ASN RSS

Nominations for the Inclusiveness, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Award

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 05:00:00 GMT

The American Society of Naturalists, the Society for the Study of Evolution, and the Society of Systematic Biologists announce the call for nominations for the ASN/SSE/SSB Inclusiveness, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Award. The IDEA Award will be given to a person at any career stage who has strengthened the ecology and evolutionary biology community by promoting inclusiveness and diversity in our fields. The award can also be presented to a group. The recipient(s) will be invited to present a plenary lecture at the annual Evolution meeting. Each recipient will also receive a plaque and a $1000 honorarium (shared among recipients if more than one).

***Eligibility Note: No contemporary officer, editor, member of diversity committee, or meeting organizer of the three societies is eligible for the award. Membership in any of the three societies is not required to nominate someone or be nominated for this award.***

How to submit a nomination

Nominations should be submitted by October 25, 2024.

Nomination packages should include:

Nomination Letter: A single letter of support (1-2 pages) including biographical information (name, title, organization) of the person or group being nominated, along with a short description of the activities supporting the nomination. The letter must also include a section on the nature of impact the person or group has had on inclusivity, diversity, and equity in the field. For self-nominations, this letter should be written by another person who is familiar with the activities of the nominee.
Biosketch: A brief biosketch or list of activities (maximum 3 pages) for the person/group nominated.
Optional supplementary material: any material you believe clarifies the activities of the nominee relevant to this award (maximum 3 pages).

Please contact committee chair Jessica Light at jessica.light [at] ag.tamu.edu with any questions.

DEADLINE: October 25, 2024

Click here to apply!

Past recipients are listed here.

About the IDEA Award

The ASN/SSE/SSB Inclusiveness, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Award was created in 2019 by the American Society of Naturalists (ASN), the Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE), and the Society of Systematic Biologists (SSB). The IDEA Award is given to a person at any career stage who has strengthened the ecology and evolutionary biology community by promoting inclusiveness and diversity in our fields. The award can also be presented to a group. The recipient will receive a plaque at the annual meeting of ASN/SSB/SSE and a $1000 honorarium. Nominations are due in January of each year.

ASN Outstanding Student Poster Award

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 05:00:00 GMT

The recipient of the ASN Outstanding Student Poster Award, July 2024, is Phoebe Hazel Mary Cunningham (Queen Mary University of London) for the poster, “Roles and regulations: nutrient provision and host regulation of symbionts in three distinct lineages of ants.” Congratulations!

Honorable mentions for the ASN Outstanding Student Poster Award, June 2024, go to Steven Casey (University of Massachusetts–Lowell) for the poster “Dragline silk gene expansion in triangle weaver spiders accompanies exceptionally proline rich fibers in its spring-loaded webs”, and to Sophia Haase Cox (Stanford University) for the poster, “The genetic basis and development of a novel tailspot pattern in Xiphophorus variatus.” Congratulations!

The ASN Outstanding Student Poster Award was established in 2012 to recognize a student who has presented an outstanding poster at the annual meeting or at the stand-alone meeting of the American Society of Naturalists.

It was established in memory of Ruth Patrick, a renowned limnologist, past president of the American Society of Naturalists (1975), and Lifetime Honorary Member of the ASN.

The ASN returns to Asilomar, January 3-7, 2025

Thu, 22 Aug 2024 05:00:00 GMT

The ASN will be returning to the Asilomar Conference Center for its (mostly) biennial stand-alone meeting from January 3-7, 2025.

Registration is now open! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to attend this very special gathering.

Due July 15, 2024

The American Society of Naturalists will be going back to Asilomar in Pacific Grove, California, to hold our stand-alone conference – Asilomar 2025 – on 3-7 January 2025!

Have an idea for a special symposium? We want to hear it!

The ASN Symposium Committee invites you to submit proposals for a special symposium. Proposed symposium topics should support the Society’s goal to advance the conceptual unification of the biological sciences and to further knowledge in evolution, ecology, behavior, and organismal biology. Topics could center around important emerging issues in evolution, ecology, or behavior or focus on a pivotal historical paper, tracing its impact and exploring current cutting-edge research inspired by this work.

Proposals should include (1) a title; (2) a description of the symposium topic (up to one page); (3) a list of six speakers, including institutional affiliations, who have agreed to participate in the symposium; (4) a justification for the symposium, explaining why the topic and speakers are appropriate for an ASN symposium (up to one page).

Please submit proposals by email (michelle.afkhami@miami.edu) no later than midnight Eastern Time on July 15, 2022. Send your proposal as a single pdf attachment, under subject heading “ASN Asilomar 2025 Symposium Proposal”.

In line with the ASN's commitment to diversity, we encourage including speakers from groups who have been historically excluded from STEM. Therefore, proposals that include a diverse list of speakers from a range of backgrounds, institutions, career stages, geography, gender, race, etc., are especially encouraged. Further, we especially encourage early career researchers to propose sessions as organizing symposia can advance their careers through building broader scientific networks and a record of scientific leadership.

Additionally, the Society’s selection committee will evaluate proposals based on their potential to attracting substantial audience and stimulate discussion, the significance and timeliness of the topic, and on the topic’s differing substantively from recent symposia hosted by the Society. Applicants will be notified of the decision before the end of August 2025. In cases of financial hardship, requests for assistance to allow participation in symposia can be made to the American Society of Naturalists and will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Michelle Afkhami
ASN Symposium Committee Chair
Department of Biology
University of Miami
michelle.afkhami@miami.edu