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Planning Committee

NIH Planning Committee:
Jessica Gowda, M.S., OBSSR, NIH—Co-Chair
Sydney O’Connor, Ph.D., OBSSR, NIH—Co-Chair 
Toccara Chamberlain, M.A., National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, NIH
Theresa Cruz, Ph.D., National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research/Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH
Cynthia Dwyer, M.A., Office of Extramural Research, NIH
Carlos Garrido, Ph.D., M.S., M.P.H., National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, NIH
Kara Hall, Ph.D., National Cancer Institute, NIH
Beth Jaworski, Ph.D., All of Us Research Program, NIH
Amit Mistry, Ph.D., Fogarty International Center, NIH
Dana Greene-Schloesser, Ph.D., OBSSR, NIH
Jean Shin, Ph.D., Office of the Director, Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity, NIH
Erica Spotts, Ph.D., OBSSR, NIH

JUN 6 - 11 2024

The Future of Scientific Conferencing

This virtual workshop will bring together diverse perspectives from multiple disciplines to explore advantages, barriers, gaps, and opportunities in the future of scientific conferencing for the behavioral and social sciences. Areas of particular focus will include technological innovations that enable virtual and hybrid approaches, and the impact of these approaches on diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging (DEIAB) of participants and attendees as well as environmental sustainability. The workshop will incorporate innovative evidence-informed approaches to showcase the potential of a virtual platform for learning, networking, and participant engagement. Overarching aims are to facilitate interdisciplinary communication and networking, to identify cross-cutting scientific gaps regarding the role of behavioral and social science factors in scientific convenings, and to inform practical strategies for designing effective, engaging, and sustainable scientific conferences and meetings.  

This workshop is open to all interested individuals, including individuals from outside the NIH.
 
Day 1 (June 6) of the workshop will focus on DEIAB and environmental sustainability of scientific conferences. In between the two workshop days, the Engagement Day (June 7) will feature virtual poster presentations, small group discussions, and networking opportunities. Day 2 (June 11) of the workshop will focus on connection, engagement, and innovation in scientific conferencing.  
 
Individuals who are interested in submitting an abstract for the virtual poster hall should visit this link for submission and eligibility criteria and to submit (deadline: May 19): https://www.labroots.com/ms/virtual-event/future-scientific-conferencing/abstracts.  
 
Closed captioning will be available for the event. Individuals with disabilities who need reasonable accommodations to participate in this event will have the opportunity to provide this information during the event registration process. Requests for reasonable accommodations should be submitted at least five business days before the event.


Speakers
  • Sun Joo (Grace) Ahn, Ph.D.

    Director of the Center for Advanced Computer-Human Ecosystems (CACHE)
    Professor, Advertising & Public Relations
    Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication
    University of Georgia
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Sara Ackerman, Ph.D., MPH

    Associate Professor, Social Behavioral Sciences
    School of Nursing
    University of California, San Francisco
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Sue Allen, Ph.D.

    Deputy Director
    Clean Conferencing Institute
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Jonali Baruah, Ph.D.

    Professor
    Department of Psychological Sciences
    Tarleton State University
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Tamara Ben Ari, Ph.D.

    French National Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE)
    Department of Environment and Agronomy
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Marie A. Bernard, M.D.

    Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Melanie Brucks, Ph.D.

    Assistant Professor of Marketing
    Columbia Business School
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Andy Burnett, MSC

    Managing Director
    Knowinnovation Ltd
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Toccara Chamberlain, M.A.

    Health Specialist
    National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Carmen Corona-Sobrino, Ph.D.

    Assistant Professor
    University of Valencia
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Theresa Cruz, Ph.D

    Director
    National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research
    Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Carlos O. Garrido, Ph.D., M.S., M.P.H.

    Social & Behavioral Sciences Administrator
    National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Lucy Gilson, Ph.D. (she/her)

    Dean
    Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics
    University of New Hampshire
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Jessica Gowda, M.S. (she/her)

    Health Science Policy Analyst
    Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Dana Greene-Schloesser, Ph.D.

    Health Scientist Administrator
    Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Joshua Gutwill, Ph.D.

    Director
    Clean Conferencing Institute
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Kara L. Hall, Ph.D.

    Health Scientist Administrator
    National Cancer Institute
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Beth Jaworski, Ph.D.

    Social & Behavioral Scientist Administrator
    All of Us Research Program
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Michelle Joseph, MBBS, MSc, Ph.D., FRCS

    Instructor in Global Health and Social Medicine
    Visiting Fellow in the Program in Global Surgery and Social Change
    Harvard Medical School
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Nancy Kidd, Ph.D.

    Former Executive Director of the American Sociological Association and the National Communication Association
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Lauren Kuehne, M.S.

    Independent Consultant
    Omfishient Consulting
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Michael Lauer, M.D.

    Deputy Director for Extramural Research
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Blair MacIntyre, Ph.D.

    Head of Immersive Technology and Spatial Computing
    Global Technology Applied Research
    J.P. Morgan Chase and Co.
    Professor (on leave)
    College of Art, Media, and Design
    Khoury College of Computer Sciences
    Northeastern University
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Jenny Mai Phan, Ph.D.

    National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)-funded T32 Postdoctoral Fellow
    Center for Autism, Children's National Research Institute
    Children's National Hospital
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Lisa Meeks Ph.D., M.A.

    Associate Professor
    Family Medicine and Learning Health Sciences
    University of Michigan Medical School
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Nils Meyer-Kahlen, M.Sc. (he/him)

    Doctoral Candidate
    Department of Information and Communications Engineering
    Aalto University
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Amit Mistry, Ph.D. (he/him)

    Senior Scientist
    Fogarty International Center
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Sydney O'Connor, Ph.D. (she/her)

    Health Scientist Administrator
    Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Jessica Pokharel Ph.D. (she/her)

    Manager of Research and Discovery
    ITHAKA
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Anna Queiroz, Ph.D.

    Postdoctoral Researcher
    Virtual Human Interaction Lab
    Stanford University
  • Cassandra L. Raby, Ph.D.

    Teaching Fellow
    School of Biology
    University of Leeds
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Sarvenaz Sarabipour, Ph.D.

    Assistant Professor
    Richard D. Berlin Center for Cell Analysis and Modeling
    Department of Cell Biology
    University of Connecticut School of Medicine
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Jean Shin, Ph.D.

    Deputy Director
    Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity (COSWD) Office
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Jane Simoni, Ph.D.

    Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research, NIH
    Director, Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Erica Spotts, Ph.D.

    Health Scientist Administrator
    Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research
    National Institutes of Health
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Willem Standaert, Ph.D.

    Associate Professor
    HEC Liège - Management School of the University of Liège
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Bonnielin K. Swenor, Ph.D., M.P.H.

    Professor
    The Endowed Professorship of Disability Health and Justice
    Director, Johns Hopkins University Disability Health Research Center
    Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Bloomberg School of Public Health, and School of Medicine
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Yanqiu Tao, M.S.

    Doctoral Candidate
    Systems Engineering
    Cornell University
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Misha Teplitskiy, Ph.D.

    Assistant Professor
    University of Michigan School of Information
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Thomas Trøst Hansen, Ph.D.

    Head of Secretariat
    Danish Council for Research and Innovation Policy
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Ariane Wenger (she/her)

    Doctoral student
    Transdisciplinarity Lab (TdLab)
    Department of Environmental Systems Science
    ETH Zurich
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Lorraine Whitmarsh, Ph.D.

    Professor, Department of Psychology
    University of Bath
    BIOGRAPHY
  • Emma Zajdela, Ph.D.

    Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellow
    High Meadows Environmental Institute
    Center for Policy Research on Energy and the Environment
    School of Public and International Affairs
    Princeton University
    BIOGRAPHY

Agenda
Event Guidelines

OBSSR Event Guidelines

OBSSR values your attendance at our events as part of an open, professional exchange of ideas in a safe environment. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. When you register for an OBSSR event, you are agreeing to the guidelines outlined below. Thank you for maintaining a positive and respectful experience for everyone.

Participants Are Required To:

  • Uphold the professional and educational purposes of meetings by respecting the rights, views, privacy, safety, and dignity of all people.
  • Demonstrate professionalism, consideration, and respect in their speech and actions.
  • Keep all comments relevant to the event topic.
  • Refrain from:
    • Engaging in harassing speech or inappropriate behavior.
    • Posting insulting, obscene, discriminatory, or threatening comments.
    • Disrupting the conversation with spam or repetitive posts.

The comments shared during OBSSR events reflect those of the person who wrote them and may not represent the views of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), or the federal government.

Reporting an Incident
If you see, overhear, or experience a violation of these guidelines, please email OBSSR at OBSSRNews@nih.gov. Participants who engage in inappropriate behavior will be removed from the event.

Medical Questions and Personal Health Information
Event participants and OBSSR staff cannot answer personal health questions. The information provided during OBSSR-led events is for informational purposes only. We do not allow comments that contain personally identifying information or private health information, either about yourself or a third party.

Non-Endorsement
The OBSSR website and OBSSR-led events include resources developed by our event speakers. Including these resources and information does not constitute an endorsement by HHS, NIH, or the federal government.

Media Questions
Reporters and other members of the media should send press inquiries to OBSSRNews@nih.gov or the relevant NIH media contact. Media inquiries submitted to the chat or Q&A box during events will not be answered.

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