2027 Call For Workshops
Event Dates: August 22 – 25, 2027
What is VPPPA’s Safety+?
VPPPA’s Safety+ is the only national event that supports safety professionals across all career stages, from the frontline to the C-Suite. At the heart of VPPPA’s Safety+ is the power of continuous improvement. By offering exceptional education throughout the event, we empower attendees to take their safety culture to the next level.
What Are We Looking For?
Event Themes:
- Leadership
- Journeys
- Culture
- Specializations
Leadership
We are seeking workshop proposals that address leadership at all levels within the workplace, from the frontline to the C-Suite. Proposals may address confidence skill-builders, to what it means to be a safety leader in your workplace. We welcome any proposal designed to engage the wide variety of safety leaders in the workplace, as well as empower the next generation of leaders.
Topics of Interest:
- New & Emerging Leaders
- Safety Leadership
Journeys
We are seeking workshop proposals that represent the wide variety of safety journeys present in our community. While no two safety journeys are the same, there is tremendous value to be learned by hearing the path taken by others. Proposals may range from individual stories about personal experiences to the journeys of continuous improvement undertaken by your worksite. We welcome any proposal designed to share lessons learned, celebrate continuous improvement, and share your unique journey.
Topics of Interest:
- Personal Stories
- Women in Safety
- Worksite Journeys
Culture
We are seeking workshop proposals that provide the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to help attendees understand and continuously improve their workplace safety culture. Proposals may address strategies to build a strong safety culture within a workforce that is both multigenerational and multilingual, or methods to maintain culture during periods of high turnover. Proposals may also address the intersection of safety culture with non-safety professionals, or considerations regarding employee mental health. We welcome any proposal designed to provide attendees with an actionable takeaway to take their safety culture to the next level.
Topics of Interest:
- Employee Collaboration
- Multigenerational Workforce
- Multilingual Workforce
- Navigating a Changing Workforce
- Safety Culture for the Non-Safety Professional
- Mental Health
Specializations
We are seeking workshop proposals that pertain to any of the below specializations. Each specialization represents a portion of our audience with unique challenges and interests. Proposals may provide solutions to challenges or pain points, insights into upcoming regulations or industry trends, or specialization specific areas of interest. We welcome any proposal designed specifically to address the needs and interests of attendees within these areas.
Topics of Interest:
- Construction
- Process Safety Management
- Industrial Hygiene
- Electrical
- Small Business
What Makes a Winning Proposal?
All presentation proposals will be reviewed by volunteers from the VPPPA community and selected through an anonymous scoring process. Due to the limited number of available sessions, even submissions that score well may not be able to be accepted to present this year. To give your proposal the strongest chance, below are some tips to keep in mind.
- Consider what 3 takeaways your audience can expect to bring back to their workplace.
- Think from the perspective of, “As an attendee, how can I apply this to my current role?” or “How can this help me achieve my career goals?”
- Consider what your learners can practically learn and apply through your session.
- Only proposals submitted through the portal by the deadline will be considered. Proposals must be complete at the time of submission.
- You are welcome to submit as many proposals as you’d like, however due to the limited amount of speaking opportunities, we must limit the number of sessions presented by a single speaker.
- You do not have to be a professional speaker. We welcome submissions from anyone with a passion for continuous improvement.
FAQs
- Do speakers receive compensation or travel reimbursement?
We do not provide the above, however our selected speakers receive discounted registration if attending the whole conference and complimentary one-day passes if attending the day of their session.
- How will I know if my session was selected?
We will reach out to the main logistics contact listed in your proposal of your acceptance status. Please be sure to include a work and personal email address for us to send your notification to.
We provide a period of 3 weeks to confirm acceptance and send us a signed speaker agreement (this is required for all session speakers).
Key Dates
- Submission Deadline: October 1, 2026
- Signed Speaker Agreement Due: November 12, 2026
Questions?
Our education team is more than happy to answer any questions, or discuss presentation ideas. Please contact us at education@vpppa.org.
