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Call for AAAS Workshops

Deadline Reached

Science for Humanity

2023 AAAS ANNUAL MEETING

March 2-5, 2023

Washington, DC

CALL FOR WORKSHOPS

Deadline, Monday, July 25, 2022, 11:59 p.m. PT

Proposals will not be accepted after the deadline.

The scientific endeavor aims to provide findings, models, tools, and advances to better understand and address the myriad complex challenges facing society. Meeting this goal requires collective objectivity determined by a wealth of individual and diverse perspectives and experiences—a sample as broad as the diversity of disciplines in the scientific endeavor itself.

Highlighting the importance and just integration of our multiplicity, the 2023 AAAS Annual Meeting will feature groundbreaking multi-disciplinary research – research that advances knowledge and responds to the needs of humanity. Drawing from work ranging from astronomy to zoology, the program committee seeks proposals that highlight breakthroughs in science and technology and, in particular, those that incorporate the importance of diversity – in its investigators, subjects of study, and translational implications.

The AAAS Annual Meeting Scientific Program Committee is particularly interested in proposals that connect to the theme. However, proposals not directly related to the theme will be considered if they involve ground-breaking areas of research, new and exciting developments or new angles for approaching a topic, or cross-cutting activities in support of science, technology, and education. See the Proposal Review Considerations section for the information provided to reviewers.

GENERAL INFORMATION

PROPOSALS OF INTEREST

Workshops: Workshops are aimed at students or scientists focused on seeking STEM careers and/or sharpening or supplementing their skills. They should be instructional or informational and are not a place to discuss scientific findings. They should be structured in a dynamic way, providing the opportunity for attendees to participate in 1-2 activities over the 45-minute time period, with concrete takeaways and a downloadable handout with guidance on the topic covered in the session.

Once the session proposal is accepted, in order to participate in the meeting, all panelists will need to sign a recording waiver.

Successful proposals have at least one of the following goals:

  • Highlighting opportunities or resources available to enhance or augment their careers
  • Exploring a variety of career choices and routes for people who are pursuing or already have scientific or engineering degrees
  • Assisting students, scientists, or engineers with communicating about science
  • Helping students, scientists, or engineers with life and work skills and issues such as assessing their own skills, abilities, and interests; managing dual-career relationships; sustaining a healthy work-life balance; and planning for retirement
  • Advising on ways to improve the culture of the scientific community, making it more inclusive and equitable to its members and society at large.
  • Informing the community about scientific advocacy strategies and opportunities.

AUDIENCE

Based on previous registration data, here is the overall profile for Annual Meeting attendees:

  • The top work sector categories are 60% from the academic sector, 11% Government, and 9% Research. AAAS is very interested in receiving proposals that draw from the Industry sector.
  • 85% have advanced degrees, with 50% holding PhDs
  • 50% identified as Male, 45% as Female and 5% Non-binary/prefer not to answer
  • The age groups are equally spread between the following groups: 25-34 years, 35 to 44 years, 45 to 54 years, 55 to 64 years, and 65 years or over.

SESSION SET UP

Each Workshop will be provided with:

  • An LCD projector and screen
  • One Projector and accompanying screen
  • A head table with seating for the presenters and at least 2 mics.
  • One corded mic on a stand for audience questions and answers.

*A final equipment list will be sent with acceptance notifications.

Arrangements and costs for upgraded or additional equipment (for example, TV, CD/DVD player, Internet connection, laser pointer, additional microphones) are the responsibility of the organizer and will not be billed to AAAS.

TIMELINE

March 18: Scientific session, lightning talk and workshop proposal submission sites open.

June 6: Deadline for sign-up to be a scientific session proposal reviewer.

June 16: Deadline for submitting scientific session and lightning talk proposals.

June 27: Scientific and lightning talk proposal review opens.

July 12: Scientific and lightning talk proposal review closes.

July 25: Deadline for submitting workshop proposals.

August: Program Committee meets to select scientific sessions, lightning talk proposal.

September: Session organizers receive accept, conditionally accept or decline notifications which include instructions for next steps.

COMMUNICATION
To receive notifications and updates, please ensure that the following email addresses will not be blocked: meetings@aaas.org; agreene@aaas.org; cjones@aaas.org; nmaylett@aaas.org, and aaas@confex.com.

NOTE ON LANGUAGE: For language choice, use American English spelling and translations. Spell out all abbreviations and acronyms.

*AAAS reserves the right to edit all submissions for publication, as they will be published in the online meeting program, pocket guide, and app. Modifications are sometimes made to improve clarity and encourage attendance.

FIVE STEPS TO FOLLOW TO SUBMIT A WORKSHOP PROPOSAL


Read these instructions carefully first, then click the “submit” button in the sidebar. Incomplete proposals will be eliminated from consideration.


1. SET UP PROPOSAL

PROPOSED TITLE (Maximum of 80 characters including spaces)

When creating a title, keep in mind that meeting attendees may be more likely to attend a workshop with an interesting title.

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION (Maximum of 750 characters including spaces)
Provide a clear, succinct description of your proposed workshop, including the value it will have for career development. Describe the subject, highlighting the questions, career development issues, or needs to be addressed. How is the workshop relevant to career development or knowledge of science’s relationship to society? What are the core ideas that will be shared with the audience and key takeaways? In what ways will the audience be involved? This synopsis will appear in the online program.

NEWSWORTHINESS
Highlight how the topic will be newsworthy. Is it relevant to current events? Is the discovery new or unexpected? How could it impact the public’s lives?

AUDIENCE

Each year, we welcome an audience that is enthusiastic about advances in science and technology. Based on previous registration data, here is the overall profile for Annual Meeting attendees:

  • The top work sector categories are 60% from the academic sector, 11% Government. and 9% Research. AAAS is very interested in hearing proposals that draw from the industry sector.
  • 85% have advanced degrees, with 50% holding PhDs.
  • 50% identified as male, 45% as female and 5% non-binary/prefer not to answer
  • The age groups are equally spread between the following groups: 25 to 34 years, 35 to 44 years, 45 to 54 years, 55 to 64 years, and 65 years or over.

Please identify the intended audience(s) for your workshop. Select all that apply.

  • High School
  • Graduate Student
  • High-School Teacher
  • Program Administrator
  • Mid-Career Scientist
  • Undergraduate
  • Postdoctoral Scholars
  • College and University Faculty
  • Early-Career Scientist
  • Late-Career Scientist

AUDIENCE TAKE-AWAYS (Maximum of 2,000 characters with spaces)
What will participants take away from this session? What can they immediately put in use as a result of attending this session?

MATERIALS
AAAS requires presenters to provide materials to participants through electronic means.

2. ADD/EDIT PEOPLE

You will be required to enter the following information for each individual:

  • Name (confirm correct spelling)
  • Email address (confirm address where messages can be received year-round)
  • Identify whether individual is a member of AAAS
  • Job Title
  • Status (Confirmed or Invited)
  • Affiliation (primary institution; confirm correct spelling)
  • Complete mailing address
  • Telephone number

AAAS needs this information to confirm participation and registration for the meeting.

Explanation of Roles


Coordinator

(required) (Maximum 1)

  • The coordinator is the primary person responsible for shaping the topic, coordination, and recruitment of participants.
  • The coordinator serves as the primary contact for all communications with AAAS Meetings staff and must ensure that participants receive all information relevant to their inclusion of the proposal in the meeting if the workshop proposal is accepted.
  • After workshop proposal acceptance, the coordinator is responsible for providing, in a timely manner, information regarding any changes in participants and reason for the change to AAAS for final approval. No changes will be made to the session unless communicated directly by the organizer.

Co-coordinator(optional) (Maximum 1)

  • Co-coordinators may assist the organizer with lining up presenters and ensuring that deadlines are met by workshop participants.

Presenters(required) (Minimum 1, Maximum 3)

  • Each workshop can have up to three (3) presenters.

3. SUBJECT CATEGORIES AND KEYWORDS

Please select the Primary and Secondary Subject Categories as well as (3) three to (5) five keywords that best describe the overall nature of the proposal. This information is used to ensure that reviewers are assigned correctly. To improve matching, there is now only one write-in option. The full list of subject categories and keywords can be found here.

4. CONFIRMATION

Once you have entered the required information for Steps 1-4, review all the information you have submitted. If you need to make corrections, click on the appropriate step link in the left frame. Otherwise, click the “Submit” button at the bottom of the page. To log out, simply close your browser window. If you run into any problems, please email your questions or comments using the hyperlink for Technical Support that appears in the Scientific Session Control Panel.

Additional Note: Once a proposal has been accepted into the program, any change to the session topic or participants must be approved by AAAS.

REGISTRATION AND SUPPORT
Workshop session participants (Coordinators, co-coordinators, and presenters) participate in the AAAS Annual Meeting at their own expense or use funding secured by workshop organizers. By submitting a workshop proposal, organizers and presenters agree to register and pay meeting registration fees if the workshop proposal is accepted.

PROPOSAL REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS: WORKSHOPS

The following are considerations provided to reviewers. Submitters should carefully follow the instructions for submitting their proposals, which will be evaluated for completeness and clarity. Incomplete proposals will not be reviewed.

        1. Evaluate the proposal in general:
          • Is information adequate for evaluation?
          • Does the proposal clearly describe the session?
          • Is it well organized and coherent?
        2. Evaluate the topic:
          • Is the topic timely and newsworthy?
          • Is the topic too narrow or technical for a multidisciplinary audience?
        3. Evaluate the content:
          • Does it offer a unique opportunity to AAAS attendees that would not be available in another venue?
          • Will presenters present topics from which dynamic discussions can develop?
          • Consider overall merit and the importance of including the proposed session in the program. Presenters should refrain from simply “teaching” the audience basic science and proposals focused on promoting specific projects or programs are discouraged unless they significantly emphasize broader applicability. Strong proposals include a demonstration of research results and evidence of conclusions , rather than descriptions of projects or programs in earlier stages of development.
        4. Evaluate the participants:
          • Can they speak authoritatively on their topic?
          • Is the panel composed of diverse organizations and institutions?
          • Are the presentations integrated and coherent as a group?
          • Does the panel present a balanced perspective?
          • Are they all “invited” or “confirmed”?
        5. Overall Judgement:

Finally, make an overall judgment about the relative merit of each proposal, expressed as a rank ordering of all the proposals you review, with 1 as the best, 2 the second best, and so on. This rank should be based on the previous four criteria, but it need not be from a mechanical arithmetic average of your communicated scores. Different criteria may figure more or less strongly in your judgment of each proposal, based on the particular nature of that proposal, and this can be reflected in your overall rankings.

WORKSHOPS

New Submissions Closed