April 3-4, 2025 at McKimmon Center in Raleigh, NC… and virtually everywhere March 26-April 4!
SUBMIT YOUR IDEAS TO PRESENT AT SCIENCE TALK ’25!
Submissions will be accepted until 11:59 PM Pacific Time, September 30, 2024
DIRECTIONS & LINKS BELOW
We are now accepting submissions for speaking opportunities at the SCIENCE TALK ’25 annual conference. In 2025 we are highlighting the importance of ecosystem building over a wide spectrum of science communication activities, and exploring how various areas of scicomm can come together and span boundaries to solve problems and benefit society.
We are also moving across the country for the first time! SCIENCE TALK ’25 will be a hybrid conference, with in-person events in Raleigh, NC and real-time, online participation for speakers and attendees also available.
- Virtual (live-streamed) presentations will take place March 26-28 and 31. Precise dates/times based on presenter availability. All attendees have access to virtual presentations.
- In-person presentations will take place in Raleigh, NC on Thursday, April 3 and Friday, April 4 at the McKimmon Center. Keynotes, panels, and short talks will be live-streamed out so virtual attendees can still participate.
At this time we encourage the full interaction allowed by in-person attendance. We strongly encourage up-to-date COVID vaccination at least 2 weeks before the conference, and masking if desired. We will follow all applicable health regulations. We recognize the public health situation is fluid and will make additional decisions about in-person events based on up-to-date scientific information as the event approaches.
SUBMISSIONS OPEN: September 4, 2024
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: September 30, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific**
More detailed timeline and submission info below.
**Submissions for posters & art will be open until March 4, 2024; details coming soon
SPEAKING OPPORTUNITIES
*** Please read through ALL the information below to prepare for submitting your session idea before accessing the submission forms.***
Not required, but if you wish to speak to the “theme” of this year’s conference, consider:
Our greater ecosystem is one of civic science, open science, community science, public engagement, science policy, science journalism, equity in STEM, and more. But more often than not, what should be a cohesive system is instead fragmented. We believe science communication is a critical foundation and central connector between these diverse areas of science and society. How can we embrace spanning these boundaries to solve problems and benefit society together?
There are four types of speaking opportunities at SCIENCE TALK ’25:
Short Talk submissions: https://forms.gle/9dSoPiuZCmcmCbfn9
Workshop submissions: https://forms.gle/WBLhHgBt1ydCdeWi7
Panel submissions: https://forms.gle/mFUCNUbM6zzc1mQL8
Poster & Art submissions: Coming soon!
Short Talk Format & Guidelines:
- Session length: 20 minutes total, including Q&A
- Maximum of 2 presenters
- Presenters receive 1 full-price conference registration that can be split with a second presenter, if applicable. Travel is not included.
- If 2 presenters, plan to present both in-person, or both virtual
Workshop Format & Guidelines:
- Session length:
- In person: 75 or 90 minutes, depending on conference schedule
- Virtual: You may choose 60 or 90 minutes total. Please indicate preferred length on the submission form.
- Maximum of 4 speakers
- Workshop speakers receive 2 full-price conference registrations that can be split between speakers as applicable. Travel is not included.
- If more than 1 speaker, plan to offer your workshop all in-person, or all virtual
- Workshop should be interactive, with some formal presentation
- Audience size: Minimum 20, Maximum 100. Please indicate preferred size on form.
Panel Format & Guidelines:
- Session length: 40-45 minutes speaking, 10-15 minutes moderated Q&A
- Minimum 3 to Maximum 4 panelists, PLUS additional moderator if desired
- Panelists/moderators each receive 1 full-price conference registration per person. Travel is not included.
- Submission must include at least two prospective panelists (yourself plus one other, or two others if you plan to moderate).
- We can work with you to identify and recruit other panelists and/or moderators if needed.
- Panelists should plan to present either all in-person or all virtual
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SESSION SELECTION PROCESS & TIMELINE
All submissions are reviewed by the ASC Conference Committee. A curated list of potential workshop and short talk sessions will be presented to the Association of Science Communicators members and wider SciComm community October 23 – November 5 for voting.
Everyone in the ASC community will have an opportunity to vote for the sessions they think should appear at the conference.
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: September 30, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific
Community Voting Begins: October 23, 2024
Community Voting Ends: November 6, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific
Notification of Acceptance: Accepted sessions will receive notice by November 27, 2024
Early Bird Conference Registration Opens: December 4, 2024
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SPEAKER GUIDELINES
As the Association of Science Communicators, we would love to see sessions targeted toward professional or veteran science communicators. However, we still encourage session ideas aimed at all audiences and levels of science communication. In an effort to ensure that our audience is getting the information that is most appropriate for them, all speakers will be asked to identify a target audience for their presentation:
- Professional/Veteran science communicators
- Trainee science communicators
- All conference attendees
Please use this opportunity to teach a new science communication skill or concept, or share lessons learned about a project or collaboration. We encourage discussions of science communication theory, evaluation of science communication activities, science communication research, or putting research into practice. We ask that you refrain from pitching your services, products, or business.
In-Person Speakers:
- We strongly encourage full completion of up-to-date COVID vaccination at least 2 weeks before the conference.
- We strongly encourage in-person participation and believe we can hold a safe, fun, and meaningful event. But we recognize travel plans may change due to COVID or other developments.
- If you need to change your plans to virtual, get in touch with us asap and we will do our best to accommodate; however we cannot guarantee any virtual spots will still be open.
Virtual Speakers:
- All virtual panel, short talk and workshop speakers must participate LIVE and in REAL-TIME
- We require all virtual speakers to attend a “tech check” meeting sometime in the 2 weeks prior to the conference to confirm lighting, sound, and conference schedule.
- We will work with you to find a meeting time that works with your schedule.
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HOW TO PLAN FOR YOUR SUBMISSION
Each submission requires a name, contact information, and basic information about the qualifications for the person submitting the session idea and any co-presenters (if applicable). You must indicate whether you plan to participate in-person or online.
You will also need to include the following in your proposal. All character limits include spaces:
- Short biography for each presenter (Limit 350 characters each)
- Link to the biography page, website, or public-facing social media for each presenter
- Video or audio link that gives an example of presenter(s) speaking style
- Examples: recordings of public lectures, podcasts, social media, etc.
- How does the presenter(s) bring a unique or diverse perspective to SCIENCE TALK? (Limit 500 characters)
- Title of Session
- Short summary of your session (Limit 500 characters)
- Who is the intended audience for your session?
- All conference attendees
- Professional/Veteran science communicators
- Trainee science communicators
- What are three key take-away ideas that your audience can expect? (Limit 500 characters)
- How does your session contribute to a unique or diverse perspective in science communication? (Limit 500 characters)
- Virtual workshops: How do you plan to make the workshop interactive in a virtual environment? And please indicate your preferred session length.
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QUESTIONS?
Contact info@sciencecomm.org
