Call for Symposia

Symposia proposals selected from an open call are a central part of the FENS Regional Meeting 2023 (FRM2023) that will take place in Algarve, Portugal, during 3-5 May, 2023.

Each of these sessions will have a maximum duration of 120 min and will focus on a specific topic with major interest to the neuroscience community. Each symposium includes 3 speakers invited by the coordinator of the symposium, who may be one of the speakers and will act as chairperson. Two additional speakers will be selected among the FRM2023 participants that submitted abstracts for oral presentations. Proposals may address any topic of broad interest in the field of neuroscience, and trending new subjects are welcome.

On behalf of the Organising Committee of the FRM2023 and the Sociedade Portuguesa de Neurociências (SPN, Portuguese Society for Neuroscience), we invite all members of FENS, members of associate societies and non-FENS members to submit proposals for scientific symposia. Proposals should be submitted until the 4 September 2022.

How to submit

Proposals are submitted in the form of a pdf document, sent to the Local Organising Committee, by email to enquiries@fensrm2023algarve.pt.

Proposal format

Proposals should include the following information:

– Session title

– Name, institution, and email address of the proponent chairperson. The chairperson can be a member of FENS, a member of any associate society or a non-FENS member.  The chairperson is the contact person and is responsible for the communication with the speakers. The chairperson should provide their ORCID identifier (or a link to another professional webpage).

– Names, institutions, and email address of 3 speakers. Speakers must also provide a tentative title for their talk and their ORCID identifier (or a link to another professional webpage).

– Symposia description (< 400 words). The description should contextualise the topic of the session in terms that should be understandable by all participants attending FRM2023, and should include the objectives of the symposium, explaining its relevance and interest to the Neuroscience community. The description will appear in the programme of the meeting at a later point, and will help participants decide on whether to attend the session.

– One-sentence session summary (< 50 words). A very short description providing the essential information on the topic of the symposium.

Selection criteria

All proposals meeting the above specifications (and only those) will be peer-reviewed and evaluated by members of the FRM2023 Scientific Committee. Symposia will be selected based on the following criteria:

– Scientific interest of the topic

– Ability to provide a strong overview of the topic

– Innovation and diversity of approaches to the topic

– Integration of the talks, and relevance to the broader topic

– Track record of the speakers

– Balance, in terms of gender, nationality and career stage of symposium chairperson and speakers

– Appeal to the large, multidisciplinary, audience of FRM2023

Funding

Symposia chairperson and speakers are required to register for the conference. Registration is free for symposium speakers and chairperson, but FRM2023 will NOT cover travel and accommodation expenses. It is up to the proposal organisers or/and proposed speakers to find funding for travel, accommodation and other expenses. Chairpersons should communicate this information to the speakers.

Decision notification

Chairpersons will be notified about the decisions by the first week of October 2022. Decisions will be sent by email and proposals will be definitely accepted once the chairpersons have replied and confirmed their participation.

If a proposal is accepted, the chairperson will be requested to confirm the speaker list. The chairperson should maintain communication with the speakers throughout all stages of the organisation process up to the FRM2023.

Upon selection, the session will be scheduled to take place during FRM2023, and any cancellations on the part of the chairperson and/or the speakers will naturally be extremely disruptive.