skip to Main Content

2020 Conference

Call For Abstracts

27th Annual Hawaiʻi Conservation Conference – Virtual Conference Announcement

After careful consideration, the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance and Foundation have decided to host this year’s Hawaiʻi Conservation Conference as a virtual event. This decision was made primarily to exercise an abundance of caution in consideration of the uncertainty around the impacts and threats of the COVID-19 virus. While we certainly hope that by late summer we will not be working under strict physical separation policies, we also recognize that the number and geographic distribution of our conference attendees make an in-person event particularly high-risk. Importantly, we see this shift as an opportunity to innovate and grow our tool kit. The conservation community has long recognized the need to apply lower-carbon technology to our efforts and we hope that our experience this year will help us learn new approaches to professional development, knowledge sharing and building, networking, and communication within our field. Finally, with many of us anticipating budget contraction, we hope that cost savings through reduced conference expenses and eliminated travel costs will mean that more of you will be able to participate in this virtual gathering. All that being said, we do recognize the great value of connecting face to face in real life and hope to add some sort of in-person gatherings to this virtual conference, should it be safe to do so.

Over the next several weeks we are focused on scoping. We have never hosted this kind of event and we need to better understand the tools available to us for a virtual conference. We hope to release a revised registration fee schedule along with virtual platform details in late May. For authors, your abstracts will still be evaluated against the original call for proposals and we will share information about the software platform when we send acceptance notifications.

If anyone has any experience with virtual conferences, we would greatly appreciate any insight. You can reach the whole team at: conference@hawaiiconservation.org.

Thank you for your ongoing support and all the hard work you do to care for our biocultural resources. Be well, take care of yourselves and your families, and don’t hesitate to contact us if you have questions, ideas, or just want to chat.

 


 

Call for Abstracts is Now CLOSED!

Thank you for submitting your abstracts for the 2020 Conservation Conference Ola Ka ʻĀina Momona: Managing for Abundance: Hosted jointly by the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance and the Society for Conservation Biology Oceania. We are no longer accepting new abstract submissions for this years conference. Submitted abstract proposals are currently being reviewed. Authors will be contacted on June 22nd and notified if your proposals has been accepted.

For more information, please contact HCC Abstract Manager,
conference@hawaiiconservation.org

Session and Abstract Proposal Deadline Extended Until*: Monday, March 2nd, 2020 (5pm HST)

*ALL abstracts, including those that are part of a symposium or forum, are due by Monday, March 2nd, 2020 by 5pm HST. Please note that late submissions will not be considered.

Updated Revisions Deadline: July 6th, 2020

Deadline for Presenters to Register*: July 30th, 2020

*ALL presenters are required to register for the conference. Only presenters with accepted abstracts that are registered by July 30th, 2020, will be considered for inclusion in the program book. Abstracts must be submitted online.

*We are accepting oral presentations, symposium, and forum delivered in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Language) or other bilingual sessions; Abstracts must be submitted in English. During the submission process, indicate “ ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Presentation” or other bilingual session requests in the “additional information” box on the last page. Contact conference@hawaiiconservation.org for more information.

 

Please review the Evaluation Criteria and Submission Instructions and Call for Abstracts Document before using the online abstract submission system.

CONFERENCE THEME

Ola Ka ʻĀina Momona: Managing for Abundance

“Ola Ka ʻĀina Momona” translates simply as “The Abundant Land Thrives.” Expanding on this is the idea that land and sea ecosystems maintain their abundant biocultural diversity and thrive, through our efforts to achieve sustainability and enhance the viability of all life on Earth.

People across the world depend on the resources and services that nature provides. However, increasing regional and global pressures on our biocultural resources are threatening the sustainability and viability of interdependent natural and social systems. We need to improve our understanding of these systems, ways to enhance their viability, and foster more reciprocal and symbiotic relationships between people and their places.

In ʻŌiwi (indigenous Hawaiian) culture, the concept of ʻāina momona describes places of biocultural resource abundance, such as lush riverine valleys, fresh water springs, estuaries, healthy nearshore reefs, rich agricultural complexes, and profoundly productive nearshore fishponds, which resulted in a rich ‘Ōiwi society. ʻĀina momona is not absent of human presence, but rather, reflects an active and symbiotic relationship between people and their place.  This conference invites presenters and attendees to apply the concept of ʻāina momona to explore the study and practice of conservation, restoration, and stewardship of the landscapes and seascapes throughout Oceania.

This year’s joint 2020 Conservation Conference will focus on the idea of managing for abundance across the Pacific region through the following six (6) tracks. Each track includes relevant concepts identified by the conference planning committee with the recognition they are not comprehensive and not intended to be exclusive. Abstracts should explicitly address the conference theme, how it relates to the field of conservation, and tracks which may reference concepts listed below.

CONFERENCE TRACKS

1. Cultural Values and Practice in Conservation

Conservation work is guided by values from many world views and cultural connections to the places we work. As such there is also a wealth of knowledge tied to the history and people of these places upon which to draw from in order to increase our conservation success.  This track will focus on both the foundations of culturally integrated conservation, as well as examples of cultural innovations to conservation. Sessions proposals may include, but are not limited to:

  • Decolonizing conservation
  • Rebuilding and growing biocultural foundations in conservation
  • Indigenous languages in conservation practice
  • Cultural values and practice in contemporary resource management
  • Growing an inclusive culture of conservation across sectors
  • Indigenous approaches to science and resource stewardship

 

2. Capacity in Conservation

Managing for abundance requires sufficient and appropriate human, technological, institutional, and financial resources to conduct effective resource stewardship.  Engaging youth and young professionals and providing them with the training and tools needed to become conservation leaders is a priority. Additionally, we recognize the need to build and maintain meaningful partnerships and to foster communication and exchange within the conservation community and across sectors. With growing interest and demand for conservation as well as increasing pressure on natural systems, we encourage submissions that address 21st century conservation capacity needs, programs, and opportunities which may include, but are not limited to:

  • Building and illuminating conservation career pathways
  • Intergenerational knowledge transfer
  • Working across boundaries, interdisciplinary, cross-sector collaborations and approaches
  • Innovative sustainable financing mechanisms
  • Community co-management of biocultural resources
  • Collaborative thinking and problem-solving
  • Resilience in the face of loss; mourning and persevering in the conservation community
  • Building and sustaining partnerships in conservation

 

3. Global Change & Challenges

Collective human impact on the natural environment is recognized as profound and extremely difficult to reverse.  We invite proposals that explore the research, tools, and stewardship approaches that address global change and challenges that may include, but are not limited to:

  • Making global impact with place-based, time-limited projects
  • Implementing large-scale projects to address global and local threats
  • Nature-based solutions for climate change and its impacts
  • Tackling challenging emerging issues such as species translocation and assisted colonization, genetic modification, permanent phase shifts etc.
  • Managing natural resources in the context of uncertainty
  • Urgent needs and opportunities in terrestrial and aquatic biosecurity
  • Addressing established invasive species: management, eradication, adaptation
  • New and spreading disease impacting rare and abundant native species

 

4. Putting Research into Practice

Research efforts in natural resources science broadly defined provide information on species biology, ecology at species and ecosystem levels, ecosystem processes and services, and the socioeconomic and socioecological context of human relationships with the natural world. This knowledge base underlies all of our conservation efforts, and provides managers and legislators with the confidence to take actions and formalize policies. This track may include, but are not limited to:

  • Successful scaling up of effective restoration
  • Highlighting how current research informs day-to-day conservation
  • Revisiting and growing proven methods
  • Social science applications in conservation
  • Regenerative agroforestry and integrative agriculture advancing conservation objectives
  • Conservation impact assessment and evaluation
  • Tools and approaches to empower and enable community leadership in conservation

 

5. New Technologies and Research in Conservation

This track will explore the latest emerging research, application of innovative conservation techniques, and studies that demonstrate development of novel technology or application of technology to address conservation issues. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

  • Cutting edge surveillance and monitoring technologies
  • Drones and other autonomous vehicles in research and management
  • Conservation genetics application and innovations
  • Novel eradication techniques
  • Social science applications in conservation
  • Engaging the public in novel citizen science research

 

6, Place-based Conservation

This session is intended to create space for thinking about conservation grounded in Place, and is meant to bring together individuals who may work in what are usually presented as different fields or approaches, but who are unified by their work in Place. As such, we are inviting abstracts for sessions that string together different components to convey system-level conservation in a particular place. Session abstracts should identify the geographic parameters of its focus – it could be an ahupuaʻa, a moku, a watershed, a district, or an island (the geographic scope should be more specific than an entire country or state). Abstracts in this session are expected to be primarily symposia or forums. Individual oral or poster presentations will not be considered in this track.

 

ABSTRACT FORMAT DECRIPTIONS

Oral and Poster Presentations: Formal, individual presentations on various conservation topics will be scheduled in general sessions partly depending on the specific “Track” in which it was submitted and the thematic content. The abstract submission form requires the selection of preferred presentation format (oral or poster) and whether you are submitting your abstract as an individual or part of an organized symposium. The review committee may suggest that you change your proposed format depending on the novelty, relationship to theme, available time in the program, and whether or not the content has been previously presented. Authors may be invited to present “speed talks” depending on the content of their abstract. All oral and poster presenters must register for the conference by July 15th, 2020.

 

Do not submit the same abstract both in oral and poster formats

1. Individual Oral Presentation:

Individual oral presentations are 12 minutes in length (our schedule allows for 12 minute presentations, 2 minutes for Q&A, and 1 minute for transition).  Oral presentations will be scheduled in thematic 1-2 hour long sessions and authors will be provided a microphone, projector, and screen. Please note that there will not be live internet access in the presentation rooms so all accompanying slides, images, or video must be provided to the AV support team on site. If your abstract is accepted but cannot be accommodated as an oral presentation, we may offer you the opportunity to present as a speed talk or as an Electronic Poster Presentation. If you are submitting an oral presentation as part of a symposium, the symposium lead must first submit a symposium abstract which can then be referenced in the oral presentation abstract.

2. Electronic Poster Presentation:

The Electronic Poster Presentation showcases your work visually to attendees through a small group presentation session.  Each electronic poster presenter will be asked to build their poster through our online poster platform.  Each electronic poster will be assigned a 30-minute presentation block.  We will utilize 42 inch (1 meter) sized touch-screen television monitors to showcase the posters. All electronic posters will be available to browse at available machines on-site as well as through a web link throughout the conference and for 12 months following.

 

Examples of electronic posters from the 2019 conference can be found here: https://posters212.com/eposterList/hawai%27i-conservation-conference—2019-2.html

 

3. Symposium:

Symposia are formal moderated sessions containing 8 individual oral presentations organized around a topic or theme. One of the 8 oral presentations may be used to introduce the topic or theme. Each individual presentation time is limited to 15 minutes (12-minute talk, 2 minutes Q&A, and 1 minute for moderator introductions and transition). Symposia are 2 hours long. The symposium organizer is required to first submit a symposium description and session agenda.  Each presenter is required to submit an individual oral presentation abstract linked to the symposium by the deadline. All presenters and moderators must be registered participants. Symposia with more or less than 8 oral presentations will not be considered by the conference review committee.

 

4. Forum:

Forums may include roundtable sessions, panel presentation, or other structured presentation formats that utilize participatory facilitation methods.  Forums are interactive sessions guided by a moderator or facilitator that engage presenters and the audience through a variety of participatory techniques (e.g. facilitated panel discussions or small group discussions including audience and panelists). Forums may be scheduled in a 1 or 2-hour time block, and should allow for presenter and audience interaction and exchange during at least 1/4 of the session. Forum organizers should describe how audience interaction will be integrated into the session. Question and answer components are not sufficient to meet the participatory requirement. Abstracts for each presenter are not required unless requested by the forum organizer/chair. Please note that a forum abstracts that appears to be a symposium missing oral presentation abstracts will not be accepted by the review committee. All presenters, facilitators and/or moderators must be registered participants.

5. Workshop:

An interactive, highly facilitated, “hands-on” session that minimizes formal presentations and emphasizes the application of information and/or technology. Active audience participation is required. The workshop abstract should describe the skill, tool or technique to be shared as well as the engagement technique used by the person(s) facilitating the workshop. Workshop facilitators must be registered participants. Workshop abstracts must include a session agenda. We do not have the capacity to collect additional fees for workshop participants or to manage workshop specific registration so conference workshops cannot have any special fees and must be open to all registered conference attendees. However, workshop organizers can limit size on a first-come, first-served basis with a participant limit no less than 100 people, (most conference rooms can accommodate 200 participants). Any required equipment or supplies (e.g. note cards, easels) other than standard audio-visual equipment (i.e. microphone, screen and projector) must be provided by the organizer conference workshops can be 1 to 2 hours. For an extended off-site workshop, see section below on “Affiliated / Off-site Workshops and Trainings”.

 

Affiliated / Off-site Workshops, Trainings, and Field Trips:  Organizations and practitioners are welcome to conduct trainings, workshops, and field trips off-site, either during, before, or after the conference. The host organization(s) is responsible for organizing all aspects of their training, workshop, or field trip. The Alliance and Conference planning team can assist with listing your workshop or training with conference marketing materials as an affiliated event. Affiliated event organizers must manage their own registration or additional fee collection if applicable. Please contact us for details about this opportunity.

Bilingual Session Additional Information

  • All individual presentation and bilingual session abstracts must be submitted in English for the abstract review committee
  • Please indicate in the “additional information” box on the last page of the submission system that you intend to conduct your individual presentation or session in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Language) or other language.
  • Session formats eligible for translation support include: individual oral presentation, symposium, and forum.
  • Simultaneous translation devices will be made available for one day during the conference. Session organizers must provide their own translator.
  • For more information, please contact our Conservation Conference Abstract Manager,  conference@hawaiiconservation.org.

 

If you require translation equipment for your session, please let us know in your session description. For more information about our abstract process, please contact our Conservation Conference Abstract Manager,  conference@hawaiiconservation.org.

Back To Top