How to Submit

You must submit your event request using the online submission form. Event requests sent by email will not be considered. Event requests that are incomplete will not be considered.

All ESA Annual Meeting submission deadlines are 5:00 PM Eastern so that technical support and ESA staff assistance will be immediately available when submitters need it. If you begin your submission very close to the deadline, you are choosing to take a risk, and we will not make an exception if you are unable to complete your submission in time. The form automatically closes at 5:00 EST / 2:00 PST whether you have completed your submission or not. You will be able to return to the submission to edit it until the submission deadline has passed, but not after.

We have a new submission system this year. Unlike previous years, you will not receive an automatic email when you start a new submission. You will receive an automatic email when you complete your submission. The submission confirmation, as well as future correspondence about acceptance and scheduling, will be sent from a database and could go into your junk mail. Please check your junk mail folder if you don’t see an email that you are expecting.

To submit an event request, you will need to log in using an ESA member account. If you have been an ESA member or registered for an ESA meeting in recent years, you should already have an ESA member account. Your username and password to log in for the meeting are the same as for your ESA member account. If you have not been an ESA member or registered for an ESA meeting in recent years, you will need to create an ESA member account before you can submit. You do not need to pay membership dues to create an ESA member account or submit for the meeting.

Important Note

ESA meetings, open to ESA members and those interested in ecology, are among the most respected meetings of ecologists in the science community. ESA is committed to providing a safe, productive and welcoming environment. All participants including, but not limited to, attendees, speakers, volunteers, exhibitors, ESA staff, service providers and others are expected to abide by the ESA Meetings Code of Conduct. This Code of Conduct applies to all ESA meeting-related events including those sponsored by organizations other than ESA but held in conjunction with ESA events, in public or private facilities. In addition, ESA members and authors of ESA publications must adhere to the ESA Code of Ethics and the ESA Diversity Statement.

About Social Events

You can request an in person or virtual social event this year. Unless the event is ticketed, social events are open to all registered meeting attendees without any advance signup required.

Social events are not scheduled concurrently with oral or poster sessions. Social events will be scheduled to minimize topic overlap and as meeting space and logistics allow. We are planning to schedule social events for the traditional breakfast, lunch, and evening time slots. See the Event Request Format section for a complete list of potential timeslots.

Feel free to contact us (meetings@esa.org) if you have questions about planning your event. We can help you figure out what you need to request to plan the event you have in mind. If you are in charge of an event that ESA has hosted before, we can help you estimate how many attendees you might expect based on past years.

In Person Social Events

Virtual Social Events

Event Request Format

The information listed below must be submitted through the online submission form. It is provided here to assist you in planning your submission. The form may differ slightly from the version listed here. Event requests that are incomplete or received by email will not be considered. You may begin a submission and then return to edit it up until the deadline.

For All Social Event Requests

For all event requests, you will need to provide the following information:

• Submitter agreements. The submitter must agree to abide by the Code of Conduct for ESA Events, the ESA Code of Ethics, and the ESA Diversity Statement.
• Event title (75 words max; required)
• One lead organizer (Required; name, institution, and email).
• Any number of co-organizers, including zero (Optional; name, institution, and email for each).
• Event contact name and mobile phone (required). Once we are on site at the meeting, we may need to check in by phone. Please provide your name and mobile phone number that we can use to text or call you (or someone else who will be the one site point of contact) on the day of the event.
• Event description (250 words max., required)
• Name of the group organizing the event (100 words max., required)
• Topical track (select up to 2, optional): Would you like this session to be considered for inclusion in any of the following tracks? Please only select a track if you think it’s a good fit for this proposal.
  • Career Exploration
  • Education
  • Justice, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI)
  • Data Skills Training
  • Traditional Ecological Knowledge
  • Communication and Engagement
• Preferred scheduling (Required; you can choose multiple options). Please be aware that scheduling that matches the preference indicated here may not be possible.
  • Monday breakfast (7:00-8:00 AM)
  • Monday lunch option 1 (11:45 AM-1:15 PM)
  • Monday lunch option 2 (12:00 PM-1:00 PM)
  • Monday evening (6:30-8:00 PM)
  • Tuesday breakfast (7:00-8:00 AM)
  • Tuesday lunch option 1 (11:45 AM-1:15 PM)
  • Tuesday lunch option 2 (12:00 PM-1:00 PM)
  • Tuesday evening (6:30-8:00 PM)
  • Wednesday breakfast (7:00-8:00 AM)
  • Wednesday lunch option 1 (11:45 AM-1:15 PM)
  • Wednesday lunch option 2 (12:00 PM-1:00 PM)
  • Wednesday evening (6:30-8:00 PM)
  • Thursday breakfast (7:00-8:00 AM)
  • Thursday lunch option 1 (11:45 AM-1:15 PM)
  • Thursday lunch option 2 (12:00 PM-1:00 PM)
• Scheduling Notes (Optional, up to 200 words): Is the session intended to be linked to another session or social event? Are there any other sessions proposed for the meeting you are aware of that should not be scheduled at the same time as this one? Are there any other considerations we should know about when scheduling this session? We will do our best to avoid known scheduling conflicts.
• Alignment with values (required): Does this session align with the values in the ESA’s Diversity Statement? Yes/No. If you answered “no” to this question, please provide an explanation.
• Barriers to Participation (required): Are there any barriers to participation associated with the session that may discourage full attendance by all ESA members? Yes/No. If you answered “no” to this question, please provide an explanation.

For In Person, Off Site Event Requests

For in person events that will be held off site, such as at a restaurant or bar, you will also need to provide the following information:

• Event location: Will this social event be on site (at the convention center or hotel) or off site (not at the convention center)? If you are organizing an event off site, you are responsible for making any needed arrangements with an external venue.
• Off site event location: If this is an off site event, please give us as much information as you can at this stage of the planning process about what you are planning to arrange offsite, and where, including the street address for the external venue. Please finalize any offsite arrangements by June 20th.
• Everyone submitting an in person, off site social event request must check a box to acknowledge the following:
  • I understand by checking the box, I do hereby agree to indemnify and to hold harmless the Ecological Society of America, its officers, employees, members, and agents, from and against any and all liability claims, actions, causes of action, demands, rights, damages, cost, loss of service, expenses, and compensation for all negligence whether active or passive arising out, of, or in any way connected or related to the ESA Annual Meeting, August 4-9, 2024.

For In Person, On Site Event Requests

For in person events that will be held on site in ESA’s meeting space, you will also need to provide the following information:

• Anticipated number of attendees: How many people do you expect may attend this event? We are looking for your best ballpark estimate at this point in the process. If you estimate changes over time, please let us know. We will need a final estimate by June 13th.
• Room set: Choose the room set(s) closest to what you have in mind for this event. You can choose up to 2 options. We will accommodate room set requests as much as logistical constraints allow. You can refer to these Room Set Descriptions [PDF] which include helpful illustrations.
  • Reception Flow, Classroom, Conference, Hollow Square, Round Tables, Theater, Theater with a Panel Table on Stage
• Requested equipment. You can choose multiple options from this list:
  • None
  • A laptop (with sound for videos), screen, and LCD projector (setup for speakers with slides)
  • Podium with microphone (setup for speakers without slides)
  • Wireless internet connection
  • Wireless microphone
  • Other equipment (specify with a note)
• Flip charts: How many flip charts will this session need? Please help us minimize costs and only request as many charts as you require. You can tear off pages to share one chart with multiple groups. We pay more than $100 to rent each flip chart per session.
• Equipment notes: Is there anything else you anticipate you will need for this session?
• Beverage service: Bringing in outside food or beverages is strictly prohibited. Please note all food and beverage charges are subject to a 16% administrative charge/fee and local sales tax (currently 10.25%). We do not yet know the final catering costs for this year’s convention center. Up to date menus with pricing will be sent to you in the spring for you to make your final food selections. In the meantime, you can look over the catering options [PDF] that are available from the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center’s website as of December 2023. If you are requesting a cash or open bar, there is $225 bartender fee. You can choose multiple options from this list.
  • No Beverage Service, Coffee, Hot Tea, Soft Drinks, Bottled Water, Iced Tea, Lemonade, Cash Bar (wine and beer only), Open Bar (wine and beer only), Drink Tickets (indicate number)
• Food service: Bringing in outside food or beverages is strictly prohibited. Please note all food and beverage charges are subject to a 16% administrative charge/fee and local sales tax (currently 10.25%). We do not yet know the final catering costs for this year’s convention center. Up to date menus with pricing will be sent to you in the spring for you to make your final food selections. In the meantime, you can look over the catering options [PDF] that are available from the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center’s website as of December 2023.
  • No Food Service, Snacks, Reception, Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
• Covering costs. We can only fulfill requests for food service, beverage service, or equipment that incurs costs if there is a source of funding available. If you are requesting any of these, please specify your budget to cover these costs and your source of funding. If there is someone we should invoice for these costs, please provide their name and email.
• Everyone submitting an in person, on site social event request must check boxes to acknowledge the following:
  • I understand by checking the box, I do hereby agree to indemnify and to hold harmless the Ecological Society of America, its officers, employees, members, and agents, from and against any and all liability claims, actions, causes of action, demands, rights, damages, cost, loss of service, expenses, and compensation for all negligence whether active or passive arising out, of, or in any way connected or related to the ESA Annual Meeting, August 4
  • I acknowledge by submitting a request to host an event that all stated costs are my responsibility. If this event is a chapter/section/official ESA committee function, the costs will be deducted from the group’s budget at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting. If I’m an outside group, I understand that I will be invoiced after the meeting for payment for my event. I also understand that I can pay ESA by VISA, American Express, MasterCard or check within 30 days of receiving my invoice. If payment is not received you will not be able to hold future events until full payment is made.

For Virtual Event Requests

For virtual events, you will also need to provide the following information:

• Who would host this Zoom meeting? We would prefer that you use your own Zoom account if you are able to do so, to give you more flexibility while hosting the event. If you do use your own Zoom account, ESA will need the link and any information attendees will need to access the meeting (such as a password) in advance. If ESA hosts a social event, it will be managed by ESA staff in ESA’s Zoom account.
• If you are planning to use a Zoom meeting hosted by ESA, please indicate anything we might need to know about your anticipated logistical needs. For example, do you plan to use breakout groups?

Demographic Questions about the Session Organizer

The submission form asks a few questions about the session organizer to help ESA improve our services and monitor our efforts towards diversity, equity, inclusion and justice. You will be asked to answer the following questions about the lead session organizer for this proposal.  All information will be shared only in the aggregate to help us assess the diversity of our submissions. Proposal reviewers and the committee will not see this information for individual proposals. It is required that you answer each question, but you can select “Prefer not to answer”.

What best describes your race and/or ethnicity? You can select multiple answers.

• Asian/Asian American
• Black/African American
• Native American / Alaskan Native
• Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
• Middle Eastern or North African
• Hispanic/Latinx
• White
• Bi/Multiracial
• Other
• Prefer to self describe (free response option)
• Prefer not to answer

Where are you currently in your career? You can only select one.

• Student (undergraduate or graduate, including PhD students)
• Early Career (1-8 years since final degree, including post docs)
• Mid-Career (within 25 years since final degree)
• Senior Professional (more than 25 years since final degree)
• Prefer not to answer

What best describes your gender? You can only select one.

• Female
• Male
• Non-binary
• Prefer to self-describe (free response option)
• Prefer not to answer

After Submission

Everyone who has submitted an event request will be notified of their event’s status in May. All of the logistical concerns for the event will be handled through follow-up over email.

ESA may not be able to accept all event requests. Confirmation of an event request does not obligate ESA beyond providing a meeting space and including the event in the online program.

If you have questions during the planning process, please contact us (meetings@esa.org).

Cancellation Policy

If for some reason you must cancel your event, it must be cancelled in writing (email is sufficient) by June 13, 2024. Cancellations after this date may incur a cancellation fee, especially if food and beverages have been ordered.

Important Dates

April 11, 2024                    Deadline for submitting a social event request to ESA.

May 30, 2024                    Organizers notified of event status.

June 13, 2024                    Deadline to submit final attendance estimate for on site events.

June 20, 2024                    Deadline to finalize any off site arrangements.

Questions?

Contact the ESA meetings team: meetings@esa.org