Call for Session Proposals

GSA 2020 Connects Online

Technical Program Proposals 2020

Thank you for your interest in the GSA 2020 Connects Online. The GSA annual meetings begin on a Sunday, and end the following Wednesday.

Proposers Please Note: Before you begin to fill out the forms, in addition to text for pasting into memo fields, please have all of the contact information available for ALL of your conveners or advocates (full first and last names, full address and zip, phone, fax, e-mail).

• Topical Sessions are a combination of volunteered and up to three (3) invited papers submitted to a specific session. Invited speakers may present one additional oral paper or poster at the meeting. Session chairs cannot invite themselves to present.
• Pardee Keynote Symposia are special sessions that are highly innovative in content and/or format and that consist entirely of invited papers. To attract and creatively engage a large number of attendees, the organizers are allowed maximum flexibility in organizing Pardee sessions. For instance, talks can vary in length; they can be coordinated with discussion and/or posters; Pardee sessions can be coordinated with affiliated topical poster sessions; seating arrangements can be modified; Pardees can be integrated with field trips and workshops; a variety of presentation media can be utilized; Pardee sessions can be coordinated with Penrose conferences; Pardee sessions can be panels for respectful debates. In short, Pardee Symposia are not glorified topical sessions, but are expected to be entirely different in nature. Funds are available to support costs associated with Pardee Symposia; these can be requested on the Pardee Proposal Form. The Annual Program Committee may allocate the funds available to support one or several Pardee Symposia, depending on the merits of the proposal and the anticipated costs of implementing them.
• As part of the proposal process, we are requesting that you submit a budget and have provided a budget template for you to use. Items that can be covered, but not limited to, are registration for a high-level speaker who typically does not attend GSA meetings; any special services needed that goes beyond what GSA normally provides. Examples of items that may not be covered are dining; magicians. The funding is restrained and is to be used for the educational advancement in the field of geology.
• NOTE: If a Pardee Keynote Symposia is not accepted, it does not automatically become a topical session. It is permitted to submit a proposal for a topical session on the same topic as a proposed Pardee session. However, the nature of the proposed Pardee session must be innovative in content and/or format to be competitive.
• Diversity: As you to prepare the proposal for a technical session, please think about including diversity in all ways-discipline, career progression, and individuals.
• Sponsorships: Your proposal will be strengthened by endorsement from sponsors, such as GSA Divisions, Associated Societies, or allied organizations. You must receive commitment from the sponsor before listing it in your proposal. For contact information, go to the JTPC Listings Divisions and Associated Societies page. Deadline to add sponsorships is 1 February 2020.

Session Guidelines

Organizers are encouraged to introduce an overview of the topic at the beginning of the session that would be of interest and understandable to fellow scientists who are not in the specialty field, but are interested in the topic. Also, time allocated for discussions is encouraged. For topical sessions, the number of sessions allotted for that topic will depend on the number of abstracts submitted in each presentation mode (oral / poster).

Publication of Technical Session Proceedings

GSA Council requests that proceedings of any technical session sponsored by a GSA Division, and given at a GSA Annual or Section meeting, first be offered to GSA for consideration of publication. As always, submission does not guarantee publication. Acceptance is in the hands of the GSA Books Science Editor and the reviewers. GSA would also like the opportunity to publish sessions sponsored by Associated Societies, but such sessions are not covered under the action of the Council.