Save the date for the ISC/SCI conference Sorting it Out on April 10-11, 2026.
Over the two days we will have sessions on a variety of topics related to the theory and practice of indexing, improving quality, and growing your business. We’ll also have plenty of opportunity to visit with old friends and make new friends.
Preceding the conference, on April 9, there will be a session of series covering our various indexing software products. At the same time, we are running a session designed for new indexers and those who are thinking about indexing as a career. Get answers to all your burning questions from an experienced indexer.
At the end of each day, we will wrap up with an after-party with the theme “Mixing it up!”
If you can’t attend all the sessions offered on Friday and Saturday, don’t worry. Recordings of the presentations will be available for twelve months after the end of the conference.
The Conference Committee invites your proposals for ISC/SCI Conference 2026
Proposals are being accepted until November 15, 2025.
The committee is seeking proposals in the following areas:
aspects of running an indexing business such as social media for marketing, profitability, project scheduling, website construction and management, connecting with clients and colleagues, etc.
technology related to indexing such as devices or equipment, non-indexing software, apps, or AI
improving/assessing index quality or usability from broad topics such as improving your speed to niche topics on specific languages, communities, or subjects
non-back-of-book indexing such as taxonomy, controlled vocabularies, thesaurus development
any niche or specialty topic you feel passionate about
This is an online conference taking place over Zoom, April 10–11, 2026. The theme is Sorting It Out. Sessions will be 50 minutes in total (35–40 minutes for presentation followed by a 10–15 minute question-and-answer session).
The 2025 conference will be held May 30–31, 2025, with pre-conference events on Thursday, May 29 and a workshop on Sunday, June 1.
The conference takes place on the beautiful University of British Columbia (UBC) campus. The campus is situated on the Point Grey Peninsula and is surrounded by forests on three sides and ocean on the fourth. During your stay, you can take in lovely beaches and hiking trails, or take a 30-minute bus ride to Vancouver’s downtown core.
Program
The programming team has pulled together an array of speakers from the indexing community.
Jola Komornicka chairs a star-studded panel: X-Men United, Indexers Divided?: A roundtable on differing approaches to indexing the same text
Michelle Guiliano: X Marks the Spot when uncovering the right rate for your indexing services
Emma Warnken Johnson will share a flow chart she developed to help with tricky decision-making for passing mentions
Saturday
Kim Christie, a B.C. Hansard indexer, guides us through a roadmap to parliamentary debate
Elizabeth Bartmess, on AI … where you can use it and where you shouldn’t!
Caroline Diepeveen on “Large, Larger, Largest: How to handle large and complicated indexing assignments”
Max McMaster challenges us with an interactive session on indexing conundrums, those “what do I do now” dilemmas
Special guest speakers include
Rhonda Kronyk, Project Coordinator for the Indigenous Editors Association, editor, and public speaker, delivers the keynote address on Friday, with a focus on the 2nd edition of Gregory Younging’s Elements of Indigenous Style
Natalie Grant, Assistant Professor of Teaching in UBC Faculty of Medicine, Physical Therapy, will lead us Saturday through exercises we can do to keep our muscles and tendons fit and free.
In the break following Rhonda Kronyk’s keynote address, we will get to meet and talk with some members of the Production Editorial Team at the University of British Columbia Press. UBC Press is one of very few academic publishers who directly hire freelance indexers, rather than leaving it to the authors. This is your chance to ask your burning questions.
Friday’s program also includes the Annual General Meeting in the afternoon and the Awards Banquet on Friday evening.
Thursday Pre-conference Events
There will be lots of activities:
The registration desk will be open to early arrivals.
ICRIS representatives and ISC/SCI board members will slip away for a few hours for their meetings.
New and aspiring indexers who have registered will attend the Fireside Chat (see below).
The rest of us can join the Stitch Circle on Thursday afternoon. Here are some magpie-themed patterns to try. Bring your project to work on or to show. There will also be free knitting materials and supplies available. If knitting is new to you, you can get some personal instruction.
Thursday evening we’ll gather for dinner for around 7 p.m.
Sunday Workshop
On Sunday, early afternoon, Stephen Ullstrom returns with his popular (and all new!) Live Indexing workshop. The text will likely be a trade book, this time round, with time reserved for the editing process. Registration limited to 15 people. This workshop is in addition to the conference but you can register for it at the same time.
Fireside Chat
This one hour session is a conference extra that takes place Thursday afternoon with Alexandra Peace. New indexers are invited to ask their burning questions on transitioning from student to practising indexer. This session is in addition to the conference, but you can register for it at the same time.
Accommodations
UBC offers accommodations for every budget. Suites, studios and multi-bedroom apartments are conveniently close to the conference meeting rooms in the Walter Gage Residence.
The following room categories have been blocked for us from May 28 to June 2 at discounted rates. These rates are also offered May 26-27 and June 3-4, subject to the availability of rooms. NOTE: After April 28, the blocks will be released to the public, which means reduced availability.
Gage Premium Single – $65
Perfect for a group of friends or colleagues.
The Gage Premium Single is a private bedroom with a single bed in a 4-bedroom shared apartment. The accommodation includes a shared bathroom, lounge with flat-panel TV, communal equipped kitchenette with breakfast bar, and complimentary coffee. Located in the Walter Gage Residence, the same building as the conference venue.
To ensure you are booked into the same apartment as friends, write their names into the comment space on the online booking form. To look for roommates, consider using the listservs (e.g., ISC-L for ISC/SCI members and/or IDG for the greater indexing community).
Gage Studio – $220
Private studio with queen-sized bed, equipped kitchenette, and air conditioning. Maximum 2 guests per studio.
Located in the Walter Gage Residence, the same building as the conference venue.
West Coast Suite – $295
Hotel suite with king-sized bed in the bedroom, queen-sized sofa bed in the living room, fully-equipped kitchen with microwave, flat-panel TV, complimentary coffee, and air conditioning. Rate is based on single or double occupancy, with $25 per night for each additional guest. Maximum 4 guests per suite.
Located next to the conference venue, just 62 meters away.
Rates and booking policy
The rates above are subject to 13% tax (GST and PST). Check-in time is 3 p.m., check-out time is 11 a.m. Reservations must be guaranteed with one of these credit cards: VISA, MasterCard, or American Express. Should the reservation be cancelled within 24 hours of your arrival, you will be charged for one night.
How to book
As a conference registrant, you will receive the link to the booking form with your confirmation email. Book as soon as you can, as late May is a popular time of year and room quantities are limited.
Parking
Limited parking is available on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to a daily fee.
The Indexing Society of Canada/Société canadienne d’indexation invites you to join us at our annual conference May 30-31, 2025, at the University of British Columbia campus in Vancouver, British Columbia.
This year’s theme is “Location! Location! Location!”
The keynote address will be delivered by Rhonda Kronyk, Project Coordinator for the Indigenous Editors Association, editor, and public speaker. Her presentation will focus on the 2nd edition of Gregory Younging’s Elements of Indigenous Style
Conference sessions on indexing include “X-Men United, Indexers Divided?”, a roundtable of star-studded indexers describing their differing approaches to indexing the same piece of text, “Indexing Conundrums” with Max McMaster, “AI…where you can use it and where you shouldn’t! (Elizabeth Bartmess), “A Flow Chart for Passing Mentions” (Emma Warnken Johnson), and “Hansard Indexing: A roadmap to parliamentary debate” (Kim Christie).
Sessions on managing your business include “‘X’ Marks the Spot: Uncovering the right rate for your indexing services” (Michelle Guiliano) and “Large, Larger, Largest: How to handle large and complicated indexing assignments” (Caroline Depieveen).
We are delighted to include a session with Natalie Grant, Assistant Professor of Teaching in UBC Faculty of Medicine, Physical Therapy. Natalie will lead us through exercises we can do to keep our muscles and tendons fit and free.
As part of our conference welcome, we are planning a Thursday evening get-together. On Thursday afternoon, you can join us in a craft session–more about that soon.
New and aspiring indexers can register for the Thursday afternoon Fireside Chat session. You don’t have to be an indexer to attend.
On Sunday afternoon, we are hosting a Live Indexing workshop with Stephen Ullstrom. Enrolment will be limited.
We hope you will book your accommodations on campus, so that you can be just steps away from the conference venue and all the activities. We’ve been given very competitive rates for a variety of types of rooms. The descriptions and pricing is on the conference home page.
Do you have examples of texts where you were not completely comfortable with either what you were reading or your approach to indexing?
Well, we have exciting news: Rhonda Kronyk, Project Coordinator for the Indigenous Editors Association, will be the keynote speaker at the ISC/SCI Conference in Vancouver. Her presentation will focus on the second edition of Dr. Gregory Younging’s Elements of Indigenous Style.
From the Indigenous Editor’s Association (IEA) and her website, Rhonda Kronyk specializes in editing manuscripts by and about Indigenous Peoples. A settler and a member of the Tsay Keh Dene Nation (Treaty 8), she calls amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton) in Treaty 6 home. Rhonda is a founding member of the IEA, where she is Project Coordinator. Since 2018, she has been educating editors, writers, book and magazine publishers, and university publishing students on how to publish culturally respectful stories by and about Indigenous Peoples through in-person and virtual presentations and workshops. She has edited and proofread manuscripts by some of Canada’s best known Indigenous authors, including Richard Van Camp, Monique Grey Smith, and Drew Hayden Taylor.
To help direct her talk to indexers, Rhonda would like to know about the tough issues you encounter when indexing Indigenous-related texts. Please gather your comments, queries, and problematic index entries and send them to Mary at maryjnewberry@outlook.com by March 31st. Mary will collect them anonymously and pass them on to Rhonda.
