UPDATE — March 20, 2020

Dear ANSER-ARES Members and Conference Participants,

After extensive consultations, the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences has decided there will not be an in-person meeting; are working to move Congress 2020 online with the associations that wish to participate.

Today, the ANSER-ARES board voted in favor of a virtual annual conference as part of Congress. We will be working with Congress to plan and deliver a high-quality online conference program delivered in a format our members are familiar and accustomed to. It is one where scholars and practitioners can interact, share knowledge, disseminate and exchange research and build relationships.

We will be in touch as we work with Congress through the details of hosting a virtual annual conference. At this time, we would like to direct you to the following:

• Congress response to COVID-19 and conference options can be found by clicking here: https://www.congress2020.ca/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-and-congress-2020)
• The early-bird registration date for Congress and the ANSER-ARES conference will not be extended and is March 31, 2020. Please register before this deadline.
• Registrants may still request refunds by April 30, 2020. Note, the $25.00 administration fee will be waived by Congress for those not attending due to COVID-19.

If you have any questions, feedback for Congress, or concerns, please send them along. We are here to help.

Best,

Yvonne Harrison, Co-Chair ANSER-ARES Conference
Laurie Mook, Co-Chair ANSER-ARES Conference

 

UPDATE — March 12, 2020

As you are all aware, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the COVID-19 virus a pandemic. Congress 2020 briefed conference chairs yesterday about the steps they are taking to move forward with the conference at Western or virtually, should the current guidance issued by the federal government change and a social distancing strategy implemented.

We discussed both options with the conference planning committee and the ANSER-ARES board with both in favor of working with Congress to host the conference virtually, should Congress go that way.  At this time, we would like to share the following information we received from Congress and discussed with the planning committee and board about COVID-19 and conference planning:

• Congress response to COVID-19, FAQs, and conference options can be found by clicking here:https://www.congress2020.ca/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-and-congress-2020)
• The early-bird registration date for Congress and the ANSER-ARES conference will not be extended beyond March 31, 2020. Please register by this deadline.
• When making travel arrangements, be sure that you consider travel insurance, this includes medical as well as trip cancellation and interruption insurance options.  If you have made travel arrangements, check your policy to ensure your coverage is adequate (e.g. coverage for any pre-existing conditions, personal choice trip cancellation, etc.).
• Registrants may request refunds by April 30, 2020. Note, the $25.00 administration fee will be waived by Congress for those not attending due to COVID-19.

As mentioned, Congress is exploring a virtual conferencing platform that could deliver what is needed in terms of quality, scale and load capacity for a conference of this size. We are working with the organizers and will keep you abreast of new developments as the situation unfolds.

If you have any questions, feedback for Congress, or concerns, please send them along to anser.ares.conference@gmail.com. We are here to help.

Best,

Yvonne Harrison, Co-Chair ANSER-ARES Conference

Laurie Mook, Co-Chair ANSER-ARES Conference