2026 IFTN Annual Professional Development Conference

Beyond Assets: Roles, Relationships, and Family Dynamics in Farm Transition - Facilitating Better Transitions for Farm Families

Dates: Tuesday, June 2 – Wednesday, June 3

Location: Wyndham Gettysburg, 95 Presidential Circle, Gettysburg, PA 17325

Registration:

Hotel Reservations: For hotel reservations please call the Hotel Reservations at 717-339-0020, Option 3 by Saturday, May 2. Individuals must identify themselves as being with the group, International Farm Transition Network, at the time the reservation is made in order to receive the special group rate.

Description: Farm transition is commonly framed in technical terms, with an emphasis on assets, ownership and legal structures. While these elements remain essential, experience across research, extension and professional practice consistently shows that successful succession depends just as much on how families navigate roles, relationships, and decision-making over time. 

This year’s IFTN conference focuses on the human and relational dimensions of farm succession, recognizing that transitions involve not only the transfer of land and business assets, but also the transfer of labor, skills, authority, responsibility and identity. These processes are shaped by long-standing family norms, expectations, communication patterns, and emotional attachments, all of which require skilled facilitation and trust-building. 

By centering roles, relationships, and family dynamics, the conference creates space for open, constructive discussion of sensitive issues, including gendered expectations, intergenerational negotiation, and uneven participation in decision-making, without positioning them as abstract or divisive concepts. This approach reflects IFTN’s commitment to holistic, facilitated farm transition planning that supports farm families in making informed, equitable, and sustainable transition decisions. 

Announcement: Working on farm transition? Are you interested in sharing your farm transition case study, program, tool, or insight? Apply to present a 10-minute session during our Lightning Rounds at this year’s conference.

More details coming soon!