With just days to go before its annual international conference, AFP ICON 2025, the Association of Fundraising Professionals is allowing its international registrants fearful of traveling to the United States to receive a full refund.
In a video message to members, new President and CEO H. Art Taylor said that members had reached out and expressed concern about traveling to the conference in Seattle which starts on April 26.
“You had no expectation when you registered for this conference that this would even be an issues … that crossing the border into a country that is the land of the free would ever be an issue,” Taylor said in the video message.
“You don’t have to take the risk. … It is responsible, and in many cases preferable, that you should not come to the conference this year,” said Taylor. Those who request a full refund will receive one, he said.
“It is important that we stay together as fundraisers,” said Taylor. It is important that members know what the organization stands “FOR,” fairness, openness and respect, Taylor told The NonProfit Times.
Taylor said that the top three issues the organization heard from international members were fear at border, national pride for their home country and anger about what going on politically in the United States, from deportations to tariffs.
The AFP ICON conference generally gets 2,500 to 3,000 attendees, a combination of members and vendors from the fundraising industry, such as fundraising technology platforms. The international members generally make up 10% of attendees. The percentage is greater when the conference in held outside the United States. For example, AFP ICON 2024 was in Toronto and Canadians made up 30% of attendees.
Taylor said staff are talking to immigration lawyers in case there are border issues and exploring putting together a virtual option at the last minute.
