Format and Guidelines

Meeting Format

Meeting Format

The SETAC Europe Annual Meeting is organised as a fully-fledged physical meeting in Vienna, Austria, featuring an online component to increase inclusion. Participants will be able to benefit from 5 days packed with scientific sessions, plenaries, courses, seminars and other exhibitor and networking events. Registered participants will be able to access on-demand content through the meeting platform for three months after the meeting. There will be no live-streaming component offered.

Scientific Programme

Scientific Programme 

Scientific Sessions 

Sessions are proposed by the SETAC community by 15 August and evaluated by the Programme Committee. During the call for abstracts, scientists can submit their research to one of the accepted sessions. Presentation types include:

  • Platform presentation: Presenters can present and discuss their latest research live on stage. Session chairs will prepare an attractive lineup for oral presentations and poster exhibition from the submitted abstracts and will ensure decent moderation of the Q&A in between the talks.
    Platform presentations will be recorded onsite and made available on the meeting platform.
  • Poster presentation: Poster presenters can display their posters onsite in the exhibition hall for one full day of the meeting AND on the virtual meeting platform. Poster presenters are thus required to provide a virtual component (either a PDF poster, video or enhanced poster [e-poster]) which will need to be uploaded before the meeting. The exact upload deadline will be announced at a later stage. 
Special Sessions 

Special sessions are held to grant more time to topics requiring in-depth presentations, discussions, and panel debates, which can traditionally not be covered in the regular scientific presentation sessions. This format enables the community to address emerging topics of high societal awareness and concern, discuss environmental and sustainability topics specific to the hosting region, as well as to delve into global policy trends and foster transdisciplinary collaboration.

Special sessions are organised upon invitation from the SETAC Europe Science Committee and provide an opportunity to involve experts who are typically not active in the SETAC network. Special sessions typically do not take more than 5% of the meeting programme.

Plenaries 

The meeting will include thought-provoking and informative plenary presentations. Plenaries are organised by the Programme Committee and the SETAC office. 

Topical Discussions

Topical discussions are held on an overarching topic aiming at summarising the state of the science from the research presented at the regular scientific sessions and/or prioritising key research questions that need to be addressed. These sessions are organised as one-hour virtual events after the conference and will be accessible free of charge to meeting participants.

The call for proposals will open after the meeting with a two-step process, starting with a thought starter complemented by a detailed run-of-show. Meeting participants are invited to attend the complementary presentation sessions (or view their recordings) to make the most out of them.

Parallel Programme

Parallel Programme

Organise a Parallel Event

If you’re interested in organising a parallel event or would like to request space for an activity during the meeting, please complete the room request form. Events must be requested before 1 April.

Request a Room

Training Courses

Training courses are planned on the Sunday of the meeting to provide educational opportunities to the membership and guests. The focus is on selecting cutting-edge and general scientific topics of interest. In addition, non-scientific courses that support skills necessary for scientists to succeed, for example, communication or presentation skills, are offered. The deadline to submit training course proposals usually falls end October/begin November, to allow sufficient time for planning and review by the SETAC Europe Education Committee. 

SETAC Seminars

SETAC Seminars give room to SETAC groups to introduce, educate or discuss specific topics or projects. For example, the “Student Lunch Seminar” or IG seminars have been popular for years. SETAC Seminar proposals can be submitted through the room booking form. For seminars taking place on Sunday, 11 May, proposals should be submitted by 15 December, to allow sufficient time for planning and are reviewed by the  Programme Committee. Seminar proposals happening on the other days of the conference can be submitted by 1 April.  

If you plan a technical workshop or symposium, please review the SETAC Events Matrix for more information.  

Sponsored Seminars  

These events are planned by non-SETAC groups featuring a guest speaker presenting topics of interest to meeting attendees. 

Networking Events

These are semi-formal events to provide networking opportunities for meeting attendees. They include socials, such as “Student Career Networking Lunch,” and other types of events, such as the “Job Event.” These are proposed by SETAC Committees and organised in collaboration with the office. 

Group Meetups 

The annual meeting includes many informal group meetups aimed at gathering people with similar interests for engagement opportunities, like the “Meeting Guide Programme.” We encourage SETAC Regional Branches and Chapters, Committees, Interest Groups and Affinity Groups to hold more informal group meetups to facilitate networking and engagement opportunities at the meeting instead of administrative meetings. Those could, for example, be organised at the SETAC Square. 

Business Meetings 

SETAC supports its members (e.g., Committees, Regional Branches and Chapters, Interest Groups and Affinity Groups) and other organisations by allowing them to book rooms at the venue for business meetings.