommodation
Hotel
Summit 2026 takes place at the Westin Harbour Castle, in downtown Toronto.
- Primary hotel address: 1 Harbour Square
- Conference centre address: 11 Bay Street
NOTE: A limited number of discounted rooms are still available at our host hotel, the Westin Harbour Castle, but they’re going fast! Email us at [email protected] before October 23 to check availability.
Flights
To book a discounted flight (5-10%) with Air Canada, please access aircanada.com and enter the following promotion code in the Promotion Code box: KVWKJTX1
To book a discounted flight (10-15%) with Porter Airlines, please access https://www.flyporter.com/en-ca/?promocode=CBRC26 and enter the following promotion code in the Promotion Code box: CBRC26
Train
Receive 10% off the best available fare in Via Rail’s Economy, Economy Plus, Business, Business Plus, or Sleeper class when booking your travel (discount does not apply in any Escape fares and Prestige Class). Discount is valid from all stations throughout the VIA system to Toronto and back from October 24 - November 5, 2026 (maximum of two passengers per booking). To book, in the ‘Add a discount code’ field, select ‘Conference Fares’ and enter the discount code (16147).
Transfer & refund policy
We understand that life can get in the way of your original plans, and we want to provide some options and flexibility for those who need to make adjustments to their attendance for Summit 2026.
Ticket transfer policy:
Attendees can transfer their tickets to another person until October 4, 2026 at 11:59 PM PST. After this date, ticket transfers will no longer be possible.
To transfer your ticket, please contact [email protected] with both the name and email address of the original registrant and the person who will be attending in your place. A member of the Summit team will reach out to that individual to arrange their registration and confirm the transfer.
Refund policy:
If you are no longer able to attend Summit, you may cancel your registration and request a 50% refund to [email protected] by October 4, 2026 at 11:59 PM PST. After October 4, we will no longer be able to offer any refunds.
Accessibility statement
CBRC is committed to providing an inclusive and accessible Summit in order to support participation for everyone. This commitment includes:
- Offering support to people looking to submit presentation proposals for Summit 2026
- Offering a limited number of full and partial scholarships for confirmed Summit presenters
- Ensuring that conference proceedings and ancillary/social events are accessible for people with physical disabilities (e.g. wheelchair access, reserved front row seating)
- Enabling English to French and French to English simultaneous interpretation of select sessions, and
- Translation of presentation slides between English and French
Though we are doing our best to enable everyone’s participation during Summit, we recognize that some needs may not be met through these measures. If you have other accessibility needs which have not been addressed through this statement, please let us know when completing your registration.
If you have questions or suggestions regarding accessibility for Summit 2026, please contact [email protected].
About Summit
Summit is CBRC’s annual knowledge exchange and capacity building conference on the health of Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, questioning, intersex, and other sexual and gender diverse people (2S/LGBTQIA+) in Canada. Every year, Summit brings together researchers, service providers, and community-based organizations from across Canada to exchange ideas and lead the conversation on 2S/LGBTQIA+ health research, programming, services, and advocacy.
While Summit, which began in 2005, has historically focused on addressing the impacts of HIV and sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI) on gay, bisexual, trans, Two-Spirit, and queer (2S/GBTQ) communities, in recent years the conference has made intentional shifts to become a more inclusive space to present and engage with community-based research, health promotion, and advocacy that benefits Two-Spirit, trans, and queer people more broadly.
Each Summit includes several days of interdisciplinary and community-centered content, including workshops, panel presentations, workshops, readings, and roundtable discussions from a diverse range of community, academic, clinical, public health, and policy stakeholders on 2S/LGBTQIA+ health. Every Summit also features exciting keynote speakers including researchers and advocates from across Canada and around the world whose work is having a significant impact on queer, trans, and Two-Spirit communities.
We invite you to explore our previous Summit programs and check out the subjects we’ve covered in the past.