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2016 ESA Annual Meeting

2016 Annual Meeting ESA Student Secion presentations available for download:

2016 Opportunities and Strategies for Securing Student Funding in Ecology (PDF)
How to Maximize your ESA 2016 Meeting Experience: The Orientation for Student Attendees (PDF)

2016 ESA Annual Meeting

Fort Lauderdale, USA   |    August 7-12th 2016

 

Student Section’s guide to surviving & thriving in Fort Lauderdale!

 

Join us in Fort Lauderdale for the 101st annual meeting of the Ecological Society of America!

 

It’s that time again: the ever-amazing annual meeting of the Ecological Society of America. Get pumped for another exciting week of mingling, mentoring and packing your brain absolutely full of ecological information and ideas. Feeling nervous about navigating the conference? Check out some of our tips and tricks to surviving (and thriving) at the annual meeting below.

 

ESA Student Section Events

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ESA Student Section schedule of events at ESA 101

*Starred events we can’t take credit for, but we suggest you go because they’ll be awesome (and sometimes have free food)!

Sunday August 7th 2015

  • ESA Student Section: Exploring Diverse Career Pathways: Where can an education in ecology get you? 8am-5pm, 125 FCC
  • Open Plenary Address*: 5:00-6:30pm, Grand Blrm, Hilton Marina.

Monday August 8th 2015

  • ESA Student Section Meeting Orientation: Maximize your 2016 ESA Experience. 10:15-11:30am, Grand Floridian Blrm A, FCC.
  • ESA Student Section Funding Workshop: Strategies for securing grants as a student: 11:30-1:15pm Grand Floridian Blrm A, FCC.

Tuesday August 9th 2015

  • Student Mentor/Mentee Breakfast: 7:00-8:00 am, Atlantic Blrm III, Hilton Marina
  • Oh, the Places You’ll Go: A Workshop for Undergraduate Students Interested in Attending Graduate School: 11:30am-1:15pm, Blrm AB, Hilton Marina
  • Entrepreneurial Ecology: Applying Yourself Outside of the Box: 11:30-1:15pm, Rm. 301 FCC
  • ESA Student Section Mixer: Come down for a student party featuring food and drinks! 6:30-? pm, Duffy’s Sports Bar. Come out at 6:30pm to network with members of the Union of Concerned Scientists Science Network! Free appetizers and drinks will be served!

Wednesday, August 10th 2015

  • What Editor’s Want: An Author’s Guide to Scientific Journal Publishing*: 8-10pm Grand Blrm AB, Hilton Marina

 Thursday, August 11th 2015

  • ESA Student Section Business Meeting and Awards Luncheon: A chance to recognize a bunch of rockstar students and for student members to meet their reps and tell them what they would like the Student Section to do! Rm. 113 FCC

 

Have a question/suggestion about Student Section Related Events or Business? Hit us up at students.esa@nullgmail.com and we’ll get back to you asap!

So you’ve decided to attend – here’s the gameplan

  1. First thing = register for the meeting ($167-197 for students that are members of ESA, $225-280 for students that are not members of ESA). Fees vary based on when you register, so make sure you hit the Early Bird Registration deadline: 5pm EST on JUNE 16th, 2016. Click HERE to register
  2. Second step = get your airline tickets. You can imagine how fast seats fill up on those flights, given the thousands of meeting attendees each year.
  3. Next step = figure out where you’re gonna rest your head, which WILL be swimming with scientific over-stimulation. This year, ESA does not have dorm rooms available, so you gotta get a little creative and, most likely, you gotta share.
    • Share a house: click HERE to search for something good
    • Share a hotel: ESA offers a roommate forum HERE, but it’s always fun to rally some of your colleagues in advance
    • Room with a local colleague
    • Avoid hostels, slightly cheaper, but high rates of crime and poor lodging conditions (reports of bed bugs and drug activity)
  4. Last step = check out the workshops and field trips being offered at the meeting. There are usually tons of great activities and they fill up quickly, so sign up now. 

Need help with registration fees? Volunteer!

Volunteers at the annual meeting are eligible for a full refund of their meeting registration fees, as long as they complete their time requirements.

ESA will select around 100 responsible undergraduate and graduate students as volunteers to help out during the ESA Annual Meeting. Tasks vary, but they all help this large, complex event run smoothly.

Student Volunteer applications must be received by the June 16th, 2016 Early Bird Registration deadline. Keep your eyes peeled for the official call for applications.

Conference tips

  1. Participate in Student Section events!! Click HERE to see the lineup
  2. Don’t over-schedule yourself with talks
  3. Network with other students, not just professors (these are your colleagues-to-be)
  4. Don’t just hang with people you know
  5. Introduce yourself to the speakers you liked
  6. Invite people that you connect with out to lunch / coffee / dinner / drinks
  7. Attend workshops, mixers and field trips (small-group events)
  8. Ask around for talk recommendations
  9. Set a goal for the week: meet 5 people, introduce yourself to your academic hero, etc.
  10. Most importantly: relax, make friends, have a blast!!

A little more about Fort Lauderdale

Public Transit

  • 7 day unlimited ride bus pass for $20 (link)
  • TriRail is better for longer distance travel from Miami to West Palm Beach (link)
  • Some conference hotels provide an airport shuttle, if not, a cab ride is about $13 from the Fort Lauderdale Airport to the general conference area

Bars/Nightlife

  • There are several bars and restaurants along the beach on N Atlantic Ave – bus route 40 from the conference center
  • Las Olas Blvd, just north of Ft. Lauderdale Beach is also great for nightlife – also bus route 40 from the conference center

Quiet Study Areas/Coffee Shops

  • Coffee shop located in the conference center
  • Starbucks down the street, west of the conference center on SE 17th St
  • The Student Section room; reserved for students all day and everyday of the conference (113, FCC)

Extra thoughts

  • Go to the Beach! Fort Lauderdale Beach is a 5 minute bus ride away (2-3 miles on bus route 40).  Several restaurants/bars along ocean front/ N Atlantic Ave
  • Zainojet (water jetpacks) is a fun, unique activity for Florida, with one located nearby in the Fort Lauderdale Marina (link; expensive, starting at $250, but can usually get a 50% off coupon on living social or groupon)
  • Sea Experience has glass bottom boat trips and scuba diving/snorkeling trips starting at $35 per person, also in Ft. Lauderdale Marina (link)
  • Duck boat tours of Ft. Lauderdale in amphibious vehicle for $32, a classic tour of local Ft. Lauderdale sights both on land and water (link)
  • Check out the Museum of Discovery and Science located in downtown Ft. Lauderdale boasting live gators, turtles and other native Florida flora and fauna. Adult admission is $15 (link). 

 

 

Sign up for ESA Student Section Updates! *
Sign up for ESA Student Section Updates!