Call for Session Proposals and Abstracts 2024

Abstract submission has been extended to September 6th!

River Restoration Northwest is dedicated to convening diverse perspectives in the river restoration community.

As the summer season begins, February may feel far off but it’s already that time again to start planning for the 22nd RRNW Symposium - February 5-9, 2024.

We are accepting abstracts and sessions proposals starting today and look forward to reading about the exciting work you all want to share!

Suggested Topics

  • The tide has turned - estuary and tidal restoration - What are successful strategies to improve habitat conditions in tidal areas? How wild can we make these spaces? What are the barriers to efficient and effective restoration?
  • It isn’t groundbreaking, but it’s still valuable - hydrologic and hyporheic restoration - Can we use water management as a restoration tool? Too much and not enough water in the river - how do we continue to slow the water?  How do we move beyond Stage Zero to restore floodplain connectivity and create hyporheic restoration for year-round in-stream flows? Do you have examples of partnering with producers for more water in the river?
  • All the critters we do not see - mussels, birds, plants, and all the other non-focal species driving river restoration - Don’t they deserve more recognition? What about the creepy crawlers, pesky pisces and hapless herbs - marauding invaders that we battle as we restore our watersheds? Can we seed successful succession with appropriate design and monitoring? Can we restore ecological function for all species when salmon are often the primary driver for recovery?
  • Doing more with less for the love of monitoring - Do you have examples of going above and beyond with effectiveness monitoring that outlasts permit compliance monitoring? What can we learn from Intensively Monitored Watersheds?  How do we capitalize on and share lessons learned that never make it into public deliverables?
  • Sowing the seeds of stewardship - restoration on agricultural lands - How can we work with producers to provide more and better aquatic and riparian habitat? Can we improve habitat while protecting producer viability through water savings, grazing management, and riparian fencing? What are the best strategies for building relationships with producers?
  • Beyond the buffer - riparian succession and plant diversity on floodplains - What have we learned from riparian planting projects? What are the primary challenges, including programmatic barriers for establishing healthy riparian corridors? How do we control noxious weeds and establish an idealized plant array in the floodplain?

DeadlinesInstructionsSelection Criteria

Deadline for Oral/Poster Presentation Abstracts Submissions

Oral & Poster Presentation Abstracts complying with all of these instructions must be received via online submission by 11:59:00 PM PST on September 6, 2023. Note that incomplete abstracts will not be considered for acceptance

Instructions

Submissions will only be received electronically, via our online system.

No more than two (2) submissions per person (i.e. Convener, Lead Author, and/or Presenter)

Submissions must not be:

    • autobiographical;
    • commercial/promotional;

Oral/Poster Presentation Abstracts

RRNW session format generally consists of three or four oral presentations that build upon a common theme. Sessions are presented in a plenary format to an audience of 300-400. Presentations should appeal to a broad audience.

The number of accepted oral presentations is limited by our commitment to a plenary format. Therefore, abstract screening is rigorous and competitive. Authors must indicate during the submittal process if they wish to be considered for Oral only, Poster only, or either format.

  • Selecting Oral only will result in your abstract will be considered for an oral presentation only.
  • Selecting Poster Only will result in your abstract being considered for a poster presentation only.
  • Selecting either format will result in your abstract being reviewed first as a candidate for an oral presentation, and if not selected it will be considered as a candidate for a poster presentation.

Authors will be notified of acceptance after the review process is complete.

  1. Oral presentations are 20 minutes in duration, this includes 5 minutes for audience questions and responses. Oral presentations are grouped into sessions of three to four based on content. Due to limited duration, only one presenter is allowed per presentation.
  2. Poster presentations are highly valued and encouraged, as they allow extended interaction between authors and symposium participants. Posters are displayed for a full day with an active poster session duration of two hours. Poster authors are expected to be present at their poster exhibit during the poster session. Poster presenters may also elect to provide a 3 minute “lightning talk” presentation during the plenary session.
  3. Posters are to be traditional large-format hard copy displays. Accepted posters are displayed for a full day; the active poster session will be two hours long, and introduced during the plenary session by the RRNW Poster Moderator. Authors of selected posters are required to submit an electronic introductory slide to the moderator prior to the Symposium for use in the introductory presentation.
  4. Poster authors are expected to be present at their exhibit station during the poster session.
  5. Detailed format guidelines and restrictions applying to the Oral presentations and Poster presentations will be provided to all authors after notification of acceptance.
  6.  All accepted presenters are required to register for the symposium and attend the symposium

See examples of previously accepted session proposal here:


Selection Criteria

All submissions are subject to review by the program committee, comprised of RRNW Board of Directors. The program committee will review all submissions based on the following:

Relevance - to river restoration science and of interest to range of disciplines.

Contribution - to advancement of the science and practice of river restoration.

Originality - to provoke fruitful debate and discussion in the audience.

Creativity – as stimulus for plenary session audience interaction.

Rigor - (esp. for Case Studies) in approach, monitoring data to support conclusions.

Organization – (for session proposals only) with sufficient focus, detail and variety of component presentations

Thank you for your interest in presenting at RRNW’s Annual Stream Restoration Symposium. If you have questions, please contact submissions@rrnw.org

Evaluation of submissions may result in decisions to merge or otherwise adjust proposed sessions. RRNW reserves the right to cancel an accepted session if an insufficient number of proposed presentation abstracts are accepted.

All program participants are required to register for the Symposium.

Examples of previously accepted session proposal abstracts provided here

Session Proposals must be completed and received by 11:59 PM PST on Tuesday August 1, 2023.

RRNW session format generally consists of three or four oral presentations that build upon a common theme. Sessions are presented in a plenary format to an audience of 300-400.

Session Conveners are to propose a session theme, provide a session abstract describing the proposed theme, and list 3 or 4 oral presentations that support the proposed theme. Presentation topics should acknowledge the range of discipline and perspective among the river restoration community. The program committee may decline to consider session proposals that lack this organization and focus.

Session proposals will be screened for completeness, ranked through a transparent process, and decisions made at least two weeks ahead of the deadline for presentation abstract submissions. Conveners will be notified of session acceptance and are expected to ensure that all proposed presentation abstracts are submitted on time.

Acceptance of a session proposal does not ensure that all presentation abstracts proposed for the session will be accepted. Conveners must work with their presenters to ensure abstract submissions are strong and meet requirements. Each presentation abstract is subject to individual review and ranking, and will be selected on its own merit.

Call for Session Proposals

The Deadline for Session Proposals, Oral Abstracts, and poster abstracts has passed.

DeadlinesInstructionsSelection Criteria

Deadline for Session Proposal Submission

Session Proposals complying with all of these instructions must be received via online submission by 3:00 PM PST on Tuesday July 13, 2021.

Instructions

Submissions will only be received electronically.

No more than two (2) submissions per person (i.e. convener, lead author, and/or presenter).

Submissions must not be:

  • autobiographical;
  • commercial/promotional;

Session Proposals

RRNW session format generally consists of three or four oral presentations that build upon a common theme. Sessions are presented in a plenary format to an audience of 300-400. Presentation should appeal to a broad audience.

Session Conveners are to propose a session theme, provide an abstract describing the proposed theme, and list 3 or 4 oral presentations that support the proposed theme. Presentation topics should acknowledge the range of discipline and perspective among the river restoration community. The program committee may decline to consider session proposals that lack this organization and focus.

Session proposals will be screened for completeness and ranked with decisions made at least two weeks ahead of the deadline for oral abstract submissions. Conveners will be notified of session acceptance and are expected to ensure that all proposed presentation abstracts are submitted on time.

Acceptance of a session proposal does not ensure that all presentation abstracts proposed for the session will be accepted. Conveners must work with their presenters to ensure abstract submissions are strong and meet requirements. Each presentation abstract is subject to individual review and ranking, and will be selected on its own merit.

Evaluation of submissions may result in decisions to merge or otherwise adjust proposed sessions. RRNW reserves the right to cancel an accepted session if an insufficient number of proposed presentations are accepted.

All program participants are required to register for the symposium by January 1, 2022.

See examples of previously accepted session proposal here:

Session Selection Criteria

All submissions are subject to review by the program committee, comprised of the RRNW Board of Directors. The program committee will review all submissions based on the following:

Relevance - to river restoration science and of interest to range of disciplines.

Contribution - to advancement of the science and practice of river restoration.

Originality - to provoke fruitful debate and discussion in the audience.

Creativity – as stimulus for plenary session audience interaction.

Rigor - (esp. for case studies) in approach and monitoring data to support conclusions.

Organization – (for Session Proposals only) with sufficient focus, detail,  and variety of component presentations.