Society for Conservation Biology 2009 Annual Meeting

An invitation to:
Members, Sponsors, Exhibitors, Advertises
The Chinese Academy of Sciences, State Forestry Adminstration P.R.China and the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB) invite you to Beijing, China 11-16 July 2009 for the International Congress for Conservation Biology (23rd Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology), it is recognized as the most important global meeting for conservation professionals and students.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS AT THE 2009 SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY MEETING IN BEIJING, CHINA

Prepared by the Student Affairs Committee

Encouraging student involvement is an important goal of the Society for Conservation Biology. The annual meetings provide an incredible forum for students to learn more about the practice of conservation worldwide and to make valuable contacts. These meetings are also the place where the Society recognizes the contributions of its student members through its Student Awards. To help students get as much as possible out of the forthcoming meeting in Beijing, we have prepared this document highlighting the opportunities and resources available:

BEFORE YOU GET TO THE MEETING

1) Advice on writing abstracts for conferences
The Student Affairs Committee has put together a list of advice on how to write a conference abstract. Details can be found at: http://www.conbio.org/studentaffairs/abstracts.cfm

3) Help for students for whom English is not a first language
The Student Affairs Committee offers a service whereby conservation professionals help edit abstracts submitted to the conference for grammar and clarity. Students wishing to participate in this scheme can select this option when submitting their abstract on the conference website (students requesting this service need to submit their abstracts at least two weeks before the submission deadline)

2) Apply for Student Awards
Awards are offered for both poster and oral presentations. All students are eligible and encouraged to apply during the submission of abstracts on the meeting website. More details can be found at: http://scb2009.ioz.ac.cn/StudentAward.asp. Applications for the oral presentation awards require submitting an extended abstract and complying with the instructions on the following page (also found on the meeting website). Failure to follow these instructions will mean that the extended abstract is not considered for the awards.

Instructions for student oral-presentation award candidates

Restricted to 15-minute oral presentations, no posters, no speed presentations.

Applicants must submit two (2) abstracts.

BOTH abstracts should be submitted online by January 23 and formatted according to the instructions provided.

Your first abstract will be submitted following the instructions to submit abstracts (see INSTRUCTIONS FOR PREPARING ABSTRACTS) and following the submission pages.

The extended abstract needs to be uploaded during the submission process. You may upload one document of the following formats: Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF, Word Perfect, Plain Text, Rich Text Format (rtf). Both text and figures of the extended abstract should be saved in a single document, which you must upload.

The extended abstract should have a minimum of 500 words and a maximum of 800 words. The abstract must include a minimum of 1 (one) figure and a maximum of three (3) figures or tables (total, not three figures and three tables).

- Presentation title
- Names and complete contact information for all authors and the roles of each author if you have two or more authors on the abstract you are submitting
- The student must be the primary author and must submit the abstract under that name. In other words, please make certain that the name of the student applying for the award and the name of the primary author are identical.
- Degree pursued or date of defense, for those who already have received a Ph.D.
- Current students and students with a graduation date of July 11 2008 or later are eligible to apply.

3) Preparing your presentation for the conference
Putting together an award-winning presentation is no easy task. The Society offers three formats for presentations, posters, oral, and oral speed-presentation. Speed presentations are a new and increasingly popular format where presenters have 4 minutes in which to distill the essence of their research, followed by an extended discussion period with audience members. To help with preparing presentations, we strongly encourage students to visit the Student Affairs Committee website and follow the links under 'Helpful presentation tips for students': http://www.conbio.org/studentaffairs/

AT THE MEETING

There will be a wealth of activities offered to students at the annual meeting in Beijing. In addition to all of the field trips and opportunities for meeting Society members outlined on the meeting website, we strongly encourage students to attend the following events:

1) Student/Board of Governors reception: This opening reception provides a relaxed opportunity to meet the Board of Governors and learn more about what the Society is doing to conserve biodiversity
2) Participating in a conference: some advice for new-comers: This popular session offered by previous members of the Society's Board of Governors is always packed full of people and good advice!
3) Student Oral Presentation Award Session: The presentations given by the 12 student finalists are consistently one of the high-points of the conference
4) Society for Conservation Biology Award Ceremony: This ceremony is where formal recognition is given to the 2009 award winners. Join the Society in congratulating them for their hard work and contributions to conservation of biodiversity

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