Making IB Scholarship Matter at AIB 2025: A Welcome Letter from AIB President Gary Knight

Dear AIB Colleagues,

It is a great pleasure to welcome you to this Annual Meeting of the Academy of International Business. This year’s theme, “Making IB Scholarship Matter,”  is especially vital in an era of global challenges and increasing emphasis on the importance of meaningful and responsible research in IB. Globalization is more dynamic than ever. Today’s world presents us with various geopolitical challenges, technological progress, and countless opportunities to advance research and teaching on sustainability and economic development.

As this year’s Call for Papers suggests, our work as IB scholars has the potential for greater impact than ever before ― making scholarship matter. In pursuing AIB’s mission, we must continually innovate our research and teaching in the ever-evolving world of IB. Our 2025 Annual Meeting aims to demonstrate to IB scholars and the world how we approach the challenges, turbulence, and transitions that characterize our field today.

The ability to function dynamically is one of AIB’s greatest strengths. The AIB Regional Chapters provide us with broad, global reach. Our Shared Interest Groups (SIGs) support members in concentrating on specific areas of IB research and teaching. The AIB journals ― AIB Insights, Journal of International Business Policy, and the Journal of International Business Studies ― provide the means for presenting fresh discoveries while serving as repositories on evolving scholarly and practical knowledge.

Over time, the AIB has become a locus of activity, a beacon of knowledge development and dissemination in the constantly evolving world of International Business.  Alongside the annual conference, our various components provide training on research, teaching, and career development through a wide range of programming: Chapter conferences, SIG events, various webinars and workshops. We are also a platform for networking with top scholars and like-minded colleagues in the multifarious disciplines and domains of IB. The AIB components comprise many people, offering their time, wisdom, and worldliness for the common good.

The plentitude of AIB will be on full display at our 2025 Annual Meeting in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. The Pre-Conference Program will offer various colloquia, consortia, masterclasses, workshops, and welcome events. The Main Conference will include plenaries, receptions, special sessions, panels, competitive and interactive sessions, and many opportunities for social interaction with both new and long-time members.

AIB 2025 Louisville would not be possible without the generous support and participation of our members. We want to express our deep gratitude to Professors Srilata Zaheer and Sjoerd Beugelsdijk, for their tireless efforts in developing the Conference and Pre-Conference Programs. Great thanks are also due to the ever-present, tireless efforts of the AIB Secretariat, including our Executive Director, Tunga Kiyak, and his team ― Ieva, Anne, Bernice, Dan, and Kathy ― for bringing together this world-class event. We also want to thank the numerous universities and other organizations that serve as sponsors of events and awards in the AIB Pre-Conference and the Main Conference.

This year’s host city, Louisville, Kentucky, has a rich history nearly as long as the United States itself. Wrapped in southern hospitality and natural beauty, Louisville offers a distinctive blend of attractions and a vibrant food scene. The city boasts diverse cultural experiences, and is well known for its restaurants, live entertainment, Kentucky bourbon, horse-racing, and location at the crossroads of the central and eastern United States. Kentucky, the ‘Bluegrass State’, features the Appalachian Mountains, the Mississippi River, and a diverse landscape. The state is famous for its rolling hills, horse farms, and the annual Kentucky Derby.

AIB 2025 Louisville promises to be an exciting event, showcasing the best of IB scholarship, teaching, and service. It remains for attendees to soak in the knowledge, learning opportunities, networking, and social interaction that the conference has to offer, with a particular focus on meaningful and responsible scholarship and teaching in IB.

Sincerely,
Gary Knight
AIB President, 2024-2025