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20 July 2026
Advancing safety through insight, innovation and leadership
Original Publication: April 2, 2026 | Updated: July 2026
Reflecting a global commitment to zero harm, the ISSA Mining Safety Conference 2026 brings together world-class speakers and industry experts spanning North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia.
The conference is co-hosted by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) alongside the Health and Safety Society of CIM (HSS), ISSA Mining, SMA, and WCB Saskatchewan, will take place September 22 to 24, 2026, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
The comprehensive program is structured around 8 core pillars that address the physical, technological, and psychosocial complexities of modern mining environments.
The 8 Pillars of Modern Mining Safety
1. Technology, AI & Digital Tools
The digital frontier is shifting mine safety from reactive reporting to predictive risk management. Sessions like Agent Advantage, Digital Distance, and Learning Machines investigate how artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, real-time risk detection, automation, and human-in-the-loop system design can proactively eliminate hazards on site.
- Sessions techniques :
- Agent Advantage
- Digital Distance
- Learning Machines
- Digital to the Core
- High Tech, Low Risk
- Panel: Leadership, Culture, Technology and Innovation (explores how emerging technologies shape future safety outcomes)
- Student Competitions & Special Events: AI4Safe Mines Student Competition (finalists pitch AI-based safety innovations during the conference)
- Student Competitions & Special Events: AI4Safe Mines Student Competition (finalists pitch AI-based safety innovations during the conference)
2. Leadership & Safety Culture
Safety is an operational value driven from the top down. Industry leaders—including Nutrien’s President & CEO Ken Seitz—will lead discussions on organizational accountability, positive leadership, and how to build "learning organizations" that align executive priorities with frontline realities.
- Opening Keynote Address by Nutrien's President & CEO Ken Seitz (setting the executive standard for embedded safety strategy)
- Panel: Leadership, Culture, Technology and Innovation
- Technical Session: Moments That Matter
- Short Courses:
- Unlocking Vision Zero with the "Positive Leadership – Key to Vision Zero" Guide (using evidence-based frameworks to empower workforce reporting and ownership)
- Everyday Allies (focuses on inclusive leadership, allyship, and communication)
3. Mental Health & Wellbeing
Recognizing that healthy minds drive safe operations, this pillar focuses directly on psychological safety. Panels and dedicated sessions will explore practical wellness frameworks, peer support resources, and mental health interventions tailored for remote, shift-work, and high-intensity mining environments.
- Technical Session: Safe Minds, Safe Work
- Panel: Psychological Health (explores worker well-being, early intervention, and building resilient teams)
- Short Course: Mental Health First Aid Essentials (connecting psychological health directly to operational safety)
4. Serious Injury & Fatality Prevention
At the heart of the "zero harm" mission is the elimination of life-altering incidents. This pillar centres on critical control management, high-energy hazards (HEH), and analyzing lessons learned from past operational failures to implement more robust safety systems.
- Technical Session: Smart Ground Control (connecting engineering practices with real-time monitoring of physical risk)
- Panel: Fall Protection (organized by CSA, focusing on evolving protection standards and practical application in mines)
- Short Course: Insight to Action: Process Safety Essentials in Mining (helping identify systemic gaps and defining immediate actions to strengthen critical risk management)
5. Shared Learnings & Best Practice
The global mining community is only as strong as its shared knowledge. Rather than keeping insights siloed, this pillar provides a platform for practical case studies, cross-site transfers of success stories, and benchmarking industry metrics that are proven to improve safety metrics.
- Technical Session: Safety in a Volatile World (understanding how external market conditions and geopolitical pressures influence risk)
- Panel: Contractor Safety (strengthening shared accountability across complex and multi-employer project environments)
- Short Course: Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) in Practice: Learning from Real World Change (shifting from blame-based approaches to learning and system-level adaptability via case studies)
6. Legacy Plan
True safety progress must be sustainable. The Legacy Plan sessions focus on long-term roadmaps, corporate governance, and continuous capability building to ensure that the safety initiatives implemented today continue to protect workers for generations to come.
- Technical Session: Beyond the Checklist (focuses on shifting from passive regulatory checklists to active, continuous capability building).
7. Regulatory & Legal Frameworks
Navigating the modern legal landscape is essential. In sessions like The Legal Line, safety compliance is reframed not as a bureaucratic burden, but as a proactive integrated risk governance framework that supports accountability across all corporate levels.
- Technical Session: The Legal Line (demystifying risk governance and accountability at all corporate levels)
- Short Course: Lived Experience from a Legal Practitioner: Navigating Due Diligence, Supervisory Obligations and Criminal Negligence Laws in Canada in the Mining Context (understanding legal responsibilities to build defensible compliance frameworks)
8. Emergency Preparedness & Response
When critical situations occur, readiness is everything. This pillar emphasizes the continuous optimization of mine rescue teams, advanced crisis management planning, and modernizing emergency response systems to meet the demands of deeper or more isolated mines.
- Short Course: Ventilation Strategies, Radiation Control, and Occupational Safety in Uranium Mines (focuses on technical controls and mitigating emergency/chronic hazards within highly specialized underground environments)
Hands-On Training & Specialized Programming
Beyond the core technical presentations, the ISSA 2026 program has finalized several interactive avenues for professional development:
- Short Courses (Sept. 22): Intensive, half-day ($350) and full-day ($600) courses designed to build hands-on competency. Attendees are eligible to earn Continuing Professional Development (CPD) hours. All course notes will be distributed digitally via PDF.
- Vision Zero Awards Scheme: Celebrating excellence across multiple subcategories, including the Leadership Award, Prevention Culture Award, and targeted honours recognizing Employee Involvement and safety for Young Workers.
- Experiential Site Visits: Excursions include a specialized scientific tour of the Canadian Light Source (CLS) synchrotron facility, and a half-day historical tour ($95) connecting delegates with the regional heritage of Saskatoon at Wanuskewin Park and the Western Development Museum.
Essential Event Logistics & Venue Information
- Main Venue: Prairieland Park (503 Ruth Street West, Saskatoon, SK).
- Transportation: A complimentary shuttle service will run continuously between Prairieland Park and the official, partner ISSA 2026 hotels.
- Registration: Open now with structured group discounts (10% off for teams of 10–19; 20% off for teams of 20+).
By marrying regulatory governance with digital innovation and boots-on-the-ground technical training, the updated ISSA 2026 program ensures that every attendee returns to their operations with a tangible blueprint for injury prevention.
Important note: the technical program content, speakers, and timing remain subject to change.
For the most up-to-date scheduling, room assignments, and real-time adjustments, please refer to the official ISSA Technical Program page.
