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New Initiative: Open Conferences
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At a glance
- Submission Name: New Initiative: Open Conferences
- Contact Lead: [email protected]
- External Site Link (optional - primarily for projects): https://globalyoungacademy.net/activities/open-science/
- Region: #Global
- Issue Area: #OpenResearch
- Issue Type: #Project
- Types of Support Needed: _ #Advocacy_and_Policy, #Communications, #Community_GrassrootsOrganizing.
Description
Conferences are essential for scientific exchange, the incubation of new ideas and the presentation of the latest results of cutting edge research. In some disciplines, presentation at key conferences and publication in their proceedings are even more important than publications in peer reviewed journals.
Many scholars face insurmountable barriers to attending these important conferences. While special provisions are often in place to allow students to participate, they usually do not exist for more senior scholars who cannot muster the financing needed to attend. This means that many scientists from low- and middle-income countries are de facto excluded from the events that define their fields.
This is not only unfair to those without financial means, but having these scholars at important meetings will also give us insights into a wider range of work, contexts and perspectives that will benefits us all.
How can we make conferences more Open and Diverse?
What are we working on during the do-a-thon? What kinds of support do we need?
- Let's brainstorm on how to make conferences more Open.
- Which networks can we use to spread this initiative?
- What are the best ways to advertise?
- How can we get organizers to commit to the Open Conferences principle?
- How do we start a grassroots movement?
- Should we boycott conferences that are not diverse?
- One path we're exploring at the Global Young Academy is to launch a petition that urges conference organizers to make their conferences more open and diverse, e.g. by offering support from scholars from low- and middle income countries. Is this a good way forward?
How can others contribute?
- Let's discuss here!
- After discussing: let's spread the word! Use your networks!
- If you're an organizer: make your conferences open and diverse!
This post is part of the OpenCon 2017 Do-A-Thon. Not sure what's going on? Head here.
This is a fantastic initiative--I've been thinking about these very questions myself a lot lately. Happy to join in!
I should also say that I'm involved with Virtually Connecting, which is a group that connects people onsite at conferences with virtual people in a conversation. Those are usually more "hallway conversations" after or between sessions, and while they are GREAT it many ways, I am interested in figuring out what else can be done and working on it.
thanks for your note. I think virtually connecting at conferences with a diversity of actions is a promising route!
I am with you! This is one of the difficult gaps to close. We have had (though very few) excellent PhDs and (somewhat more) researchers being highly productive with truly international level output. One of the differences between them and one living in a developed country would be the lack of exposure to standard conferences in his/her area.
Notes from the session:
Outcomes and slides need to be useable and public - conference as OER
What are the standards:
- scholarship support
- materials posted online before the start of the conference
- time and money devoted to creative a useful archive (OER)
- value, record, and credit online participation as much as in-person participation
- diverse organizing committee
What are the values:
- have certificates for online attendance and participation
- have other side benefits of conferences like sponsor presentation and benefits
- translation and captioning
- archived and low bandwidth options
- summaries
- scholarships supporting translation
What's important:
- who people talk to in the breaks
- how can you do networking online?
- speed networking
- cultural exchange day or event (matched up by the program)
- visibility for newcomers
- people who are responsible for networking and introductions
- make sure that projects/workshops have broad representation (self-assignment can lead to less diverse workshops because people stay with the people they know)
- follow up, what happens after a conference (you got knowledge, what will you do after the conference)
For newcomers
- networking/mentors
Challenge
- you have to publish or present two papers. publishing is longer and harder, but presenting at a conference is very expensive and graduate students don't have budgets. So PhD's last much longer because they can't present they have to publish.
- you miss benefits of networking such as the connection with wikimedia libraries foundation (how to get that benefit online of one-on-one focus
- what do we ask of speakers/sponsors/attendees
- senior attendees can offer one-one-one attendees
- have a delayed opportunity for online participants to ask questions
- social media platforms are regional (while twitter is popular in some academic circles, facebook is used as the default in lots of places.)
- have information about the culture and the ways to understand the city (big ways and small ways, understand that preparation and common understandings can differ a lot in what people know and expect about travel.)
- open structure if it means flexible, decentralized, self-organizing can be exclusive because it relies on existing invitations and relationships.
Laura Rothfritz Alexandra Bartsch Nouran Rezk Solomon Tekle Meredith Jacob Koen Vermeir
Hi all,
thanks for the great discussions so far!
we'll continue our discussion in the Goethe room (the main conference room) after lunch and the lightning sessions.
Thanks for joining in! --Koen
Still going strong! Thanks Helena Lyhme, Claudia Iordache, and others for participating. I'll try to post results soon!
Here's the google doc to work on https://docs.google.com/document/d/18ByQZNkEVcSZcboX1w7oKA45zIx61pNMSlfe7KrkSGo/edit?usp=sharing
For those of us virtual and in a different time zone (I'm on the West coast of N. America), how can we best contribute? Just getting started on my Monday here! :)
Hi Christina, I'm sorry about that: we were ending our session when you got started with your day! I'm now at another conference, but once I get back home, I'll continue update github and googledocs. Looking forward to your input! all best