Symposia and Workshop Proposal Guidelines

To propose a symposium or workshop for WSC4, please provide a single-page summary of the following information in an email to the Scientific Program Committee Chairs at WSCScience@worldseabirdunion.org 

• Type of Session: Symposium (series of oral presentations on a single theme) or workshop (interactive discussion or working group) 
 
• Title: Working title (which can be revised prior to finalisation of program) 
• Conveners (symposium) or Leaders (workshop): Please include the names of at least two people, email addresses, and affiliations who are willing to act as leaders/co-leaders 
 
• Justification and description: 3-5 sentences that highlight the importance of the topic and its relevance to those attending 
 
• Time requested: Quarter-day, half-day, or full day 
 
• Potential contributors: Please list at least five lead authors/scientists who will be, or have been, invited to participate, along with their potential talk title or subject. Abstracts are not required at this stage; however, invited presenters for accepted symposia will be required to submit abstracts to the abstract submission platform during the general Call for Submissions. 
• Anticipated outcomes of the symposium or workshop: Please provide a short description of anticipated outcomes, such as a special section in a peer-reviewed journal, a guidance document, the creation or enhancement of a global database, or a funding proposal. Some sessions may not have explicit products, but instead may provide opportunities to focus a session on an important topic clearly. 
 

We will prioritize proposals with strong connections to the conference theme or location, identifiable end products, and a diversity of speakers from different geographic areas, institutions, career stages, and/or specialties.

Proposed topics that are similar may be combined at the discretion of the Scientific Program Committee after consultation with the proposers, and abstracts submitted to the general call may be integrated into relevant symposia if space permits.

We will do our best to accommodate all requests, but space and time are limited. Please note that WSC4 organisers do not have funds to support the travel costs of conveners, leaders, or presenters of accepted symposia/workshops, except for WSC4’s general travel award scheme.