August 18, 2026
2026 has already been a busy year for the Association of Canadian Port Authorities (ACPA). Over the past six months, our team has worked closely with industry partners, stakeholders and Transport Canada to keep Canada’s ports at the center of national conversations on trade, infrastructure, supply chain resilience and economic growth. As the voice of Canada’s 17 Canada Port Authorities (CPAs), ACPA has advanced a clear message: modern, nimble and competitive ports are essential to Canada’s economic future.
Through recent submissions and federal engagement, we have focused on the practical tools CPAs need to deliver on their mandates: more flexible borrowing limits, timely board appointments, faster infrastructure approvals, robust funding and legislative modernization that reflects today’s commercial realities. These priorities will determine how quickly port authorities can expand capacity, attract investment, improve efficiency, and respond to shifting global trade patterns.
We have carried that focus into the 2026 Ports Canada Conference program, delivered in partnership with the Windsor Port Authority. Sessions will examine Canada’s trading relationships, the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Seaway as a third trade corridor, cross-border security collaboration, environmental response, land use and remediation, artificial intelligence, short sea shipping, Arctic infrastructure, and the partnerships needed to keep goods moving safely and efficiently.
Two plenary sessions will speak directly to the sector’s next chapter. I will moderate Canada’s Trading Relationships: A Check-In, sponsored by KPMG, where we will examine trade, policy and manufacturing through the lens of Canada’s evolving global relationships.
Canada is at a pivotal moment. I believe trade growth and diversification will depend on innovation, strong funding and giving port authorities the flexibility to operate, expand and strengthen regional and national economies without rigid regulatory constraints or outdated infrastructure.
In Windsor-Detroit: A Cross-Border Partnership, introduced by ACPA Vice Chair and Windsor Port Authority President and CEO Steve Salmons, we will highlight the Port of Windsor’s role along one of North America’s busiest international waterways. This plenary will bring together Canadian and U.S. law enforcement, border security and public safety leaders to discuss the collaboration that helps safeguard the shared Canada–U.S. border while supporting secure and efficient cross-border trade.
The year ahead will require Canada’s ports to move faster, integrate more effectively with national trade corridors and adopt technologies that improve safety, predictability and sustainability.
These priorities will be top of mind at Ports Canada 2026. I invite you to register today and join port leaders, government partners, industry experts and marine-sector innovators in Windsor as we work together to strengthen Canada’s ports and the economy they support.
ACPA thanks DP World, Sustaining Partner of Ports Canada 2026.
