Special Sessions

Exploring Strategies for Obtaining Research Funding for HCI

This special session explores the challenges and opportunities of obtaining and sustaining research funding for Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research in Canada. As funding landscapes become increasingly competitive and complex, HCI researchers face unique difficulties related to interdisciplinary positioning, declining grant success rates, limited funding amounts, and shifting institutional and industry priorities. These challenges are further complicated by the broad methodological and application diversity of HCI research, which can make articulating contributions within traditional funding frameworks difficult.

The session will bring together researchers from across Canada to discuss current barriers, exchange experiences, and share practical strategies for building sustainable research programs. Topics may include approaches to large collaborative grants, industry partnerships, interdisciplinary proposals, co-supervision models, and alternative funding structures. Through guided discussion and community reflection, the session aims to foster collaboration, identify actionable strategies, and strengthen the Canadian HCI research community’s capacity to navigate an evolving funding environment.

> more information and how to participate

• Sowmya Somanath (University of Victoria)
• Khalad Hasan (University of British Columbia)
• Sharon Ferguson (University of Waterloo)
• Fateme Rajabiyazdi (University of Calgary)

Student Networking Event

An informal gathering of student attendees with various mixer activities, a raffle, snacks, and more! No preparation needed.

> students-only! RSVP using this form

• Zachary McKendrick (University of Waterloo)

Building Accessibility Research Capacity in Canada: Challenges, Best Practices, and Collaborative Paths Forward

Accessibility-oriented research has grown substantially across human–computer interaction and related felds, engaging a broad and active research community in Canada. At the same time, many accessibility researchers—often working as the only person addressing accessibility within their institution—face persistent challenges related to recruitment, ethics, community partnership, mentorship, and sustainability. These challenges are intensifed by increasing expectations around accessibility, including recent amendments to the Accessible Canada Act and the release of Canada’s new standard on accessible and equitable AI, which together create both urgency and opportunity for coordinated, evidence-based accessibility research.

This special session proposes a community meeting at Graphics Interface 2026 to support coordination, shared learning, and collaboration among accessibility researchers in Canada. Anchored by an invited freside conversation with senior accessibility researcher Jonathan Lazar, the session will combine refective dialogue, facilitated small-group discussion, and collaborative planning to surface shared challenges, exchange efective practices, and identify concrete next steps—such as opportunities for multi-institutional collaboration, shared infrastructure, and joint research or funding initiatives. By leveraging GI’s intimate, cross-disciplinary format, this session positions community-building and capacity-building as central scholarly contributions, supporting the long-term sustainability and impact of accessibility-oriented research in Canada.

> more information and how to participate

• Karyn Mofatt (McGill University)
• David R. Flatla (University of Guelph)
• Jiamin Dai (University of British Columbia)
• Amira Ghenai (Toronto Metropolitan University)
• Jaisie Sin (Carleton University)
• Cosmin Munteanu (University of Waterloo)
• Jonathan Lazar (University of Maryland)

The Annual Meeting of Canadian Human-Computer Interaction Educators

This special session brings together Canadian Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) educators to discuss the continuing evolution of HCI and UX education in response to rapid technological and societal change. Nearly 40 years after the formation of the ACM SIGCHI Curriculum Development Group and the publication of the foundational SIGCHI Curricula for HCI, the field continues to expand into areas such as generative AI, intelligent systems, wearable computing, virtual and augmented reality, privacy, ethics, and inclusive design. These developments create both opportunities and challenges for maintaining relevant, forward-looking curricula and pedagogical practices.

The annual meeting of Canadian HCI educators provides a forum for instructors, researchers, curriculum developers, and industry educators to exchange ideas, share teaching materials and experiences, discuss curricular challenges, and collaboratively envision the future of HCI education. The 2026 edition will place particular emphasis on how emerging technologies and societal concerns, including generative AI, chatbots, computing justice, privacy, and technology ethics, should shape HCI teaching and training. The session will also explore the relationship between academic programs and industry expectations, as well as the unique characteristics of Canadian HCI education programs.

Through open discussion and collaborative reflection, the session aims to strengthen the Canadian HCI education community, support curriculum renewal, and foster the continued evolution of HCI pedagogy in Canada.

open session, all are welcome

• Cosmin Munteanu (University of Waterloo)
• Olivier St-Cyr (University of Toronto)

Proactive Systems in HCI and AI: Concepts, Challenges, and Opportunities

The last few years have seen a significant rise in interest in highly autonomous and proactive systems, fueled by advances in AI. Systems that anticipate user needs, take initiative, and act without explicit user input. Such systems span a wide range of applications, from smart lighting that adapts to user activity to assistive robots that plan actions in advance to intelligent thermostats that learn routines and adjust environments proactively. Despite this breadth, the concept of proactivity remains loosely defined and inconsistently applied across research and practice.

Current usage of the term often conflates fundamentally different system behaviors. For instance, simple reminders or recommendation systems are frequently labeled as proactive, even though underlying mechanisms and intentions differ significantly. This conceptual ambiguity limits our ability to systematically design, compare, and evaluate proactive systems. Moreover, existing methodologies for design and evaluation are largely rooted in reactive interaction paradigms, failing to address the unique challenges posed by proactive behavior, including timing, appropriateness, user control, transparency, and trust.

This multidisciplinary workshop aims to establish a clearer and more rigorous foundation for understanding proactive systems. We bring together researchers and practitioners from Human-Computer Interaction, AI, and related fields to (1) develop a shared conceptualization of proactivity, (2) identify gaps and limitations in current design and evaluation approaches, and (3) co-create human-centered guidelines and research directions for future systems. Through interactive discussions and collaborative activities, the workshop seeks to map key challenges and opportunities, ultimately advancing robust and consistent frameworks for designing and evaluating proactive technologies.

> more information and how to participate

• Nima Zargham (University of Toronto)
• Sharon Ferguson (University of Waterloo)
• Jaisie Sin (Carleton University)
• Cosmin Munteanu (University of Waterloo)
• Anastasia Kuzminykh (University of Toronto)

What is (H)CI: Why Does the “Human” Matter?

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) is a diverse field bringing together theories and methods from fields such as computer science, psychology, and human factors. Historically, HCI has focused on the human through “user” or “human” centered design, where the focus was either on information processing or understanding people and their concerns with respect to technology. However, amid the increasing adoption of generative AI tools, this workshop explores two critical questions in regards to HCI: What is HCI? and Why does the “human” matter? We aim to bring together researchers from diverse disciplines to reflect on these questions. Through guided discussions, group brainstorming, and reflection, we explore what HCI means, what the field may look like in the future, and why it is important to remember the “human” aspect of the field.

> more information and how to participate

• Sejal Agarwal (University of Waterloo)
• Delara Forghani (University of Waterloo)
• Brandon Lit (University of Waterloo)
• Thomas Driscoll (University of Waterloo)
• Anthony Maocheia-Ricci (University of Waterloo)

Panel and Networking Session on Teaching Creative Coding

Creative coding is the use of programming as a medium for creative expression, often to produce interactive, generative, or audiovisual works. This 1.5-hour special session will bring together panelists with experience teaching creative coding courses at the university or equivalent level. The format will include approximately 60 minutes of lightning talks by 4–6 panelists from multidisciplinary backgrounds, including art, computer science, and engineering, followed by a combined discussion and networking segment to foster exchange among all participants.

open session, all are welcome
> more information