Virtual Conference - Call for Participation

Passion Talks is a yearly conference where people share what they are passionate about. This year’s conference will be held virtually on GatherTown. We will be exploring how we can shape the spaces that we inhabit, build relationships in, and are passionate about.

This year the traditional conference concept will be flipped. Rather than having only a handful of people presenting to attendees, dozens of people will be simultaneously presenting what they are passionate about. The conference will be modeled after the type of poster sessions that are common within academia and research. Attendees will be able to wander between different posters during the two-hour conference and engage with poster presenters to learn more about the space that they are passionate about.

This year the conference will broadly focus on the topics of health, artificial intelligence (AI), justice, blockchain, innovation, and others. Presenters will submit their presentation abstract to the Passion Talks organizers ahead of time (deadline August 15). By October, the completed posters will then be placed in a large (virtual) meeting hall in GatherTown. Attendees will be able to meander through the different posters and speak with the presenter of a topic that they want to learn more about.

The goal for Passion Talks 2022 is to learn about the wide variety of spaces and topics that others are passionate about. If you find someone else with the same passion as you, you might be able to team up and collaborate in the future. Many presenters will include information about how you can get involved after the conference.

Submit TODAY at: bit.ly/passiontalks22

How is Passion Talks 2022 being structured?

The main Passion Talks organizers are working in June and July to identify session chairs for each of the conference’s broad topics. Currently those topics are health, artificial intelligence (AI), justice, blockchain, and innovation.

The session chairs will help shape each of their spaces and curate abstracts that are submitted. Submissions are due August 15.

I’m still understanding the poster session concept. Could you explain it in a different way?

Posters are common within the fields of academia and research. An individual (or group) will create a large poster that explains their work — the problem they are tackling and their efforts to tackle it. The poster facilitates a conversation between the presenter and attendees who are interested in a topic. It is similar to a K-12 science fair with trifold posters.

I’m helping manage one of the five session areas. What role does my advisor fill?

Your advisors will be helping configure the posters within your area of the meeting hall. They can also help with overall logistical questions .

As an attendee, what can I expect during the conference?

During the two-hour conference, attendees will be wandering through the virtual meeting hall and stopping to look at the available posters. Posters will be grouped into the following curated areas or “spaces”: health, artificial intelligence (AI), justice, blockchain, and innovation. If you are interested in a poster’s topic you can go up to the presenter to learn more about it.

GatherTown will make this interaction easy. Just as in real life, once your avatar in GatherTown walks into close proximity with another avatar, you are each connected in a video chat. If a group of people are in close proximity then they are all in a group video chat together.

The call for participation is now open for Passion Talks 2022. The conference this year will take place Saturday, November 5th on GatherTown. Visit the 2022 conference page for more information: bit.ly/passiontalks22

• April 15 - Call for Speakers OPEN

• July 15 - Rolling Acceptances BEGIN

• November 5th - Conference

This year's theme is towards shaping impactful spaces around our passions. We will be meeting virtually in a poster session format with interactive sessions in a game-based world. A virtual poster event is an interactive forum where researchers, enthusiasts, practitioners, and students present the latest developments and ongoing projects and needs. Poster presenters discuss their work, receive feedback, inspire and find inspiration from others, and network with like-minded community members.

For the past year, we've seen substantial changes in our outdated institutions, traditions, and practices. At Passion Talks we have always held a strong commitment towards innovating and trying new things through the spaces in which we collaborate and impact. This year, we are excited to be working on some major pivots for 2023. Stay tuned for more opportunities to engage in addition to our usual workshop announcements. 2022 is a year where there will be revitalized inspiration for liberating the old and realizing the new. We look forward to thoughtfully and prayerfully inventing the future together.