Several conferences relocate north of the border as Canadians refuse to travel to the U.S.

After U.S. President Donald Trump took office, sociologist Travers — who goes by one name — nixed plans to attend the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport (NASSS) conference in Seattle this November. 

Travers, an associate professor at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C., is the president-elect of NASSS. But as a trans person, they are wary of visiting the U.S. at a time when the Trump administration is rolling back transgender rights.

"[I] will not be travelling to the United States right now because it feels very dangerous to do so," said Travers.

The sociologist soon realized the problem was widespread: around 40 per cent of NASSS's 600 members live in Canada, and many of them reported that they, too, don't want to attend the Seattle conference, due to reports of increased scrutiny at the U.S. border, Trump's trade war and his threats to annex Canada.

"If we were to just hold the conference in Seattle, it would be significantly under-attended," Travers said of the annual conference where NASSS members meet and share research about the sociological study of sport. 

Because breaking the venue contract would be cost-prohibitive, organizers came up with a creative solution: a pared-down Seattle conference with an added tandem one in Vancouver. Some events will take place in both locations, courtesy video conferencing.

"I have certainly heard back from many NASSS members who said, 'Thank you, thank you. I was afraid to go to the United States,'" said Travers.

NASSS isn't alone in changing its conference plans since Trump took office. CBC News has identified three North American-based organizations that recently relocated upcoming conferences — either partially or fully — from the U.S. to Canada. In a fourth case, organizers chose Canada, knowing many of its Canadian participants won't go to the U.S.

Travel to the U.S. from several countries has dropped recently, with Canada leading the pack: in March, the number of return trips among Canadians travelling to the U.S. plummeted by 13.5 per cent for air travel, and by a whopping 32 per cent for land travel.

While the low Canadian dollar has deterred some travellers, the political climate in the U.S. and Trump's hardline crackdown on immigration has fuelled much of the decline. 

"After Trump was voted in office, I know that my members have very little interest in attending a conference in the U.S.," said Dr. Jason Karamchandani, president of the Canadian Association of Pathologists (CAP).

So organizers for a 2026 joint conference between CAP and the American Society for Clinical Pathology chose a Montreal venue — even though the American group has six times more members.

"There have been stories of people facing challenges entering the United States," said Karamchandani.

Those stories include the 11-day detainment of Canadian Jasmine Mooney in March. A French scientist was denied entry that same month, because U.S. customs officers found anti-Trump messages on his phone, according to the French government.