Society for Neuroscience

Social Issues Roundtable Proposals

Proposal Toolbox

The deadline for submitting Social Issues Roundtable proposals has passed. Submitters will be contacted in mid-February regarding the status of their proposals.

Deadlines
Oct 17, 2009 - Proposal submission site opens

Jan. 13, 2010 - Proposal Submission deadline

Early Feb. 2010 - Proposals review

Mid Feb. 2010 - Notification of proposal acceptance

For questions, contact program@sfn.org.

Robert Greene, M.D., Ph.D., Chair, 2010 Program Committee
DEADLINE: Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2010, 5 p.m. ET

SfN's Program Committee invites proposal submissions for the Social Issues Roundtable at Neuroscience 2010 in San Diego. In terms of content, submitters should consider neuroscience topics that have an impact on society, particularly in terms of ethics and/or social awareness. The committee has established the following guidelines to clarify proposal submission procedures:

Topic Choice
Participants
Funding
When to Put it Together
How to Present
Selection Process
Diversity

Topic Choice
Keep the following points in mind:

The Committee seeks topics with broad appeal that touch on timely social issues.
Unless recent and exciting developments have occurred, topics appearing within the past three years are less favorably considered. On the other hand, the principal argument in favor of a topic should never be that it has not been represented for many years.
For your quick reference, the titles of the past five years’ SIRs are as follows:

                           2009 - Engaging the Public on Ethical, Legal, and Social Implications of Neuroscience Research
                           2008 - Global Neuroscience: Neuroethics and the Burden of Nervous System Disorders
                           2007 - Genes for Mental Disorders and Functions: Implications for Society
                           2006 - Autism Spectrum Disorders: Scientific Advances and Social Impact
                           2005 - Stem Cells: Advances and their Ethical, Legal, and Policy Implications

Participants
It is required that you name in your proposal a moderator (perhaps yourself) who has agreed to be responsible for the event and three to five speakers who have also agreed to participate in the SIR. The moderator must be a member of SfN. Speakers may be SfN members or nonmembers.

The moderator’s responsibility includes submitting one description (for the Preliminary/Final Program and Neuroscience Meeting Planner) and other submission requirements for the entire session. The moderator is responsible for making sure that all speakers have returned necessary logistical and programming information to SfN staff.

Note that during the submission and review process, the proposer (if different than the moderator) will be the primary contact. After acceptance into the annual meeting program, the moderator becomes the primary contact and, furthermore, is responsible for relaying any and all important information to and from the other speakers.

Funding
SfN provides the SIR moderator and speakers with complimentary registration, round-trip economy class airfare, and two nights’ hotel stay at one of the annual meeting headquarters hotels.

When to Put it Together
The Program Committee makes the final selection in mid-February, the latest date to include the final SIR title in the Preliminary Program. Submit proposals online by 5 p.m. ET, Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2010. The proposal should be well-developed in design, particularly regarding moderators and speakers, during November or December.

How to Present
During the submission process, you must provide the following information:

Title of the proposed SIR

Contact information (including e-mail, addresses) for the proposer, moderator, and speaker

Make sure that proposed moderator and speakers have already agreed to participate. In addition, address the following (all character limits include spaces):

Overall objectives of the SIR and how it addresses neuroscience topics that have an impact on society, particularly in terms of ethics and/or social awareness (limit to 1,500 characters).
Why the proposal is timely (500 characters)
The extent to which issue has broad appeal for SfN membership (500 characters)
The diversity of your participants, such as number of female speakers or under-represented minorities (500 characters)
Other considerations that make the proposal attractive

Selection Process
The final selection is made by the entire Program Committee - the primary consideration is determining what best serves the interests of SfN and the success of the annual meeting.

The Committee may suggest substitutions of speakers, or a different moderator. The Committee may decide to coalesce two proposals into one and suggest which speakers to retain.

Suggestions from Program Committee discussions are passed directly to the proposed moderator. Proposals not selected one year are not held over for consideration the next. However, a team can re-submit a proposal the following year and receive the same consideration as any other.

For more information, contact SfN's program staff at (202) 962-4000 or program@sfn.org.

Diversity
Appropriate representation of women, international neuroscientist, and under-represented minorities is strongly encouraged and considered by the Program Committee when selecting SIR proposals. The Program Committee retains the right to ensure diversity by working with the organizer to modify composition.

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