Call
for Proposals
The call for proposals for oral presentation, speed
presentation, or poster will open 1 September 2008. The deadline
for symposia and workshop proposals has passed.
Instructions for preparing and submitting
abstracts
Process
SCOPE:
The Marine Section of the Society for Conservation Biology will be
hosting its first stand-alone meeting, the International Marine
Conservation Congress (IMCC), from 20-24 May 2009 at George Mason
University near Washington D.C. This will be an interdisciplinary
meeting that will engage natural and social scientists, managers,
policy-makers, and the public. The goal of the IMCC is to put
conservation science into practice through public and media outreach
and the development concrete products (e.g., policy briefs, blue ribbon
position papers) that will be used to drive policy change and
implementation. This meeting will encompass the 2nd International
Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC1 was held in Geelong, Australia
in October 2005). The IMPAC2 component will consist of an
organized cross cutting issue within the IMCC addressing MPAs though
the full range of posters, papers, workshops and symposia.
IMCC encourages authors to submit papers that apply to the
major themes and tracks below, describing original work, including
methods, techniques, applications, tools, issues, reporting research
results and/or indicating future directions.
Major themes that will be addressed
include:
• Global Climate Change
• the Land-Sea Interface
• Ecosystem-based Management
• Poverty and Globalization
Cross-cutting issues encompass topics of global relevance and
importance to marine conservation that relate to the major themes.
Cross-cutting issues include:
• Marine Protected Areas
• Education, Outreach and Capacity Building
• Governance Arrangements
• Fisheries and Aquaculture
• Economics
We anticipate that cross-cut issues will result in proposals on
a variety of sub-topics. Potential topics include but are not
limited to: networks and system development, MPA and MPA network
monitoring and evaluation, high seas impacts, ocean resource use and
planning, international instruments and trans-boundary relations,
human/animal impacts, ecological impacts of ocean acidification,
technology, stakeholder involvement, indigenous issues, improving
public ocean knowledge, incorporating traditional and local knowledge
into decision making, and valuing marine ecosystem services.
In an attempt to tackle the most pressing issues currently facing
marine conservation, IMCC will host exciting plenary talks and solicit
creative submissions for interactive symposia and workshops. The
conservation community will be challenged to go beyond the typical
communication of data and propose symposia and/or workshops where talks
will be followed by lively, participatory discussions to address a
controversial topic or develop innovative solutions to a current
conservation challenge. Individuals are limited to lead presenter
or session
organizer for
only one symposium, workshop, oral, speed, or poster
presentation. Your name can appear on more than one abstract;
make sure you are listed as the lead presenter or session organizer for
only one of them.
SYMPOSIA ORGANIZERS will be
encouraged to invite a select group of speakers and to devise creative
ways to facilitate discussion both within invited group and the
audience. Symposia are scheduled for
a 2.5 hour time period from 1:30 to 4:00 daily.
WORKSHOPS will be held to bring
together people with diverse expertise with the goal of developing a
list of recommendations, outlining a publication, co-writing a policy
briefing or white paper on a specific topic. Workshops can be held for
up to 4 consecutive days. Workshops
can be held for up to 4 consecutive days.
ORAL PRESENTATIONS will be
limited to 15 minutes: 12 minutes for presentation and 3 minutes for
questions. Contributed oral presentations will be grouped by
theme and topic. Please choose from the list of themes and general
topic areas below. This will assist us in selecting an
appropriate session for your presentation. If your abstract is
accepted but cannot be accommodated as an oral presentation, we may
offer you the opportunity to present a poster.
POSTER PRESENTATIONS
Poster presenters will receive general instructions on poster format in
the email notification of acceptance. Posters will be displayed
prominently and for the entire meeting; special sessions dedicated to
posters will allow in-depth discussion between authors and attendees.
SPEED PRESENTATIONS
If your paper topic would be of interest to a wide range of people and
you would like your presentation to lead to an extended conversation
with colleagues who are specifically interested in your work, you may
wish to submit an abstract for a speed presentation. In the first hour
of a speed presentation session, 15 speakers will be given four (4)
minutes each to present their key ideas and results. In the second
hour, presenters will station themselves at separate tables where they
can interact with people who are interested in learning more about
their work.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
We encourage proposals from individuals or groups involved in cutting
edge conservation science or practice who can demonstrate an alignment
with the goals of the Society for Conservation Biology and the SCB
Marine Section, which are:
- Conservation Science: The scientific research and knowledge
needed to understand and conserve biological diversity is identified,
funded, completed, disseminated and applied to research, management and
policy.
- Conservation Management: Conservation practitioners and managers
are provided the scientific information and recommendations needed to
conserve biological diversity at all scales.
- Policy: Policy decisions of major international conventions,
governments, organizations, and foundations, are effectively informed
and improved by the highest quality scientific counsel, analysis, and
recommendations so as to advance the conservation of biological
diversity.
- Education: Education, training, and capacity building programs
are identified, strengthened, and developed to inform the public,
education leaders, and support current and future generations of
conservation scientists and practitioners.
Individuals may submit more than one proposal; however, no
individual may give more than one presentation in the following
categories: symposium, workshop, oral presentation, speed presentation,
or poster.
Reviewers have access to the entire abstract except the names of the
presenters. To increase the probability that your abstract will be
accepted, and in your preferred format, please consider the following
criteria carefully:
- scientific merit
- application to marine conservation/management
- relevance to chosen theme/cross-cutting issue(s)
- relevance to IMCC theme (“From science to management and policy”)
- clarity of presentation (e.g. abstract begins with a clear
statement of an issue and ends with a substantive conclusion)
Please note: We do require that all presenters register
for the IMCC by the end of early bird registration: 15 February 2009.
TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT
To encourage international and student participation, we will offer the
opportunity to apply for funds to offset travel and other
expenses. Please note that these are reimbursements.
Please go to this link
to apply online.
The Travel Award Committee hopes to notify applicants by
15 December 2008. Registration for the meeting opens 15 November 2009,
with an early registration deadline of 15 February 2009.
If you are selected to receive reimbursement for travel to the meeting,
you must confirm your intent to attend the meeting by registering for
the meeting by 15 January 2009. If you do not register by January 15 we
will reallocate your travel reimbursement to the next person on our
list.
Please also note that poster/paper/symposia/workshop
acceptance is also a criterion for being awarded travel reimbursement.
MENTORING PROGRAM
To encourage participation of members whose first language is not
English, we will offer a mentoring service for participants who wish to
submit abstracts for oral, speed or poster presentations.
If you want to take advantage of this mentoring program, simply submit
an abstract according to the standard guidelines; indicate that English
is not your first language, and that you would like your abstract to be
mentored.
Instructions will be sent to your email address after you submit your
abstract online.
A mentor will contact you and provide guidance on grammar and clarity
of writing. The mentor also will ensure that the abstract meets the
technical criteria for submission. Note that it is NOT the role of the
mentor to provide scientific guidance, or to write the abstract.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Please email IMCCprogram@conbio.org
Instructions for preparing and
submitting abstracts
Dates
1st Call for oral presentations, speed presentations, and
posters:
1 September - 15 October 2008
Decisions by 30 November
2nd Call for 1500 word submissions for oral presentations
(only for presentations accepted at the first call):
1 December 1 - 15 January 2009
Decisions by February 1
