ISMB Sustainable Conference Travel Award (SCTA)

Motivation

The pandemic has shown the scientific community the benefits and limitations of virtual conferences. While a lower carbon footprint is a clear advantage of virtual meetings, it has become clear that creativity and exchange of ideas happens best through personal interaction.  As travel and gathering restrictions are eased, ISMB2022 will be celebrated as an in-person conference. However, there is a growing concern about how to make travel and attendance more sustainable and respectful for the planet. The ISMB Sustainable Conference Travel Award aims to promote sustainable travel to scientific meetings by rewarding delegates who show environmentally friendly travel to attend the ISMB2022 Conference in Madison, Wisconsin, USA.

How to participate

Do you have a plan for more sustainable travel to Madison for the ISMB 2022 conference? This could be travel using land rather than air transport for the totality or parts of your trip, or traveling with other participants using a common rental, or simply implementing environmentally friendly actions during your trip. If you wish to participate in the ISMB2022 SCTA, this is how it works:

  • Click HERE to submit your entry to the ISMB2022 Sustainable Conference Travel Award describing how you are planning to make your trip different and more sustainable. Your abstract should include: how you will travel, how many ISMB 2022 attendees are involved in your trip, how many miles you will cover, an estimate of the carbon footprint savings, and how you will communicate your travel through social media. You are encouraged to use the hashtag #GreenTravel2ISMB
  • At the registration desk at Monona Terrace, indicate you are participating in the Sustainable Conference Travel Award to receive the SCTA ribbon. You should provide documentation that demonstrate your sustainable travel (tickets, rental contracts, twitter posts, etc).
  • The GreenISCB committee will select the two best sustainable conference travel experiences. We will consider not only the carbon footprint saving, but also the number of participants involved, the creativity and effort at designing an alternative travel choice, and the dissemination of the initiative. Each winning proposal will receive a $500 check.
  • Winners are expected to give a short presentation about their proposal and experience during the conference.