That’s right! The wait is over, the whole event has finally taken shape and as of today you can start accessing all content and information via the website at srn2020.com (I know, but changing the domain name meant additional costs, and if sport events can keep the original 2020 name, why shouldn’t we at least in the URL).
Let’s get to business! The first thing everyone should do is register to SRN2021. Registration is FREE but “required” for everyone – speakers and regular attendees alike. This is because, among other things, while a good wealth of information is freely accessible anyway, the core content of SRN2021 – namely, pre-recorded video-presentations of papers, live panels and related recordings – will only be accessible via password, which you will receive when you register. To register, simply fill in and submit the form that applies to you (speaker or attendee) on the website. Registered delegates will also receive the login details (i.e. link, session ID and password) for all the live panels’ sessions (these will be sent out as invitations around mid-late August).
Then you can take a look at the schedule for the Live panels to get an idea of the incredible amount, variety and originality of the research being presented by our panelists this year. Despite everything that is going on, we still have 20 panels and 76 papers in our line-up. More about this in a minute.
As you all know, SRN2021 Online replaces (or, at least, will do its best to try) our Annual Conference, which had to be cancelled. Switching online meant having to adjust to the unusual format but also gives us the opportunity to make the most out of what it offers. Therefore, the SRN2021 experience is not limited to the “live” sessions: it starts before (essentially, NOW) and it continues afterwards, with the website as your central control hub for everything – as easy as 1, 2, 3!
1) PRE-RECORDED PRESENTATIONS: all speakers have been asked to submit their papers as pre-recorded 15’ video-presentations; they will then attend their respective live Q&A panels in a few weeks’ time. Given the number of papers, the best approach is to watch as many presentations as possible ahead of the live sessions so as to be able to make an active contribution to those. On the website you can find all the abstracts and bios, and you can easily access (via password) all the presentations. A dozen or so are already online (many thanks to those of you who submitted early!) and most other submissions are expected in the next week or two – I will upload them on the website on a daily basis.
2) LIVE PANELS: bookmark the dates on your calendars if you haven’t done so already. We kick off on Tuesday 31 August, then continue in September, on Friday 3, Wednesday 8, Monday 13 and Friday 17. The full schedule is available as a PDF document: the reference time zone is UTC/GMT (i.e. UK time), but you will find downloadable versions for all time zones (at least those of our speakers). And you can also access the programme for each individual day. The schedule is now pretty much final although some tweaks might still occur.
As per previous emails, on each day we will have two sessions so as to give delegates from all geographic areas a chance to attend at least one (colleagues from Europe can easily attend both). Unless you turn into owls you will probably miss a few sessions when it’s night time in your country: not to worry because we will record all of them and make them available ASAP as catch-up via the website. However, please please please do try and attend as many as reasonably possible: we do need lively panels to make this work. And remember that, on top of the regular panels’ Q&As, the live sessions also include the two keynotes, the AGM, the EC Elections, a round table, the SRN Awards, the Working Groups, plus time to network with colleagues. Again, info on all of these are available on the website.
Q&As: each panel will last on average 45 minutes (a little longer if it’s a panel of five). How to ask questions to our speakers? During the live session you can ask questions either in person or via chat (the chair/host will moderate these). But you can also submit your comments/questions on the website when you watch the presentations; in this case, the relevant chairs will collect them and forward them to the speakers during the live panels.
3) The AFTERPARTY: I am planning to organize a few extra one-off events with special guests (I’m still working on this though). If things go to plan these will be in late September/October/early November. These will likely be informal chats with writers and/or producers, and/or workshops with colleagues, and/or more ad-hoc networking sessions to foster collaborations with SRN colleagues. Plus, last but not least by any means, in November we will have the ECR Symposium organized by Ann Igelström – you can find the details to submit your proposals on the website (as well as on the SRN website). The deadline is 10 August, so hurry up! And yes, if you are an Early Career Researcher you can submit to the Symposium even if you are already participating in SRN2021 (with a different paper, though).
Specific dates and events aside, the website (and all its content) will remain available to all registered delegates for the next two years, thus giving all of you plenty of time to check out research strands you might be interested in and get in touch with colleagues for potential future collaborations.
As you can see, there’s enough on the website to get you going for a long time so better get started straight away, right? I have done my best to redesign it and hopefully you will be able to navigate it as smoothly as possible: however, if you spot any errors, or bump into anything that doesn’t seem to be working properly, do give me a shout and I will try to fix it. For instance, I tried to optimize the website so it can be accessed from computers, tablets and phones, but it looks like older devices might have some issues displaying some content.
You will notice a few pages on the website still marked as “Coming soon”. These are still under construction and will become available within the next few days. One of these, for instance, will allow you to search for content in different ways based on your interests. If you are not familiar with Zoom (the videoconferencing platform we will be using for our live sessions) you will soon find guidance and tips on the website. Or, again, the specific pages for individual days of the live panels. I will send out weekly updates from now on, each one focusing on a few specific things in the lead-up to the live sessions.
One final reminder: on Day 4 (13 September) we will hold our AGM and the elections of three new members of the Executive Council of the SRN. Please consider standing for election: the call for nominations was issued last month, is available on the SRN website here, and you will soon find the relevant info on the SRN2021 website as well. The deadline to submit your nominations is 16 August and we will set up a secure online voting system in the forthcoming days.
This is it for today.
Do explore the website, register right away, get watching the presentations, mark the dates on your calendar and start enjoying SRN2021!