ORFC 2026

The ORFC26 call for ideas and proposals deadline was Sunday, April 27th at 23:59 BST.

Recommendations for submitting an idea or proposal

What makes a good submission:

• Innovative ideas that are only starting to be explored and developed.
• Hot topics receiving attention, especially when they relate to current events.
• On-going issues that deserve further conversation and development.
• Fresh angles on old debates, particularly where there are new voices to be heard.
• New research or evidence which advances our knowledge or understanding.
• Practical, hands-on information.
• A good story of experimentation, collaboration, creativity, community, triumph, failure, survival… you get the idea…
• KEY TIP: Don’t be afraid to be specific! We love to hone in on the details. 

What to avoid: 

• Anything that promotes one specific product or brand. If a proposal looks like an advert for an individual company or product, it won’t be considered.
• Anything that is too broad.
• Anything too heavy on jargon and inaccessible language.

Sessions will not be selected if they conflict with our ORFC Guiding Principles

Guidance for a good title and blurb

Title length:

Titles need to say what the session is about.  Please be concise and informative, with no more than eight words. Think about the audience and tell them what they will get from your session. Don’t waste words with puns or meaningless phrases.  Remember the whole conference is about “agroecology” so if you’re going to use broad terms, have a good reason for doing so. 

Blurb length:

Blurbs must be no more than 100 words long. Please be as clear, simple and descriptive as possible. Don’t use jargon or words that wouldn’t be recognised by everyone, unless there’s a good reason to do so I.e. it is the name of your research project. Remember you are trying to get people to come to your session so tell them what it is about and what makes it relevant to them. 

*Please note that the ORFC programme team reserves the right to recommend suggestions to improve titles and blurbs. These will be communicated to the relevant session coordinators.

Guidance for a good panel

• We recommend having a maximum of four speakers and one chair to ensure that each speaker has enough time to share their knowledge and experience.  Three speakers is often more than enough. 
• Panels must have diversity in gender, age, ethnicity, geography,  activity and/or experience to ensure that the exchange is representative of our diverse community and is enriched by it.
• Maximum of two sessions per person to ensure a wide range of voices and experiences.

Session types

Our regular sessions are 90 minutes long.  Our lunchtime sessions are 45 minutes long.  Some of these sessions are livestreamed. 

• Keynote talk:  an in-depth exploration of a highly relevant issue, usually by one person. 
• Panel discussion: typically a group of up to four speakers and a chair gathered to discuss a topic in front of an audience. 
• Workshop: an interactive session led by one or more facilitators which is intended to bring together people to discuss a topic or issue, or a practical session led by one or more tutors involving an activity and practical learning.  
• 1-to-1 interview or dialogue: a session with two people. These can work well in the 45-minute slots, though longer slots are available too. 
• Exhibitions and film screenings: display of work or tools – sometimes involving demonstrations – or screening of a film. 
• Cultural event: this could be anything you can dream up but historically we have hosted music, storytelling, poetry, theatre, tastings and food tours.
• Other: we are open to different session formats, so if you’d like to propose a new idea, please do! 

Responsibilities of session organisers

Session organisers are responsible for session coordination, and making sure all speakers and chairs are aware of and stick to all deadlines. It is the session organiser’s responsibility to support speakers as necessary, and flag to the ORFC team if there are any concerns regarding any speaker’s access or participation.

It is for the session organiser and their team to decide how to plan the session. You might want to think about:

• The opening remarks that frame the discussion
• The order of speakers and how much time each will have
• Whether there is interaction with delegates (incl. Q&A)
• Use of presentation materials (films, powerpoints, props, etc.)

Session organisers should arrange to meet beforehand with the people involved in the session to review the session flow and the speaker and chair guide. The session organiser is expected to liaise with the ORFC Programme Team for support and guidance and to inform of the development of the session, and to be a direct point of contact during the conference between the panel and the ORFC Programme Team.

Ticket policy and support available

ORFC always asks everyone who attends the conference and can afford to pay for their ticket to do so, regardless of whether they are a speaker or a delegate. 

The programme is a collective endeavour, and one-quarter of delegates contribute to the conference as speakers or facilitators. This means it is only possible to keep ticket prices relatively low when the speakers who can afford to pay do so. ORFC is part of a charity and ticket sales ensure ORFC can happen each year while maintaining strong principles about where funding is accepted so the conference can maintain its radical edge. 

Cost should not be a barrier to attendance. There are several streams of support which speakers can access:

• subsidised tickets (these are released with general tickets in September — please book early, as numbers are limited)
• a lift share and accommodation share spreadsheet to help with cost sharing
• speakers can also apply for a bursary by midday BST on Monday, 1st September 2025 (these are limited and not guaranteed). 

Conversely, if your organisation can purchase supporter tickets, please do so, as these enable us to offer bursaries to those who would not otherwise be able to attend. Session organisers should also be proactive in supporting speakers to attend the conference. 

If cost is an issue for you or the speakers, please let the conference team know directly at carla@orfc.org.uk, no later than Thursday, 9th October 2025. (This will not affect whether your submission gets accepted.)

Overview of the session selection process

All session ideas and proposals submitted are reviewed by the ORFC Advisory Committee which is made of representatives of ORFC partners and Real Farming Trust staff.

We will be looking through the submissions from May and contacting all those whose suggestions we would like to develop for the conference by the end of September. 

Where sessions overlap or where there may be synergy, ORFC may contact each session coordinator to propose that the session organisers work together on a collaborative session.

By early October, we must have all speaker and programme details confirmed. Unfortunately, due to a high volume of submissions, we are not always able to get back to everyone who submitted ideas for the conference. If you haven’t heard from us by the end of September, please do get in touch.

Timeline

Justice Strand proposal support surgery

Contact

If you have any queries, please contact Hester at hester@orfc.org.uk.

We look forward to seeing you all at ORFC 2026!

Please Note: The ORFC 2026 Call for Submissions Is Now Closed