From Aid to Action: ACIC Symposium 2025
Wed, Jun 18
|Sobey School of Business at SMU
Join us in Halifax, June 18-19, 2025, for two days of transformative discussions, collaboration, and action. Celebrating 50 years of solidarity & global cooperation, this year’s symposium will bring together changemakers to reimagine international development.


Time & Location
Jun 18, 2025, 9:30 a.m. – Jun 19, 2025, 4:30 p.m.
Sobey School of Business at SMU, 903 Robie St, Halifax, NS B3H 3C3, Canada
About the event
Across the globe, powerful and well-resourced countries are pulling back on their commitments to Overseas Development Assistance (ODA). These decisions create real uncertainty for communities and organizations working to advance global solidarity. At a time when foreign aid remains essential to addressing urgent global challenges, this retreat signals the need for renewed dialogue, collaboration, and action.
As ACIC marks its 50th anniversary, we find ourselves at a pivotal moment. The landscape of international cooperation is shifting rapidly. Political polarization, funding cuts, and changing global power dynamics are testing the foundations of solidarity and development work. These shifts call for new approaches that centre justice, equity, and local leadership.
This year’s Symposium invites us to reflect, reconnect, and reimagine the future of global cooperation. Together, we’ll ask:
What role does foreign aid continue to play in building more equitable, connected communities?
How can we sustain and diversify resources in the face of political and economic uncertainty?
What does it take to build partnerships rooted in long-term, community-led solutions?
How can we learn from past movements and transitions to navigate today’s challenges with clarity and purpose?
The Symposium will bring together current and past ACIC members—those who have helped build just, equitable communities across the globe—alongside civil society leaders, policymakers, private sector stakeholders, and youth. Together, we will examine how international cooperation has evolved over the decades, and how we can move forward with hope, purpose, and a shared commitment to equity and justice.
Education remains central to this conversation, both as a catalyst for peace and security and as a tool for equipping communities with the knowledge to engage in global development efforts. From grassroots activism to institutional advocacy, from Southern-led partnerships to shifts in donor landscapes, this Symposium will highlight pathways to action, ensuring that hope remains the foundation for international cooperation in the decades ahead.
Together, we reaffirm our commitment to global solidarity and the transformative power of partnership. In times of uncertainty, we look back to move forward—learning from history to build a more just, resilient, and interconnected future.
Travel Subsidies and Accessibility
If you are an ACIC member and would like to attend this year’s symposium, travel subsidies are available to support your participation (Please indicate this need in your registration form).
If cost is a barrier to your participation in the Symposium, please reach out to our team at membership@acic-caci.org. We are committed to ensuring this gathering is as accessible and inclusive as possible.
Accommodations
Tickets
1-Day Pass (Wednesday)
For those unable to attend the full event, this pass grants access to one day of the Symposium, including all sessions and networking opportunities for that day. Lunch is provided, and attendees receive a goody bag. Each ticket helps make the Symposium more accessible by contributing to travel and access subsidies for participants facing financial barriers. By attending, you are supporting a more inclusive and diverse conversation on global solidarity and international cooperation.
$25.00
1-Day Pass (Thursday)
For those unable to attend the full event, this pass grants access to one day of the Symposium, including all sessions and networking opportunities for that day. Lunch is provided, and attendees receive a goody bag. Each ticket helps make the Symposium more accessible by contributing to travel and access subsidies for participants facing financial barriers. By attending, you are supporting a more inclusive and diverse conversation on global solidarity and international cooperation.
$25.00
Full Symposium Pass
This ticket includes full access to both days of the ACIC Symposium 2025, including all sessions, workshops, and networking opportunities. Lunch is provided each day, and attendees will receive a goody bag. Your registration also helps make the Symposium more accessible—proceeds contribute to travel and access subsidies for participants facing financial barriers, ensuring a more inclusive and diverse conversation on global solidarity and international cooperation.
From $15.00 to $40.00
$40.00
$25.00
$15.00
Support a Youth Participant*
Help remove financial barriers for young participants from Atlantic Canada by contributing to travel and access subsidies. Your support ensures that diverse youth voices are part of critical conversations shaping the future of global cooperation. *Please note that this is not a ticket option, but a donation that will directly assist in removing financial barriers for youth participation in this year's Symposium.
$
Total
$0.00