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Conference Presenter Cancellation Policy

Late Cancellations and No Shows – Conference Presenters

Before submitting an abstract to the CERF conference program, presenters should be confident in their ability to attend the conference and make the presentation as scheduled. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Scientific Program Committee and session chairs, and subsequently abstracts which fit within the program will be assigned to a presentation time slot. 

Cancellations by Presenters (Oral and Poster)

Late cancellations and failures to give scheduled presentations are disruptive and leave gaps in the conference program that diminish the experience for all attendees. Therefore, CERF is implementing the following policies to discourage cancellations. Most situations that result in cancellation are avoidable with proper prior planning. However, CERF understands that special situations occur. In any event, it is the author’s responsibility to contribute to developing solutions to mitigate impacts of their cancellation to the conference program. 

Presenters Notification and Confirmation

Presenters will be notified of presentation assignment by email on or about August 1, 2019. At this time, presenters will be prompted to accept or decline the assignment, and register for the conference. Presenters must confirm their participation and preregister for the conference by September 3, 2019.

Presenters who have not confirmed their participation and completed online conference registration by September 3, 2019 will be considered to have declined to participate and their time slot may be reassigned.

Cancellation Penalties

Once a presenter has confirmed participation, cancellation creates a hardship on conference organizers and disruptions in the conference program. As such, cancellations received prior to September 23, 2019 are subject to CERF’s standard $75 USD cancellation processing fee. This fee applies to submitters of all presentation types (invited and contributed, posters and oral).

Cancellations by presenters received after September 23, 2019 receive no refund on registration.

These Presenter Cancellation penalties apply only to the presenting author, not to any coauthors. Coauthors and all other conference participants are subject to CERF’s standard cancellation policies: Cancellations prior to October 10, 2019 are subject to a $75 cancellation processing fee; no refunds are allowed for cancellations after October 10, 2019.

Extenuating Circumstances

We understand that unforeseen events outside of a presenter’s control may prevent them from presenting as scheduled. The late cancellation and no show penalties will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for presenters with sudden and unavoidable reasons for not attending the conference (medical issues, family emergencies, unforeseen travel problems, difficulty acquiring a visa for travel to the US, and similar situations outside of a presenter’s control).

Replacement Speakers

Failure to give a scheduled presentation without any notice is especially disruptive to the meeting. Therefore, a replacement speaker is allowed (and encouraged) in the case of an unforeseen change to plans close to the conference dates. If circumstances prevent attendance for a scheduled presentation, the presenting author should attempt to find another qualified individual to give the presentation on his or her behalf. The author must notify CERF, and their session chair, of any replacement speaker in a timely manner. These substitutions are subject to approval of the Scientific Program Committee. If replacement speakers are implemented after the program is finalized, CERF will be unable to update the printed program. However, the presenter must still notify the session chair of the change.

How to Cancel a Presentation

To cancel, presenters should notify the CERF Scientific Program Committee and session chair in writing by email as early as possible.

Special Considerations for Federal Employees

CERF conference presenters employed by federal agencies may face special challenges to acquiring conference travel approval. CERF is committed to facilitating conference attendance for federal employees, and will provide an invoice method for payment of conference registration fees once travel approval is received. By September 3, 2019, presenters who are federal employees still must confirm their presentation and complete online conference registration by selecting the Invoice option on the Payment Page. 

Abstract Per Person Policy

Please note that the Federation has a one presentation per person policy. This means that each participant is permitted to be the lead author or presenter on only one poster, oral or lightning presentation. You may be co-author on other presentations. This policy was adopted to ensure that Federation conference sessions contain contributions from as many people as possible. The conference limit of one first author oral or poster presentation per individual does not apply to the education sessions. The abstract fee will be waived for a second abstract submitted to an education session. 

Late-Breaking Poster Abstracts

CERF recognizes that coastal and estuarine science is a rapidly moving field and that new research results may arise after the initial deadline for submissions has passed. CERF also recognizes that for a variety of reasons, contributors may be unable to meet the original submission deadline and would still appreciate an opportunity to present their research. After evaluation of original conference submissions and assessment of available space, Conference organizers may provide an opportunity to submit Late-Breaking Poster Abstracts for presentation at the conference. Abstracts are particularly encouraged which speak to the Conference themes. 

Lead authors of all Late-Breaking Poster abstracts will be notified of their acceptance prior to the Advance registration deadline. Because of the tight timeline for program inclusion of Late-Breaking Poster abstracts, editing of submitted abstracts will not be feasible. Lead authors will need to register for the Conference within the registration deadlines. 

All policies and fees with respect to abstract cancellations also apply to Late-Breaking Poster lead authors, and authors should review these policies before submission. 

Social Media "Social Cerfing" Policy

Please Read Before You Tweet (Or Facebook, blog, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, LinkedIn, etc.)

To balance the needs and expectations of conference presenters with the benefits of open sharing and discussion, we have prepared a best practice guideline for using social media during the conference.

  • We encourage all conference attendees to openly discuss our conference on social media. You can live Tweet, post to Facebook, or even blog about the presentations. Please use the meeting hashtag #CERF[year] (e.g. #CERF2019) to increase engagement. We also encourage our attendees to follow and tag us on Twitter (@CERFScience), Facebook (@CERFScience), and Instagram (@CERFScience), and to use these outlets to send us questions, ideas, or general thoughts - we’ll follow you back!
  • Photography, video and audio recording of scientific content from oral and poster sessions, plenaries, and keynotes are not allowed unless you receive permission from the authors/presenters. Some authors/presenters wish to withhold audio/visual material from being recorded and/or posted on social media.
  • We encourage the use of photos and video, but please restrict it to non-scientific content such as social events, in the Exhibit Hall, and in public spaces throughout the meeting.
  • Please follow our overall meeting code of conduct and be considerate and respectful of all meeting attendees. Online harassment, intimidation, or discrimination in any form will not be tolerated.