1. Moving conferences online: lessons learned from an international virtual meeting.
- Author
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Stefanoudis, Paris V., Biancani, Leann M., Cambronero-Solano, Sergio, Clark, Malcolm R., Copley, Jonathan T., Easton, Erin, Elmer, Franziska, Haddock, Steven H. D., Herrera, Santiago, Iglesias, Ilysa S., Quattrini, Andrea M., Sigwart, Julia, Yesson, Chris, and Glover, Adrian G.
- Subjects
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VIRTUAL communities , *ONLINE education , *CONFERENCES & conventions , *QUESTIONNAIRES - Abstract
We consider the opportunities and challenges associated with organizing a conference online, using a case study of a medium-sized (approx. 400 participants) international conference held virtually in August 2020. In addition, we present quantifiable evidence of the participants' experience using the results from an online post-conference questionnaire. Although the virtual meeting was not able to replicate the in-person experience in some aspects (e.g. less engagement between participants) the overwhelming majority of respondents found the meeting an enjoyable experience and would join similar events again. Notably, there was a strong desire for future in-person meetings to have at least some online component. Online attendance by lower-income researchers was higher compared with a past, similar-themed in-person meeting held in a high-income nation, but comparable to one held in an upper-middle-income nation. This indicates that online conferences are not a panacea for diversity and inclusivity, and that holding in-person meetings in developing economies can be at least as effective. Given that it is now relatively easy to stream contents of meetings online using low-cost methods, there are clear benefits in making all presented content accessible online, as well as organizing online networking events for those unable to attend in person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2021
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