All ESA Annual Meeting proposal and abstract 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 don’t complete your submission in time. The form automatically closes at 5:00 EST / 2:00 PST whether you have completed your submission or not.
ESA meetings, open to ESA members and those interested in ecology, are among the most respected meetings of ecologist in the science community. ESA is committed to providing a safe, productive and welcoming environment for all meeting participants and ESA staff. 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.
Please read and follow the abstract guidelines carefully. They are provided here as a guide to help you plan in advance. You can start your submission, save your progress, and then return to complete it at any time before the deadline has passed. A login and password will be automatically emailed to you when you begin an abstract submission. You may log in to view your abstract at any time by logging in here.
If this is your first time submitting an abstract for an ESA meeting, we suggest reading some contributed abstracts from a previous meeting. Abstracts from recent meetings are available online (2019, 2018, 2017). If you are a student, we strongly encourage you to work closely with your faculty adviser as you develop your abstract. If you encounter problems during abstract submission, email Jennifer Riem and include the abstract ID number.
Submissions will open January 2nd
We invite submission of abstracts for contributed oral presentations for the 2020 ESA Annual Meeting. Abstracts are encouraged to address the meeting theme “Harnessing the ecological data revolution” 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. New in 2020, contributed oral presentations are scheduled for 15-minute timeslots; 12 minutes are allowed for each presentation plus 3 minutes for questions. Individually submitted contributed abstracts will be grouped together to create sessions organized around a common theme. Abstract authors will rank their preferred session themes as part of the abstract submission process. Each contributed talk may be scheduled Monday afternoon through Thursday afternoon. By submitting an abstract, the presenting author is indicating that they will be available during any of the possible time slots.
The meeting program in 2020 will have some new and exciting changes to improve the overall experience for attendees and presenters.
Changes that will affect contributed oral sessions include:
During abstract submission, you will be asked to rank 3 themes to guide the grouping of your presentation into a session with similar presentations. Consider the themes carefully.
Each contributed talk may be scheduled Monday through Thursday. By submitting an abstract, you are indicating you will be available during any of the possible time slots.
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 Inspire presentation.
There is a $60 abstract fee for any presenter submitting an abstract for a talk with an opt-out alternative for anyone who does not have funding to cover the fee. Abstract fees will allow the Society to explore using new technological tools and address growing interest in digital content while maintaining a budget that continues to support core administration costs for abstract submission.
As part of this digital exploration, ESA will pilot the recording of oral presentations in 2020. Talks presented within contributed oral sessions (COS) will be included in the pilot. The audio for each recorded talk will be captured along with the slide content, including slide transitions. Only presenters who wish to participate will be recorded. Any presenter will be able to opt out of being recorded. Recorded talks will be available in the online program (web app) a few weeks after the conference.
Peer reviewers will rate abstracts using the abstract guidelines included in this call. The ratings and comments provided by peer reviewers will inform the acceptance decisions made by the Program Subcommittee.
Light editing of accepted abstracts will be available for a short window (2-3 weeks) after the acceptance notifications are sent. All presenting authors will receive instructions and a specific deadline by email. Edits are not possible outside the May editing window.
The presenting author of every accepted abstract is required to register for the meeting and will be reminded to do so in meeting correspondence. Submitting an abstract does not register you for the meeting. Registration is a separate process that will open in April.
When submitting an abstract, presenters should be reasonably confident that they will attend the meeting and give the presentation as scheduled. The presenting author should notify ESA as soon as possible if a presentation needs to be cancelled. Please cancel by May 1 at the very latest to minimize gaps in the final meeting program.
Murray F. Buell Award for Excellence in Ecology
Murray F. Buell had a long and distinguished record of service and accomplishment in the Ecological Society of America. Among other things, he ascribed great importance to the participation of students in meetings and to excellence in the presentation of papers. To honor his selfless dedication to the younger generation of ecologists, the Murray F. Buell Award is given to a student for the outstanding oral paper presented 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. Talks 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.
The deadline to apply is Thursday, February 27, 2020 at 5:00 pm Eastern Time (2:00 pm Pacific Time).
To apply for the award, you must have already submitted an abstract, and please note the abstract ID number that you received in your confirmation email. Then, submit an online application by the deadline. You must complete the entire application in order to be considered. To see the application requirements before applying, visit this page.
Contributed oral presentations are scheduled for 15-minute timeslots. 12 minutes are allotted for each presentation plus 3 minutes for questions. Time limits will be strictly enforced by the session presider, who will warn each speaker when they are approaching their time limit.
You may end before 12 minutes to allow more discussion but you should not run over this time. The 3-minute period between talks belongs to the audience, not to the speaker. This period allows for questions, discussion, and a smooth transition to the next speaker. Q&A will be managed by the session presider.
Plan to arrive at your session room 15 minutes in advance of your session. This time is for checking in with the session presider and transferring your presentation to the laptop in the room. A student A/V volunteer will be available to assist you.
We realize that losing speaking time due to technical glitches or other problems is a frustrating and stressful experience. This information is provided to presenters in advance in order to help minimize problems on the day of the presentation. Because we are offering presenters the option to record their talk this year, some of our A/V guidelines have changed.
| February 20, 2020 | Abstract submission deadline. |
| April 16, 2020 | Notification of acceptance sent to presenting author. |
| May 1, 2020 | Deadline to cancel an abstract. This is also the deadline to make minor edits. |
| May 21, 2020 | Notification of scheduling (session date and time) sent to presenting author. |
Dr. Kiona Ogle
Program Chair
School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZ
Phone: (928) 523-6200
Email: Kiona.Ogle@nullnau.edu
Jennifer Riem
Science Programs Coordinator
Ecological Society of America
1990 M Street, NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20036 USA
Phone: (202) 833-8773 x 218
Email: jennifer@nullesa.org