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About Sessions
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About The Technical Program
The technical program is structured into topic streams that address broad aspects of impact assessment theory and practice. Sessions have been allocated to one of the conference themes or to an IAIA Section topic.
Some sessions have been proposed by, and will be chaired by, members of the IAIA Sections and form part of the ongoing activities of the Sections.
Submitting Paper Abstracts
- Carefully read the theme forum and session descriptions and decide where your abstract fi ts best.
- Note the specifi c theme forum or session under which you would like to contribute.
- Go to www.iaia.org > IAIA14 > Submissions and complete the online form.
Theme Forums
Theme forums bring together special speakers to open IAIA conference discussions.
The goal is to present a well-balanced mix of innovative and high-quality sessions. Theme forums are intended to be integrative in nature, i.e., to deal with cross-cutting issues relevant to the many specialties of impact assessment; to engage with the conference theme; to be relevant to our international audience; and to be innovative in format.
The theme forums listed in the preliminary program are tentative. The fi nal selection of theme forums will be made and confi rmed in the fi nal program following further planning by potential theme forum conveners.
Sessions: Definitions of Terms
A session is a block of time, typically 90 minutes, during which discussion centers on a particular topic. A thematic session refers to a session that is specifi cally oriented toward the conference theme.
Sessions and thematic sessions may utilize a variety of formats, and the length of time available for presentations depends on the format that has been selected by the session chair. Session formats include:
Theme forum: Smaller than plenaries and larger than concurrent sessions, theme forums include "cut-above" presentations and discussions which address the conference theme, bring together on a particular topic the various aspects of impact assessment, and examine how those aspects apply to diff erent sectors and issues.
Paper session: In a paper session, authors
orally present the fi ndings of a prepared paper or project. A chaired Paper session typically allows 4-5 presentations of 15-20 minutes each, including time for specifi c questions. Ideally, the chair allocates time for general questions and open discussion following the presentations.
Workshop: In a workshop, the topic is specifi c and seeks to resolve a defi ned problem, often through a combination of 2-3 short paper presentations and active discussion.
Panel discussion: In a panel, the speakers are invited. The chair introduces each speaker and puts each talk in perspective. Each speaker gives a brief (10-15 minutes) prepared presentation, usually presenting a diff erent view or experience on the topic, followed by debate between the speakers and questions from the audience facilitated by the chair.
Roundtable: Involves a group of individuals, some of whom may be invited, holding an informal discussion on a specifi c topic or problem, with no formal presentations.
Debate: A debate takes place between two or more opponents who are experts in their fi elds as well as being entertaining presenters. The debate topic is clearly defi ned in terms of a question, with one side presenting the affi rmative case and the other the negative case.
Pecha Kucha is a presentation methodology in which 20 slides are shown for 20 seconds each (six minutes and 40 seconds in total). This format allows for concise and fast-presentations and will be tried by IAIA for the fi rst time at IAIA14.
World Café: World Café comprises progressive rounds of conversation among groups of 5-6 participants. Each round lasts 15-20 minutes, after which participants are invited to form new groups and continue the conversation drawing in ideas and comments from earlier discussions. The session concludes with a whole-group discussion.
Practitioner exchanges provide an opportunity for up to 8 conference participants to present a brief (3 minutes) overview of their work and to network with others in the same fi eld. Time does not permit presentation of full papers during the session, but abstracts will be included in the fi nal program. Note: Some Practitioner Exchanges may be included in the preliminary program in response to session submissions received, while others may be added during preparation of the fi nal program to accommodate large numbers of paper submissions on a particular topic.
Indaba: For issues that arise during the conference and that delegates want to pursue through follow-up discussions. During the morning, participants post potential topics for discussion, and individuals interested in each topic sign up. If a topic generates suffi cient interest, space is made available for the discussion to take place in the late afternoon.