Call for Symposia

The Western Division and Utah Chapter of the American Fisheries Society invite you to submit your symposium proposals for the 2021 Virtual Annual General Meeting to be held virtually on May 10-14. The theme this year will be “Amplifying Science in a Changing World”.

Aquatic resources and the professionals who research and manage them face dynamic challenges. Now more than ever, scientists need to adapt and inform our approach to sustaining aquatic stewardship. However, the advancement and amplification of science has been hindered recently by multiple causes. Science is being threatened from without and within: credible science is being minimized by some in influential positions and some scientists are misrepresenting science in order to advance their personal values. How should professionals prioritize, conduct, and communicate science so that it is amplified while also advancing credibility of the profession?

We welcome symposia that highlight how science is changing our understanding of the dynamics of the resources we study and our approach to management. Symposia topics could include: climate change, hatcheries, habitat, harvest, recreation, native species, genetics, interactions, ecology, invasive and introduced species, endangered species, water policy, historical perspectives, new technologies, diversity and inclusion, science communication, and others.  We are also interested in how science can be used to advance decisions that result in good stewardship such as in resource management, policy development, and best practices. We encourage participation and submissions from people of diverse
backgrounds and experiences.

A special focus will be given to generating outcomes from the diversity of symposia presented. Outcomes may include publications, proposals, recommendations, agreements, identification or clarification of uncertainties, and other action items.  Generating outcomes within our meeting will leverage collective talent and help us to amplify science for the betterment of our fisheries profession and advancement of aquatic stewardship.

Symposium organizers are expected to submit proposals, recruit presenters, solicit presenter abstracts, and direct presenters to submit their abstracts. Organizers are not required to have recruited a full symposium at the time of proposal submissions. A symposium should include a minimum of 5 presentations. Most presentations will be presented during the meeting as a pre-recorded talk, although selected topics will be presented as live plenary sessions. Time slots are limited to 20 minutes, but multiple time slots (i.e. 40 or 60 minutes) may be offered to keynote symposia speakers or
wrap-up panel discussions.

FORMAT FOR SYMPOSIUM PROPOSALS – When submitting your proposal, please include the following:

Submit your proposal: https://forms.gle/rqSnQWZm5s9t2b3J7

1. Organizer’s information: Provide first and last name, affiliation, telephone number, and e-mail address of
   organizer. (More than one person can help organize a symposium, but we will only collect information from the lead person.)
2. Symposium title: Be brief but descriptive.
3. Description: Submit a brief (<300 word) abstract that describes your proposed symposium. Deadline for symposia submittals is Friday, January 15, 2021.
4. Expected number of presentations: There is a minimum of 5 talks in a symposium.
5. Outcome: Please describe expected outcomes (e.g., may include publications, proposals, recommendations, agreements, identification or clarification of uncertainties, and other action items).
6. Virtual presentation requests: Please indicate if your symposium would be entirely pre-recorded or if you would like to have a live session as part of the symposium (please include type of live session such as break out rooms, zoom discussion, etc).
7. Special requests: Please indicate any additional special requests.

Contact for additional information:
Sarah Seegert [email protected] (385) 251-5923 and Dan Brauch [email protected] (970) 497-9722.