In preparation for the XX Biennial IASPM Conference, which will take place in Canberra, Australia, 24-28 June 2019, and in view of the high cost of flights from practically all continents to Australia, the Executive Committee would like to make the following announcements:
1. Unless we must face unforeseeable expenses next year, the Executive Committee considers that IASPM is in a position to invest a substantial amount of money in travel grants, probably not less than 25,000 USD, so that a significant number of low income members are able to attend the Canberra conference.
2. Since the criteria applied for travel grants to attend the Kassel conference were discussed during the General Assembly, but not amended, we intend to maintain them. Therefore, the criteria for eligibility will be: 1) membership up to date 2) at least one year of seniority (in this case, being a member at least since 2018) 3) proof of insufficient funding. The scoring will depend on: 1) geographical distance (we will decide a scale in due time), 2) IASPM responsibilities at branch or international level, and 3) attendance of local and international IASPM events. Having been awarded a travel grant in previous years will detract points.
3. If grantees purchase their flights before a certain date, which will be announced in due time, they will be able to receive up to the 50% of their grants before the conference. The rest of the grant would be paid during the conference, as usual. This will be accorded upon request only, and it will be available for unwaged members only.
4. We intend to open the application period for travel grants shortly after the Academic Committee has reviewed all the abstracts and letters of acceptance have been sent out. The results of the application process will be announced as early as possible, so that grantees can book their flights at better prices.
5. Finally, we would like to thank all branches that have updated their membership lists and paid their fees promptly, and urge the rest to do it as soon as possible, or contact the Membership Secretary or the Treasurer (iaspminternational@gmail.com) if they are not able to do so. As you can imagine, prompt payment will be especially welcome next year.
Continue reading →
