Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective

Elizabeth Levitis; Cassandra D. Gould van Praag; Remi Gau; Stephan Heunis; Elizabeth DuPre; Gregory Kiar; Katherine L. Bottenhorn; Tristan Glatard; Aki Nikolaidis; Kirstie Jane Whitaker; Matteo Mancini; Guiomar Niso; Saroosh Afyouni; Eva Alonso-Ortiz; Stefan Appelhoff; Aurina Arnatkeviciute; Selim Melvin Atay; Tibor Auer; Giulia Baracchini; Johanna M. M. Bayer; Michael J. S. Beauvais; Janine D. Bijsterbosch; Isil P. Bilgin; Saskia Bollmann; Steffen Bollmann; Rotem Botvinik-Nezer; Molly G. Bright; Vince D. Calhoun; Xiao Chen; Sidhant Chopra; Hu Chuan-Peng; Thomas G. Close; Savannah L. Cookson; R. Cameron Craddock; Alejandro De La Vega; Benjamin De Leener; Damion V. Demeter; Paola Di Maio; Erin W. Dickie; Simon B. Eickhoff; Oscar Esteban; Karolina Finc; Matteo Frigo; Saampras Ganesan; Melanie Ganz; Kelly G. Garner; Eduardo A. Garza-Villarreal; Gabriel Gonzalez-Escamilla; Rohit Goswami; John D. Griffiths; Tijl Grootswagers; null et al

doi:10.1093/gigascience/giab051

Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective

Elizabeth Levitis, Cassandra D. Gould van Praag, Remi Gau, Stephan Heunis, Elizabeth DuPre, Gregory Kiar, Katherine L. Bottenhorn, Tristan Glatard, Aki Nikolaidis, Kirstie Jane Whitaker, Matteo Mancini, Guiomar Niso, Saroosh Afyouni, Eva Alonso-Ortiz, Stefan Appelhoff, Aurina Arnatkeviciute, Selim Melvin Atay, Tibor Auer, Giulia Baracchini, Johanna M. M. BayerMichael J. S. Beauvais, Janine D. Bijsterbosch, Isil P. Bilgin, Saskia Bollmann, Steffen Bollmann, Rotem Botvinik-Nezer, Molly G. Bright, Vince D. Calhoun, Xiao Chen, Sidhant Chopra, Hu Chuan-Peng, Thomas G. Close, Savannah L. Cookson, R. Cameron Craddock, Alejandro De La Vega, Benjamin De Leener, Damion V. Demeter, Paola Di Maio, Erin W. Dickie, Simon B. Eickhoff, Oscar Esteban, Karolina Finc, Matteo Frigo, Saampras Ganesan, Melanie Ganz, Kelly G. Garner, Eduardo A. Garza-Villarreal, Gabriel Gonzalez-Escamilla, Rohit Goswami, John D. Griffiths, Tijl Grootswagers, et al

Western Sydney University

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

As the global health crisis unfolded, many academic conferences moved online in 2020. This move has been hailed as a positive step towards inclusivity in its attenuation of economic, physical, and legal barriers and effectively enabled many individuals from groups that have traditionally been underrepresented to join and participate. A number of studies have outlined how moving online made it possible to gather a more global community and has increased opportunities for individuals with various constraints, e.g., caregiving responsibilities. Yet, the mere existence of online conferences is no guarantee that everyone can attend and participate meaningfully. In fact, many elements of an online conference are still significant barriers to truly diverse participation: the tools used can be inaccessible for some individuals; the scheduling choices can favour some geographical locations; the set-up of the conference can provide more visibility to well-established researchers and reduce opportunities for early-career researchers. While acknowledging the benefits of an online setting, especially for individuals who have traditionally been underrepresented or excluded, we recognize that fostering social justice requires inclusivity to actively be centered in every aspect of online conference design. Here, we draw from the literature and from our own experiences to identify practices that purposefully encourage a diverse community to attend, participate in, and lead online conferences. Reflecting on how to design more inclusive online events is especially important as multiple scientific organizations have announced that they will continue offering an online version of their event when in-person conferences can resume.

Original language	English
Article number	giab051
Number of pages	14
Journal	GigaScience
Volume	10
Issue number	8
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1093/gigascience/giab051
Publication status	Published - 1 Aug 2021

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of GigaScience. 2021.

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1093/gigascience/giab051

Cite this

Levitis, E., van Praag, C. D. G., Gau, R., Heunis, S., DuPre, E., Kiar, G., Bottenhorn, K. L., Glatard, T., Nikolaidis, A., Whitaker, K. J., Mancini, M., Niso, G., Afyouni, S., Alonso-Ortiz, E., Appelhoff, S., Arnatkeviciute, A., Atay, S. M., Auer, T., Baracchini, G., ... et al (2021). Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective. GigaScience, 10(8), Article giab051. https://doi.org/10.1093/gigascience/giab051

@article{e11cbded4ca3490384d3dcb9d756b1db,

title = "Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective",

abstract = "As the global health crisis unfolded, many academic conferences moved online in 2020. This move has been hailed as a positive step towards inclusivity in its attenuation of economic, physical, and legal barriers and effectively enabled many individuals from groups that have traditionally been underrepresented to join and participate. A number of studies have outlined how moving online made it possible to gather a more global community and has increased opportunities for individuals with various constraints, e.g., caregiving responsibilities. Yet, the mere existence of online conferences is no guarantee that everyone can attend and participate meaningfully. In fact, many elements of an online conference are still significant barriers to truly diverse participation: the tools used can be inaccessible for some individuals; the scheduling choices can favour some geographical locations; the set-up of the conference can provide more visibility to well-established researchers and reduce opportunities for early-career researchers. While acknowledging the benefits of an online setting, especially for individuals who have traditionally been underrepresented or excluded, we recognize that fostering social justice requires inclusivity to actively be centered in every aspect of online conference design. Here, we draw from the literature and from our own experiences to identify practices that purposefully encourage a diverse community to attend, participate in, and lead online conferences. Reflecting on how to design more inclusive online events is especially important as multiple scientific organizations have announced that they will continue offering an online version of their event when in-person conferences can resume.",

author = "Elizabeth Levitis and {van Praag}, {Cassandra D. Gould} and Remi Gau and Stephan Heunis and Elizabeth DuPre and Gregory Kiar and Bottenhorn, {Katherine L.} and Tristan Glatard and Aki Nikolaidis and Whitaker, {Kirstie Jane} and Matteo Mancini and Guiomar Niso and Saroosh Afyouni and Eva Alonso-Ortiz and Stefan Appelhoff and Aurina Arnatkeviciute and Atay, {Selim Melvin} and Tibor Auer and Giulia Baracchini and Bayer, {Johanna M. M.} and Beauvais, {Michael J. S.} and Bijsterbosch, {Janine D.} and Bilgin, {Isil P.} and Saskia Bollmann and Steffen Bollmann and Rotem Botvinik-Nezer and Bright, {Molly G.} and Calhoun, {Vince D.} and Xiao Chen and Sidhant Chopra and Hu Chuan-Peng and Close, {Thomas G.} and Cookson, {Savannah L.} and Craddock, {R. Cameron} and {De La Vega}, Alejandro and {De Leener}, Benjamin and Demeter, {Damion V.} and {Di Maio}, Paola and Dickie, {Erin W.} and Eickhoff, {Simon B.} and Oscar Esteban and Karolina Finc and Matteo Frigo and Saampras Ganesan and Melanie Ganz and Garner, {Kelly G.} and Garza-Villarreal, {Eduardo A.} and Gabriel Gonzalez-Escamilla and Rohit Goswami and Griffiths, {John D.} and Tijl Grootswagers and {et al}",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of GigaScience. 2021.",

year = "2021",

month = aug,

day = "1",

doi = "10.1093/gigascience/giab051",

language = "English",

volume = "10",

journal = "GigaScience",

issn = "2047-217X",

publisher = "Oxford University Press",

number = "8",

}

Levitis, E, van Praag, CDG, Gau, R, Heunis, S, DuPre, E, Kiar, G, Bottenhorn, KL, Glatard, T, Nikolaidis, A, Whitaker, KJ, Mancini, M, Niso, G, Afyouni, S, Alonso-Ortiz, E, Appelhoff, S, Arnatkeviciute, A, Atay, SM, Auer, T, Baracchini, G, Bayer, JMM, Beauvais, MJS, Bijsterbosch, JD, Bilgin, IP, Bollmann, S, Bollmann, S, Botvinik-Nezer, R, Bright, MG, Calhoun, VD, Chen, X, Chopra, S, Chuan-Peng, H, Close, TG, Cookson, SL, Craddock, RC, De La Vega, A, De Leener, B, Demeter, DV, Di Maio, P, Dickie, EW, Eickhoff, SB, Esteban, O, Finc, K, Frigo, M, Ganesan, S, Ganz, M, Garner, KG, Garza-Villarreal, EA, Gonzalez-Escamilla, G, Goswami, R, Griffiths, JD, Grootswagers, T & et al 2021, 'Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective', GigaScience, vol. 10, no. 8, giab051. https://doi.org/10.1093/gigascience/giab051

TY - JOUR

T1 - Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective

AU - Levitis, Elizabeth

AU - van Praag, Cassandra D. Gould

AU - Gau, Remi

AU - Heunis, Stephan

AU - DuPre, Elizabeth

AU - Kiar, Gregory

AU - Bottenhorn, Katherine L.

AU - Glatard, Tristan

AU - Nikolaidis, Aki

AU - Whitaker, Kirstie Jane

AU - Mancini, Matteo

AU - Niso, Guiomar

AU - Afyouni, Saroosh

AU - Alonso-Ortiz, Eva

AU - Appelhoff, Stefan

AU - Arnatkeviciute, Aurina

AU - Atay, Selim Melvin

AU - Auer, Tibor

AU - Baracchini, Giulia

AU - Bayer, Johanna M. M.

AU - Beauvais, Michael J. S.

AU - Bijsterbosch, Janine D.

AU - Bilgin, Isil P.

AU - Bollmann, Saskia

AU - Bollmann, Steffen

AU - Botvinik-Nezer, Rotem

AU - Bright, Molly G.

AU - Calhoun, Vince D.

AU - Chen, Xiao

AU - Chopra, Sidhant

AU - Chuan-Peng, Hu

AU - Close, Thomas G.

AU - Cookson, Savannah L.

AU - Craddock, R. Cameron

AU - De La Vega, Alejandro

AU - De Leener, Benjamin

AU - Demeter, Damion V.

AU - Di Maio, Paola

AU - Dickie, Erin W.

AU - Eickhoff, Simon B.

AU - Esteban, Oscar

AU - Finc, Karolina

AU - Frigo, Matteo

AU - Ganesan, Saampras

AU - Ganz, Melanie

AU - Garner, Kelly G.

AU - Garza-Villarreal, Eduardo A.

AU - Gonzalez-Escamilla, Gabriel

AU - Goswami, Rohit

AU - Griffiths, John D.

AU - Grootswagers, Tijl

AU - et al, null

PY - 2021/8/1

Y1 - 2021/8/1

N2 - As the global health crisis unfolded, many academic conferences moved online in 2020. This move has been hailed as a positive step towards inclusivity in its attenuation of economic, physical, and legal barriers and effectively enabled many individuals from groups that have traditionally been underrepresented to join and participate. A number of studies have outlined how moving online made it possible to gather a more global community and has increased opportunities for individuals with various constraints, e.g., caregiving responsibilities. Yet, the mere existence of online conferences is no guarantee that everyone can attend and participate meaningfully. In fact, many elements of an online conference are still significant barriers to truly diverse participation: the tools used can be inaccessible for some individuals; the scheduling choices can favour some geographical locations; the set-up of the conference can provide more visibility to well-established researchers and reduce opportunities for early-career researchers. While acknowledging the benefits of an online setting, especially for individuals who have traditionally been underrepresented or excluded, we recognize that fostering social justice requires inclusivity to actively be centered in every aspect of online conference design. Here, we draw from the literature and from our own experiences to identify practices that purposefully encourage a diverse community to attend, participate in, and lead online conferences. Reflecting on how to design more inclusive online events is especially important as multiple scientific organizations have announced that they will continue offering an online version of their event when in-person conferences can resume.

AB - As the global health crisis unfolded, many academic conferences moved online in 2020. This move has been hailed as a positive step towards inclusivity in its attenuation of economic, physical, and legal barriers and effectively enabled many individuals from groups that have traditionally been underrepresented to join and participate. A number of studies have outlined how moving online made it possible to gather a more global community and has increased opportunities for individuals with various constraints, e.g., caregiving responsibilities. Yet, the mere existence of online conferences is no guarantee that everyone can attend and participate meaningfully. In fact, many elements of an online conference are still significant barriers to truly diverse participation: the tools used can be inaccessible for some individuals; the scheduling choices can favour some geographical locations; the set-up of the conference can provide more visibility to well-established researchers and reduce opportunities for early-career researchers. While acknowledging the benefits of an online setting, especially for individuals who have traditionally been underrepresented or excluded, we recognize that fostering social justice requires inclusivity to actively be centered in every aspect of online conference design. Here, we draw from the literature and from our own experiences to identify practices that purposefully encourage a diverse community to attend, participate in, and lead online conferences. Reflecting on how to design more inclusive online events is especially important as multiple scientific organizations have announced that they will continue offering an online version of their event when in-person conferences can resume.

UR - https://hdl.handle.net/1959.7/uws:61662

U2 - 10.1093/gigascience/giab051

DO - 10.1093/gigascience/giab051

M3 - Article

SN - 2047-217X

VL - 10

JO - GigaScience

JF - GigaScience

IS - 8

M1 - giab051

ER -

Centering inclusivity in the design of online conferences : an OHBM-Open Science perspective

Abstract

Bibliographical note

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this