14 Takeaways from the Virtual Pacific APA (guest post)

As reported in January, the American Philosophical Association (APA) recently began—and halted—an experiment with making one of its three divisional meetings each year a wholly-online conference. The experiment with online meetings was prompted largely by a campaign by Philosophers for Sustainability. The Central Division conference in 2025 was held online. This year, the Pacific Division meeting was held online. However, the decision to end the experiment was made prior to this year’s Pacific Division meeting. Colin Marshall was the Program Chair for this online version of the Pacific Division’s meeting. In the following guest post, he shares his reflections on the conference and on it having “been declared a failure before it even started.” 14 Takeaways from the Virtual Pacific APA by Colin Marshall I had the honor of serving as Program Chair for this year’s Pacific APA conference, which was held online. The experience was rewarding. It was also eye-opening—especially in light of…