About Contributed Poster Abstracts
We invite submission of abstracts for contributed poster presentations for the 2017 ESA Annual Meeting. Abstracts are encouraged to address the meeting theme “Linking Biodiversity, Material Cycling and Ecosystem Services in a Changing World” if appropriate, but doing so is not necessary. We welcome submissions that report interdisciplinary work, address communication with broad audiences, or explore ways of teaching ecology at any level. Posters presentations are two hours long and give presenters an opportunity for extended discussion and networking. Individually submitted contributed abstracts will be grouped together to create poster sessions organized around a common theme. Abstract authors will rank their preferred session themes as part of the abstract submission process. Poster sessions are 4:30-6:30 pm Monday through Thursday. By submitting an abstract, a presenting author is indicating they will be available during any of the possible time slots.
Abstract Guidelines
- The abstract must primarily report on new work within the field of ecology. Reviews of previous work are not permissible for contributed presentations.
- The body of the abstract is up to 400 words, split between the two sections (up to 200 words each): Background/Question/Methods, in which the objective of the study is clearly identified and the methods are described; and Results/Conclusions, in which specific results of the study are explicitly reported and their implications for ecology are briefly discussed.
- The abstract must report specific results. The results may be preliminary but they may not be vague. Abstracts without explicitly stated results will be rejected.
- It is understandable that abstracts describing non-traditional work may lack quantitative data; however, it is still expected that the abstract will address some question and have a “take-home message” describing specific findings.
- Abstracts must be clear. Poorly written abstracts will be rejected.
- Abstracts must be written in English and must follow standard grammar and punctuation rules. Abstracts that do not meet this guideline will be rejected.
- For every author listed, their name, institution, and email are required information.
- Missing coauthors are a very common issue. Be sure to check to make sure everyone has been included. This is under Step 2, People, in the left hand menu.
- Any author can be designated as the presenting author. The presenting author’s name will appear in bold text. The presenting author is also the corresponding author. In order to receive notifications from us, it is important to make sure the correct person is indicated and that their email is entered correctly
If you are unsure if your presentation meets our guidelines, please ask us. We would rather talk to you about it in advance than send you a rejection notice in April.
Session assignment
- During abstract submission, you will rank 3 themes to guide the grouping of your presentation into a session with similar presentations.
- Consider the themes carefully. They have been updated for 2017.
- Poster sessions are Monday-Thursday, 4:30-6:30 PM. By submitting an abstract, you are indicating you will be available during any of the possible time slots.
One presentation rule
Each person is allowed to submit only one abstract where they are listed as presenting author. This rule is enforced in order to encourage broad participation. You may present a poster or a talk, not both. This rule does not apply to coauthors. An author may be the presenting author on two abstracts only if one of the abstracts primarily reports on ecology education/outreach or is for an Ignite presentation.
After Submission
Editing abstracts
Abstract editing will be available for a short window (2-3 weeks) in April and early May. All presenting authors will receive instructions and a specific deadline by email. Edits are not possible outside the May editing window.
Meeting registration
The presenting author of every accepted abstract is required to register for the meeting and will be reminded to do so in meeting correspondence. Abstract submission is not meeting registration – they are separate processes. Registration will open in April.
Cancellations
The presenting author should notify ESA as soon as possible if a presentation needs to be cancelled. The deadline for cancellation without risk of penalty is May 1.
When submitting an abstract, presenters should be reasonably confident that they will attend the meeting and give the presentation as scheduled. Presenters in uncertain funding situations should cancel by May 1. Cancellations after May 1 (late cancellations) and failures to give scheduled presentations without any notice (no shows) are disruptive and leave gaps in the program that are a source of frustration for attendees.
The late cancellation fee is $50 USD. The no show penalty is a one year presentation ban, regardless of presentation type. Any abstract with the penalized author listed as the presenting author will not be accepted for the following year’s conference. These penalties apply only to the presenting author, not to any coauthors, and for all presentation types (invited and contributed, posters and talks).
The late cancellation and no show penalties will not be applied to presenters with unavoidable reasons for not attending the conference. For example, medical issues, family emergencies, unforeseen travel problems, difficulty acquiring a visa for travel to the US, and similar unforeseen situations outside of a presenter’s control.
Late cancellations due to a presenter’s inability to secure funding to attend, starting a new job, or other scheduling conflicts are considered avoidable and the penalties will apply.
Student Presentation Award
Lucy Braun Award for Excellence in Ecology
Lucy Braun, an eminent plant ecologist and one of the charter members of the Society, studied and mapped the deciduous forest regions of eastern North America and described them in her classic book The Deciduous Forests of Eastern North America. To honor her, the E. Lucy Braun Award is given to a student for the outstanding poster presentation at the ESA Annual Meeting. If you are a student (undergraduate or graduate) who is the presenting author of a presentation, you are eligible to be considered. Papers and posters will be judged on significance of ideas, creativity, quality of methodology, validity of conclusions drawn from results, and clarity of presentation. The students selected for these awards will be announced in the ESA Bulletin after the Annual Meeting. A certificate and a check for $500 will be presented to the recipient at the following ESA Annual Meeting. While all students are encouraged to apply, winning papers and posters typically describe fully completed projects.
How to apply
To apply, download and complete the application form (41 KB, DOC) and email it to the address specified in the application. Award applications are due on the same date as the abstract deadline, by 5:00 PM Eastern (2:00 PM Pacific).
Presentation Guidelines
- Conversation is encouraged at our poster sessions. These sessions provide an opportunity for extended discussion and networking. A cash bar will be available.
- Poster sessions are 4:30-6:30 PM Monday through Thursday, with a different set of posters scheduled every day. Presenters are required to be present for the duration of their scheduled 2-hour session.
- Each presenter should hang their poster before the session begins and remove it at the end of the session.
- The Exhibit Hall will be open starting at 11:30 am, Monday through Thursday. Poster presenters will also be allowed access from 7 AM to 8 AM each morning (make sure you are wearing your badge).
- There is no poster size requirement except that the poster fits on the provided board. Poster boards are landscape format with dimensions 8 ft wide x 4 feet tall (2.4 m wide x 1.2 m tall). The poster is NOT required to take up all of the space provided, only to fit comfortably within that space. In practice most posters are smaller than the board, typically in the 4-5 ft wide x 3-4 ft tall range.
- Pushpins are the only method allowed for attaching the poster to the board. These will be supplied on site.
- Poster presenters may not use audio-visual equipment. Unfortunately we cannot accommodate the space and logistical requirements for such equipment.
- Poster presenters are welcome to bring handouts, such as 8.5×11 copies of their posters to provide as handouts. These will fit into an envelope that can be attached to the poster board using pushpins.
Important Dates
February 23, 2017
Abstract submission deadline.
April 13, 2017
Notification of acceptance
sent to presenting author.
May 1, 2017
Deadline to cancel without
penalty. This is also the
deadline for editing abstracts.
May 25, 2017
Notification of scheduling
(session date and time)
sent to presenting author.
