CARD Nationals: Conference of Scholars
Weber State Tournament and Conference of Scholars 2026
Explore student research and projects on the 2026 Conference theme: Labor and Union Policy.
What is to be done in the face of growing economic inequality and the changing nature of work? For more than a century, labor movements and trade unions have shaped wages, working conditions, and democratic participation across the globe. Yet union density has declined in many countries even as worker precarity, corporate concentration, and technological change have accelerated. From gig work and automation to global supply chains and migrant labor, workers today face profound challenges to collective action and economic security. CARD seeks to develop student skills in practicing democratic citizenship. This year’s topic invites students to examine the role of labor and unions in addressing these challenges and to consider how workers, institutions, and citizens can respond at local, national, and global levels.
View student's academic research below
Teacher Unionization in America | Annika Walla and Ella Horner, Western Washington University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1-O0vTLdKNmyf5uaAsAxtFgsybvtbKHa8 |
Performance as Challenge and Enhancement in CARD Debate: What Labor Debate has Taught us. | Lorelai Sassenfeld, Masha Mironova, Parker Nagy, Owen Dye, Owen Adams, Joey Leathem, Jadon Scmitt, Brandon Nguyen, University of Oregon, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1HQnpK1T4gZ5u84pFOGGy_Fb2Qu5C9hX9 |
Beyond Economic Output: A Humanist Reimagination of Labor Rights through Analysis of Law | El Jones, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1f7G2rTyWHFuVyZuhGZamyDrKQfYMVw5u |
Serial policy failure and the reinforcement of cruel optimism. | Cheyenne Abeyta, Fullerton College, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1rmFlX9WG5M9dHKlMdGHk_MqS9DjTyY5tRShZcRSbt9c |
Unions Are Revolutionary | Belen Rodriguez and Jonathan Crowley, Western Washington University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1sRd1G7ZN7VTrA8GoxsZkrxyhuWLLz0JR |
The Art of Labor | Lucy McDonough, Weber State University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Hd-uRybQe6VYF1zpup8j1g2u54J7nQil |
The intrinsic Blackness of Labor | Mariama Jallow, Johnson County Community College, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1sgzSaDXc5zaTQVdzTdD6UIOob36R6566 |
Reclaiming Power in a Data-Driven Workplace | Mac Kelly, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1R08S6JffkajqD5_zkPBjS3ekCaM8Fi6q |
Automated Inequality: The Crucial Role Of Labor Unions In The Digital Age | Esther Mosaku, University of Puget Sound, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1IB6DLDJiqMyL20FLYeIdtTJjp-6tpaOH |
Psychological Determinants of Youth Revitalization of the Labor Movement | Liberty Shake, University of Puget Sound, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1s74NWh3C0B8PwGcrGQR-5Nf517EmgspS |
2012 Chicago Teachers Strike: A Case Study | Keira Lee and Mason Naccache, Western Washington University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ISJUe0AhiTkYLMcZTZGrNVMw9eN4VFva |
A Labor of Love: Gendered Affective Labor and Intercollegiate Policy Debate | Kaelyn Wellman, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1DSkEAtV7pKV-3j4j97nOdma6WpJz36jD |
Socially Reproductive Labor and the Value of Debate | Everett Roe, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1N7LXDZTEGBW0-_7GmVOOrT7emga1EqfX |
Lessons From Swedish Syndicalist Unionization at the Turn of the 20th Century | Jack Petrie & Gwendolynn Cheney, Western Washington University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1yfhVjMPDgNcTqpkhHhBuTngG4Vgz620e |
Labor and Union Dynamics in Ukraine: Gender, War, and Economic Inequality | Sofia Praslova, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1MBBKfxO9syg0owzAwXBRhDdvzieqtl1L |
Saving American Labor Unions Requires Public Support | Alexander Munson, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1pHnHhrXHf9wHrOeNBz8j70If6cPcaRfjBzCGlkUdqVM |
Rebuilding Collective Bargaining: Strategies for Enacting the PRO Act in a Polarized Congress | Brady Oakleaf, Gonzaga University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | https://drive.google.com/open?id=1WGiCA_lNgNLnunl5svXybinMpe2AZCdFBepxPdECFQY |
A Visual Interpretation of the Labor Landscape | Mia Allen, Weber State University, Labor Topic, Conference of Scholars, 2026 | wix:document://v1/ugd/7067a6_1f413168f583416b9de350683aeb435e.docx/TACOS%20Conference%20Paper%20-%20Mia%20Allen%20(1).docx |