As mathematicians, we are calling on conference organizers and especially on those in charge of conferences hosted by our professional organizations such as the AMS and the MAA, to include the option for meaningful hybrid mode participation. A number of the authors of this statement have written previously on how the crises created by reactionary laws and political decisions will affect the ability of mathematicians to participate in the conferences needed for their career development, and we are focusing on hybrid mode now, not as something that will alone solve those problems, but because it is an important first step that can help in a number of different situations. 

The pandemic brought terrible loss and trauma for many people, including members of the mathematical community. During the height of COVID-19 restrictions and closures, it was impossible to participate in person in mathematical meetings. This forced us to learn about new technologies and ways to host academic events through online participation.

The process of familiarizing ourselves with these new technologies and new ways to organize and share mathematical virtual and/or hybrid spaces was very challenging due to this fast paced adoption. However, with time and practice, we now have the knowledge to run hybrid and remote events. Our ability to adapt has opened up possibilities of participation to folks who would otherwise be excluded from scientific meetings (for example, a mathematician with an illness, a new parent, or the dozens of students and faculty who have been suspended and/or banned from campuses due to participating in Gaza Solidarity Encampments.) Even when remote participation does not fully replicate the benefits of in person attendance, for some people the choice is not between in person and online participation but between online participation and no participation at all.

Many of us have carried these tools and methods into our daily professional practice since then, organizing online meetings with collaborators and online seminars. Several institutes such as SLMath (MSRI), Banff International Research Station (BIRS), IAS, the Renyi Institute have enabled the use of hybrid options as a default for their conferences. Some, such as BIRS, go further and require events to be planned with a hybrid mode in mind to support the participation of a broader audience. Hybrid events in many cases support the participation of mathematicians with disabilities, those seeking to avoid exposure to covid, those who may not be able to secure a visa or funding to travel, and those who cannot travel due to their caregiving responsibilities.

Moreover, with the recent reactionary laws in the US and globally criminalizing being trans, getting abortion care, as well as being an undocumented immigrant, hybrid options make it safer for many mathematicians to participate in scientific meetings. These attacks on civil rights were (some of) the reasons preventing many mathematicians from attending MAA Mathfest 2023 (see for example Dr. Keri Ann Sather-Wagstaff's and Dr. Spencer Bagley's pieces in MAA Focus and this open letter to the MAA ) [1]. In the face of these measures,​​​​ conference organizers should be upfront about the risks posed by local laws and offer options, such as online participation​​​​​​​, that allow participants to better manage the risk the increasing number of reactionary laws pose. While hybrid mode is not sufficient on its own to support the participation of minoritized mathematicians at conferences it should be an important consideration when claiming accessibility and allyship as explained, for example, in this call to defend bodily autonomy in the math community, and in this spectra statement. 

Unfortunately, many professional organizations have gone back to only hosting events in person, with some such as AMS forbidding the use of hybrid modes in their sectional meetings [2], even when individual session organizers would like to do so. The AMS has justified the adoption of this policy by pointing to the offering of entirely online events. We note however, that these do not mitigate the lack of access produced by the AMS policy as for example the session that is most relevant to an individual's research program and career may not be at one of the virtual offerings, especially given how sparse those online events have been in recent years [3].

Some conferences such as the AWM Research Symposium and MAA Mathfest have recently started to upload the main talks on their Youtube channel after the conference. This is certainly better than not offering any option to engage remotely; however, these options are still very restrictive. They for instance prevent active participation in individual sessions and networking activities that are important for the development of the academic careers of all and especially of junior mathematicians.

While it would be ideal if all conferences provided a hybrid mode option, the responsibility falls hardest on large organizations such as the AMS and MAA that have the workforce and resources to support it. Additionally, their policies and leadership set the guidance for all other mathematical meetings more generally and thus, we believe that their refusal to accommodate virtual participation has important negative consequences for our professional gatherings.

We call on AMS, MAA, AWM and other large mathematical organizations and institutes around the world, to provide meaningful virtual participation options at all of their conferences and events. 

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[1] Note we are not asking for a boycott of specific US states because, in a country such as the US founded on the genocide and enslavement of indigenous and black peoples we do not believe there is a list of states that are safe for all marginalized groups, and a number of conferences are local in scope without the option to move to a new state. This does not mean boycotts are never effective nor that the risks associated with different locations should be ignored for the conferences that can relocate, but rather mathematicians instituting boycotts should take cues from local organizers so that boycotts are strategic.

[2] While we have not been able to find a written policy supporting this in the AMS website, we do know of individuals who were told by AMS leadership in writing that they were not allowed to participate virtually despite the fact that this would have been the only way for them to present their work in the scientific meeting.   

[3] The virtual offerings were very scarce last year. There was only one virtual offering in 2023, held in April, because the other virtual sectional in October 2023 was canceled. There are no virtual sectionals scheduled for 2024.

Jayadev Athreya, PhD, University of Washington Seattle

Padi Fuster Aguilera, PhD, University of Colorado Boulder

Matthew Gentry Durham, PhD, University of California Riverside

Seppo Niemi Colvin, Ph D, Indiana University Bloomington

Florencia Orosz Hunziker, PhD, University of Colorado Boulder

Daniel Reinholz, PhD, San Diego State University

Keri Ann Sather-Wagstaff, PhD, Clemson University

Noelle Sawyer, PhD, Southwestern University

Chad M. Topaz, PhD, Institute for the Quantitative Study of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity

Ila Varma, PhD, University of Toronto