2022: Distance, Mobility, and Migration

Quick Links

Bilbao, Spain | 23-25 June, 2022

The WHA is headed to Spain!  Situated seven miles inland from the Bay of Biscay, the city of Bilbao is the capital of Bizkaia Province in Spain’s Basque Autonomous Region.  Over the past 700 years, the city has been an inter-imperial trading hub, a key to Imperial Spain’s maritime infrastructure, a center of resistance to fascism’s global rise, and a modern exemplar of the power of cultural tourism as an engine of urban renewal.  With such a storied past, world historians should find Bilbao a compelling and exciting location in which to discuss and debate.

This year’s conference is entitled: Distance, Mobility, and Migration and is being co-sponsored by University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). For the Basque people of Bilbao, the experience of movement across great distances is a central element of their history and identity.  For WHA members and friends, our conference in Bilbao offers the opportunity to present research and spark conversation addressing issues of: borders, territoriality, diaspora, industrialization, resistance, and tourism.  See the call for proposals below for a full list of potential discussion topics.

While we will have virtual conference sessions available, we sincerely hope you will choose to connect with us in-person on the campus of our conference co-sponsors!

Bilbao’s more recent engagement with international tourism also means that when not attending a conference session, attendees are within walking distance of many historic sites and modern attractions (among which is the famous Guggenheim Museum designed by Frank Gehry).  More information will be made available soon detailing opportunities for lodging, keynote speakers, and external tours and cultural events.

1. Where is the conference being held?

The Bizkaia Aretoa Center in Bilbao, Spain. The building is located in the Parque República de Abando. This building is representing the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) in the City of Bilbao. It is not the main campus of the University.

Street Address: Abandoibarra Etorb., 3, 48009 Bilbao, Bizkaia, Spain

2. How do I register for the conference?

Register now, or navigate to the “Registration” section below to learn about different rates and details.

3. I’m presenting at the conference, do I need to register?

Yes. See question 2 for more details.

4. I’m having trouble registering, what do I do?

Send an email to info@thewha.org detailing your problem. If you are attempting to pay for your conference registration using a non-US credit card, please know our payment processing software has been experiencing some difficulty in those situations.

5. Are there tours I can go on while at the conference?

Yes! Please see the “Cultural Excursions” section of this page.

6. What are the Covid-19 protocols and requirements for the conference?

As of February 10, 2022, the Spanish government is requiring non-essential travelers (i.e., tourists) to show proof of vaccination against Covid-19 for US citizens entering from the United States.  For the exact details of these requirements and the most up-to-date information, the WHA recommends you consult the US Spanish Embassy website or your country’s appropriate embassy.

For those choosing to attend the conference in-person, the WHA will also be requiring proof of vaccination. Information regarding how to submit proof of vaccination will be published soon. Please note that vaccination proof will be required no later than June 3, 2022 to attend the conference in-person.

7. How do I know when I’m presenting?

The detailed list of panel and session assignments has not yet been finalized. For a general schedule of the conference, see the section below.

8. Can I bring a guest to the conference?

Yes, though certain restrictions apply. See the “Registration” section for details.

In addition to the many exciting panels and presentations planned for this year’s conference, the WHA is please to announce a variety of guided tours and cultural excursions you and your fellow conference attendees will be able to attend. From day trips to nearby cities, touring a Rioja vineyard, or walking tours of Bilbao’s Old Quarter, there’s certain to be something which interests you!

In addition to the excursions outside Bilbao, the WHA will be coordinating a guided tour of the Guggenheim art museum in Bilbao. This tour, which requires registration, will take place on the 24th of June at 17:00 local time. Led by a qualified guide of the museum, the tour is 60 minutes long and features information on the architecture of the museum and the works within. The fee for this event includes participation in the tour and admission to the museum. Please note, this tour opportunity occurs at the same time as Session D of the conference.

Participation in these events is entirely voluntary and occurs outside of the conference itself. Any costs associated with these trips are not included in your conference registration fee.

Tour & Excursion Registration

Click the above light blue button to register for any tour except the Guggenheim Museum tour. You are able to register for multiple of these day trips at once through this portal. Download the pdf below for more information about the tours outside Bilbao.

Click the dark blue button below to register for the museum tour.

Download a pdf with details and pricing for excursions in cities outside Bilbao

The opening keynote address of the thirty-first annual conference of the WHA is entitled “The World, a Bigger Bay of Biscay for the Last 500 Years (1522-2022),” and will be given by Joseba Agirreazkuenaga.

Dr. Agirreazkuenaga is Professor of Contemporary History at the University of the Basque Country (Bilbao), a position he has held since 1995. The Basque Visiting Fellow at Oxford University in 1990, 2006, and 2007, he has headed the “Biography and Parliament” research group at the University since 1989, and has supervised the completion of twenty doctoral dissertations. The author of The Making of the Basque Question: Experiencing Self-Government, 1793-1877, Agirreazkuenaga was awarded the Euskadi Research Award by the Government of the Basque Country in 2020.

Tatiana Seijas will deliver the closing address to the annual conference in a talk entitled “Words Matter: Rethinking our Terms to Write New Histories about Global Migrations.”

Dr. Seijas is Associate Professor of History at Rutgers University. She writes about global migrations, long-distance trade, urban economies, and the joined history of freedom and slavery. Her latest monograph Global Mexico City in the Seventeenth Century is a new history of one of the early modern world’s greatest entrepôts centered on the economic lives of ordinary people. Seijas is currently researching and writing “First Routes: Indigenous Trade and Travel in North America,” which recovers the history of Native merchants who forged routes of exchange between the Mesoamerican highlands and the Rio Grande Valley. Learn more about Seijas.