What do Fish Mean to Us? Perspectives Above and Below the Water

 

Preliminary Call for Proposals – Symposia, Workshops, and Innovative Sessions

Submissions Open: December 1, 2021

Proposal Deadline: January 28, 2022

 

Our theme, “What do fish mean to us?” seeks to examine the ways that people value fish and fisheries from a variety of perspectives. We expect to develop a program that includes symposia that cover topics of marine, estuarine, and freshwater fisheries management; commercial, subsistence, and sport fishing; cultural and historical roles of fish and fisheries; impacts on water and fish populations from energy, resource extraction, and land use; native and nonnative fisheries; the intersection of traditional cultural knowledge and western research practices; and the role of the many publics who rely on or enjoy aquatic resources. Spokane’s location in the intermountain west is uniquely positioned to offer a program that tackles all these issues.

The Spokane Program Committee invites proposals for symposia, pre-conference workshops and continuing education courses, and innovative sessions that support the theme and look to advance the fisheries profession.

Symposium proposals:

Symposia are the scientific centerpiece of these annual conferences and are sessions organized around a specific topic. The 2022 Spokane Program Committee is seeking proposals for half-day and full-day symposia. The committee is soliciting proposals that cover the topics that include incorporation of cultural perspective and traditional knowledge in management and policy, increasing equity and inclusion in the fisheries profession, and how the fisheries field could better prepare for change. Additional topics could include advancing technology and techniques, data management improvements, and hatchery reform. They may include individual presentations, panel discussions, or other formats.

 

Symposium organizers will be responsible to prepare proposals, coordinate with the program committee as the program is developed, solicit presentations for the sessions, approve/deny the inclusions of additional abstracts from the general abstract submission, communicate with speakers, and identify moderators for the live session.

 

We encourage all organizers to visit our web-based whiteboard that will allow for people to post session ideas and to collaborate with others in the development of sessions. This will also provide the opportunity for connections to be made prior to the meeting and potential reduce the overlap in session topics. Access to this tool will require that you establish an account and will be linked to our submission page.

 

Workshop/Continuing Education proposals:

Pre-conference workshops and continuing education courses will be offered onsite as half-day, full-day, or two-day sessions. Workshops should be designed to offer in-depth professional development that is of interest to a variety of participants, ranging from students to professionals. It is also acceptable to propose workshops for specific audiences.

Innovative Sessions:

The Program Committee encourages organizers to submit creative proposals for sessions that utilize and engaging design, approaches, and formats. These proposals could include lightening/speed presentation sessions, slam sessions, or other interactive and non-traditional sessions.

Proposal Submission and Requirements:

All proposals need to be submitted through the online portal. Proposals will be reviewed and the Program Committee may request revisions or collaborations to reduce overlap in topics and strengthen offerings. Organizers will be notified regarding the status of their proposals by February 11, 2022.

 

Proposals will be asked to include the following information:

1. Session Type: Symposium, workshop, innovative session
2. Intended length: 1 block, half day, full day, 2 days
3. Session Title
4. Organizer(s): Name and contact information, submitting organizer will be the point of contact
5. Description: A brief description of your session that will be included in the online program
6. Session abstract: There will be a 350 words or 2,500 characters limit.

 

Questions: Please contact the Program and Symposia Chair, Laurie Earley, [email protected] for questions related to the submissions of Symposium or Innovative Session proposals. Please contact Lauren Maza, [email protected] with any questions on workshops or continuing education questions.

 

Please note: As we have learned through the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual conference options provide the opportunity to increase accessibility and involvement. Although conference details are still in the works, there will likely be a virtual/hybrid option. This will mean that presenters in symposia and contributed sessions will be require to provide a recorded version of their presentation prior to the meeting. These presentations will be available for all registrants at the start of the meeting and an in-person session will be scheduled for live presentations during the meeting. More details will be provided as the program is developed and session organizers can work with the Program Committee Co-Chairs (Laurie Earley, [email protected]; Jeff Fryer, [email protected]) as more details are determined.