The Virtual Streptococcal Seminar Series and Trainee Symposium: Adaptations of a Research Community during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Spencer, Brady L.; Doran, Kelly S.; Burcham, Lindsey R.

doi:10.1128/jmbe.v22i1.2479

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 12 publications

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“…Furthermore, the internet connections were not reliable for all attendees and presenters, leading to exclusion from synchronous content. The digital gap specifically affected our rural or international attendees, and we expect internet connectivity issues disproportionately impacted other underrepresented and minoritized populations as noted by other pandemic-era conference organizers (Spencer et al 2021). The availability of prerecorded presentations and recorded live sessions helped to overcome connectivity challenges and language barriers.…”

Section: Goals 4 and 5: Inclusion And Accessibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning from the First Citizen Science Association Virtual Conference

Hils

Kelty

Hjarding

et al. 2023

CSTP

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The Citizen Science Association (CSA) is a member-driven organization that connects people with interest in community/citizen science (c*science) from a wide range of backgrounds, disciplines, and experiences. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the bi-annual CSA conference pivoted away from an in-person format to a virtual format. CitSciVirtual: Local, Global, Connected occurred throughout May 2021 and brought together more than 700 attendees from 36 countries. The conference prioritized interactive experiences for attendees, including 16 collaborative poster sessions featuring 240 virtual posters, 55 workshops to learn and practice new skills, and 7 social events. This paper summarizes the impacts of the rapid transition to a virtual format on the conference goals, planning and decision-making processes, practices, outcomes, and attendee experiences. Both the strengths and weaknesses of this first virtual conference are featured to outline opportunities for growth for the CSA, c*science at large, and science conferences in general.

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Section: Goals 4 and 5: Inclusion And Accessibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning from the First Citizen Science Association Virtual Conference

Hils

Kelty

Hjarding

et al. 2023

CSTP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Brain barriers virtual: an interim solution or future opportunity?

Holder

Tolan

Heinrich

et al. 2022

Fluids Barriers CNS

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Background Scientific conferences are vital communication events for scientists in academia, industry, and government agencies. In the brain barriers research field, several international conferences exist that allow researchers to present data, share knowledge, and discuss novel ideas and concepts. These meetings are critical platforms for researchers to connect and exchange breakthrough findings on a regular basis. Due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, all in-person meetings were canceled in 2020. In response, we launched the Brain Barriers Virtual 2020 (BBV2020) seminar series, the first stand-in virtual event for the brain barriers field, to offer scientists a virtual platform to present their work. Here we report the aggregate attendance information on two in-person meetings compared with BBV2020 and comment on the utility of the virtual platform. Methods The BBV2020 seminar series was hosted on a Zoom webinar platform and was free of cost for participants. Using registration- and Zoom-based data from the BBV2020 virtual seminar series and survey data collected from BBV2020 participants, we analyzed attendance trends, global reach, participation based on career stage, and engagement of BBV2020. We compared these data with those from two previous in-person conferences, a BBB meeting held in 2018 and CVB 2019. Results We found that BBV2020 seminar participation steadily decreased over the course of the series. In contrast, live participation was consistently above 100 attendees and recording views were above 200 views per seminar. We also found that participants valued BBV2020 as a supplement during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Based on one post-BBV2020 survey, the majority of participants indicated that they would prefer in-person meetings but would welcome a virtual component to future in-person meetings. Compared to in-person meetings, BBV2020 enabled participation from a broad range of career stages and was attended by scientists in academic, industry, and government agencies from a wide range of countries worldwide. Conclusions Our findings suggest that a virtual event such as the BBV2020 seminar series provides easy access to science for researchers across all career stages around the globe. However, we recognize that limitations exist. Regardless, such a virtual event could be a valuable tool for the brain barriers community to reach and engage scientists worldwide to further grow the brain barriers research field in the future.

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The Virtual Streptococcal Seminar Series and Trainee Symposium: Adaptations of a Research Community during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 2 publications

References 12 publications

Learning from the First Citizen Science Association Virtual Conference

Learning from the First Citizen Science Association Virtual Conference

Brain barriers virtual: an interim solution or future opportunity?

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