Call for Symposia

Wisconsin Wetlands Association invites you to host a half-day or full-day symposia at our 30th Annual Wetland Science Conference, which will be held February 25-27, 2025. We expect to host an in-person conference in La Crosse, WI.

Symposia consist of planned sessions on special topics that support the conference theme and that integrate across disciplines and across the landscape. Symposia could include oral presentations, panel discussions, and/or open discussion. All symposia should further information sharing and collaboration on current critical wetland issues.

Symposium organizers will be responsible for recruiting speakers for timeslots in multiples of 20 minutes, with a minimum of three 20-minute sessions, including time for questions and discussion. The Conference Advisory Panel Symposium Committee welcomes interested persons to organize symposia on subjects relevant to Wisconsin wetlands; the list below provides some possible topic areas.

Symposium proposals are due by September 30, 2024.

More information 
Organizer responsibilities

All symposia must have a lead organizer who serves as the primary point of contact with WWA and manages communications with all presenters in their symposium. Symposium organizers should be readily available by email in the months leading up to the conference and are expected to moderate their symposium or line up symposium moderators. Organizers are also expected to identify funding sources to cover expenses needed to put on the symposium (WWA is NOT able to cover presenter registration fees, travel, or other expenses.)

If your proposal is accepted
Organizers are responsible for ensuring that all presenters in their symposium submit an abstract by November 15, 2024, via the online abstract submission system used by all presenters for the conference. Details about how to access this system will be sent to organizers of accepted symposia upon notification of acceptance so that they can communicate this information to the symposium presenters. Symposium presenters must also submit a video recording of their presentation by February 17, 2025 and register for the conference by noon on February 20, 2025. Presenters who do not meet these deadlines may be excluded from the conference program. Symposium organizers must also submit an abstract as above if they plan to give a presentation during their session and would like their abstract included in the abstracts booklet.

If you are unable to secure enough presenters to fill your symposium or to take the place of any presenters who have cancelled, the Conference Advisory Panel Symposium Committee will work with you to determine the best remedy so as to maintain the program’s integrity.

Funding

We will provide meeting space and onsite logistical support for all symposia, but we cannot offer any travel or accommodation assistance, honoraria, complimentary registration, or other funding to session organizers or individual speakers/presenters. We encourage prospective organizers to seek sponsorships and/or institutional support to help offset the costs associated with their symposium; please coordinate with WWA on these efforts.

Suggestions for symposium topics

Climate Adaptation

  • The role of wetlands in the global carbon cycle
  • Climate change impacts and adaptations: How are wetlands part of the solution?
  • Vulnerabilities of wetlands to climate change and predicted impacts to Wisconsin wetlands

Wetlands and Biodiversity Conservation

  • Wetland wildlife every wetland enthusiast should know
  • Taking inventory of wetland diversity: What have we learned?
  • Wetland wildlife monitoring: Programs and results
  • Effects of management on species abundance and diversity
  • How to protect genotypes when restoration is pulling material from many other places
  • Role of wetlands in pollinator conservation

Wetlands & Water Quality

  • The role of wetlands in improving water quality
  • Wetlands as a tool for reaching Area of Concern and TMDL goals
  • How groundwater recharge rates and groundwater quality impact wetland health

Wetland Restoration & Management

  • Wetlands in an agricultural landscape: Helping achieve on-farm and watershed goals
  • Wetland restoration science:  What have we learned?  Where are we headed?
  • Wetland management science:  What have we learned? Where are we headed?
  • Fire as a wetland management tool
  • Determining historic wetland site conditions: How do we set our restoration goals?
  • Wetland mitigation: Policies and practices

Watershed Assessment & Planning

  • Incorporating wetland science into community land use planning
  • Applications of wetland assessment for community planning and decision-making

Wetland Functions & Services

  • Impacts of invasive plants on wetland communities
  • Measuring wetland functions: What have we learned?
  • Economic valuation of wetland resources in Wisconsin: Case studies
  • The role of wetlands in watershed hydrology
  • The role of wetlands in riparian systems

Communicating About Wetland Science

  • Translating wetland science for the public: How can we be effective doing this?
  • Information about wetland properties (especially unique wetlands) that are open for the public to visit
  • How to engage your neighbors and community in protecting and/or restoring wetlands
  • How have advancements in wetland science changed the practices of professionals? (e.g. in the work of professional communities in energy, construction, water treatment, planning, etc.)

Below the Wetland

  • Wetland soils
  • Microbiology of wetlands
Review process

The Conference Advisory Panel Symposium Committee will make the final decision with regard to the acceptance and scheduling of all symposia. Proposals will be reviewed following the submission deadline, and acceptance notices will be sent as soon as possible in order to allow organizers sufficient time to coordinate with speakers, make travel arrangements, seek institutional support, and secure sponsorship as necessary. Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

  • scientific merit, with emphasis on new research results, cutting-edge developments, novel perspectives, and innovative or interdisciplinary approaches.
  • clear relevance to the field of wetland research, restoration, and management and its social, economic and/or ecological aspects.
  • applicability to wetland restoration or management practices and/or policy.
  • availability of funding to support speaker attendance (and/or travel). WWA is NOT able to support symposium speaker registration or travel costs.
  • submission of a clearly written and compelling proposal that includes a draft program for the symposium session.

Organizers will be notified electronically concerning the receipt, review, and acceptance of their proposal via the e-mail address provided. Organizers will be notified as to the acceptance of their proposal no later than October 15, 2024. If for some reason you do not hear from the Conference Advisory Panel Symposium Committee by this date, please contact Ginny Carlton, WWA Conference and Workshop Coordinator (conference@wisconsinwetlands.org).

Submit a Symposium proposal

Individuals considering submitting a symposium proposal are strongly encouraged to contact Katie Beilfuss, WWA Outreach Programs Director, at 608-250-9971 x3, prior to submitting to discuss ideas and process.

Submit your symposium proposal here.

Symposium proposals are due by September 30, 2024.

The form asks you to provide the following information:

  • Symposium title & description
  • Name, affiliation, topic, and talk length for each presenter
  • # of attendees you expect to attend the symposium
  • How you plan to promote your symposium (in addition to any promotion WWA might do)
  • Funding needs (e.g., presenter registration fees or travel, supplies, catering) and how you plan to cover these needs
  • What is your preferred timing for your Symposium (Tuesday PM, Wednesday AM, Wednesday PM, Thursday AM, or Thursday PM)
  • If public health conditions require WWA to pivot and host an all-virtual conference, are you willing to host the Symposium virtually

Important Dates

  • Symposium proposals due: September 30, 2024
  • Decisions on symposium proposals: October 15, 2024
  • Presenters for accepted symposia submit abstracts: November 15, 2024
  • Symposium details posted on conference website: December 22, 2024
  • Presenters for accepted symposia submit video recording of presentation: February 10, 2025
  • Presenters for accepted symposia register for conference by: noon February 20, 2025