Every OEGlobal Conference is defined by the questions its community brings. For OEGlobal 2026 — Come Invent With Us! — those questions range from the intensely personal to the structurally urgent: Whose stories are worth preserving? What do students seek from us? Where do the open movements meet? And how do we sustain all of it?
We are delighted to announce four keynote sessions that take on those questions directly, across three days at MIT’s Samberg Conference Center, Cambridge, MA, and online. Together, they bring a poet, a group of students, and leaders from open science, open publishing, open policy, and open education into the same conversation — and invite every participant, wherever they are joining from, to be part of it.
Keynote 1 — Wednesday, October 7
The Traveling Archive: On Creativity, Community, and Classrooms Without Walls
Speaker: Dr. Joshua Bennett, Distinguished Chair of the Humanities and Professor of Literature, MIT
Moderator: Sarah Hansen, Assistant Director, Open Education Innovation, MIT Open Learning
Whose stories are considered precious? It is the question that has animated Dr. Joshua Bennett’s work as a poet, scholar, and arts educator for two decades — and it opens OEGlobal 2026.
Drawing on his collaborations with teachers, families, and archivists across the country, Bennett argues for classrooms that help students preserve the memories that matter most. This will not be a usual keynote. Expect poetry, visual art, and open conversation.
Keynote 2 — Wednesday, October 7
Talk with Us About Us: The Student Perspective
Student panelists:
- Ashley Chamu Charco — Student Trustee, University of Massachusetts Amherst
- Malcolm Mann — President, Student Community Government Inc., Rhode Island College
- Lillian Sharpe — Education & Sociology major, Eastern Connecticut State University
- Nate Woodard — Vice President of the Student Senate & Student Trustee, Greenfield Community College
Moderator: Dr. Bob Awkward, Professor of Business Administration, Middlesex Community College
Open education is built for students. This keynote hands them the microphone.
Four students from across New England discuss the financial trade-offs they face, the difference OER makes to their success, and why student voices belong in the room when open practice is being designed. If you have ever built an OER and wondered about its impact, this is the session to attend.
Keynote 3 — Thursday, October 8
Catalyzing Open Synergies
Panelists:
- Prof. Rebecca Saxe — John W. Jarve (1978), Professor in Brain & Cognitive Sciences; Associate Dean of Science, MIT
- Amy Brand — Director and Publisher, The MIT Press
- Paola Corti — Project Manager and Instructional Designer, Politecnico di Milano; Open Education Community Manager, SPARC Europe
Moderator: Chris Bourg, Director of MIT Libraries and Founding Director of the Center for Research on Equitable and Open Scholarship (CREOS)
Open Education, open science, open publishing, and open data have evolved along their paths with distinct communities, vocabularies, and hard-won wins. Should this continue, or could greater impact instead depend on stronger alignment?
Leaders from four open communities explore where the movements intersect and what collective momentum might look like in advancing knowledge as a public good. Expect a frank conversation about gaps as much as overlaps.
Keynote 4 — Friday, October 9
Future Thinking: Sustaining the Field
Panelists:
- Dr. TJ Bliss — Associate Commissioner for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer, Utah System of Higher Education
- Nicole Allen — Director of Open Education, SPARC
- Luc Massou — Scientific Advisor, Ministry of Higher Education and Research, France; Professor of Information and Communication Sciences, University of Lorraine
Moderator: Cailyn Nagle, Senior Program Manager, OER, Michelson 20MM Foundation
As Open Education matures, the question shifts from whether it works to whether it lasts. This closing keynote asks what it will take to sustain not only the work, but the people, institutions, and communities behind it.
Funding models, policy and partnerships, support for the next generation of open leaders, and building sustained resilience—from a single course to a national system. Practical ideas, not just principles.
Join us
All four keynotes will be available to every registered participant, whether you are in Cambridge or joining online. Register to be in the room or online!
OEGlobal 2026 — Come Invent With Us! takes place October 7–9, 2026, at MIT’s Samberg Conference Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and in a hybrid format open to participants worldwide. The conference is co-hosted by Open Education Global (OEGlobal), MIT Open Learning, and the Massachusetts Open & Low-Cost Educational Resources Advisory Council (OLERAC). It marks the 25th anniversary of MIT OpenCourseWare. Learn more, view the program, and register at conference.oeglobal.org.