Science Knows No Borders
About the Program
The Society has maintained a long-standing commitment to supporting and helping to facilitate global collaboration in science and recognizes the vital importance of working together to advance scientific discovery.
In keeping with that commitment, the Society, led by the Program Committee and supported by the Executive Committee, has established the Science Knows No Borders program for Neuroscience 2020.
The program provides opportunities for scientists who have been denied a U.S. travel visa to present their research and engage with their colleagues at Neuroscience 2020 through poster, nanosymposium, symposium, and minisymposium sessions. You must have an accepted abstract, symposium, or minisymposium presentation to be eligible for the program.
Applications to the Science Knows No Borders program for Neuroscience 2020 will open in the summer. Submit your name and email address if you wish to be contacted when additional information on the Science Knows No Borders program is available. Please check back periodically for more information.
Eligibility Requirements
If you are a citizen of one of the banned countries (Eritrea, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Venezuela, and Yemen) you must:
- Have an accepted abstract
- Participate in a short video conference call with SfN staff to validate country of citizenship
If you are an applicant from a non-banned country, you must:
- Have an accepted abstract, symposium, or minisymposium
- Be registered for Neuroscience 2020
- Provide proof of visa denial or delay in visa processing
Note: Citizens from the 13 banned countries are not required to register for Neuroscience 2020. Applicants from non-banned countries will be refunded their registration fees upon acceptance to the Science Knows No Borders program.
Presentation Formats
Poster Presentation Requirements:
- Presenters must provide SfN staff with a high-resolution PDF of their poster, which will be printed on their behalf on-site. Volunteers will hang and remove posters during the four-hour poster session.
- Volunteers will remain at their assigned posters for the entire duration of the presenter's one-hour presentation time to relay questions and feedback to the presenter via WhatsApp.
- Learn more about presenting your abstract as a poster.
Nanosymposium Requirements:
- Presenters must provide SfN staff with a Power Point presentation with audio not to exceed 10 minutes, which will then be saved to a USB flash drive. Volunteers will deliver flash drives to nanosymposium session chairs, who will introduce and play the presentation.
- Nanosymposium presenters are encouraged to provide contact information in their slides for feedback and questions related to their presentation.
- Learn more about presenting your abstract as a nanosymposium.
Symposium/Minisymposium Requirements:
- Presenters must provide SfN staff with a PowerPoint presentation with audio not to exceed your designated presentation time, which will then be saved to a USB flash drive. Volunteers will deliver flash drives to symposium/minisymposium session chairs, who will introduce and play the presentation.
- Symposium/minisymposium presenters are encouraged to provide contact information in their slides for feedback and questions related to their presentation.
- Learn more about preparing an oral presentation.
Presenters will have the option of being identified as a participant of Science Knows No Borders through the use of an icon placed on their presentation, as well as in the Neuroscience Meeting Planner and meeting mobile app.
Be a Science Knows No Borders Volunteer
SfN will be looking for volunteers to help facilitate the Science Knows No Borders program on-site at Neuroscience 2020. Please check back for more information on how to engage in this program in the coming months.
