Western Museums Association

The Western Museums Association's (WMA) Annual Meeting, held in partnership with the Utah Museums Association (UMA), is a distinct opportunity for museum people to exchange ideas, learn from peers in unique sessions, and cultivate skills to best serve their communities through museums. Dynamic sessions and other content at the Annual Meeting emphasize equity, action, and leadership. Attendees will find fellowship with peers, strengthen regional and national networks, and gain a broader understanding of how museums are navigating current issues. With the theme of ASPIRE, WMA | UMA 2026 invites museum professionals to imagine boldly, reaching beyond inherited boundaries to shape futures not yet written. To ASPIRE is not simply to dream; it is to take intentional steps toward transformation. In museums, this means embracing innovation, confronting historical silences, and cultivating practices that reflect the diverse realities of the publics we serve. Whether expanding community engagement, rethinking stewardship, or exploring new interpretive strategies, the act of aspiring requires us to hold space for possibility.