Abstract Submission

Invitation to Submit

We invite you to submit an abstract for consideration for the 2025 eDNA Conference being held from 18 – 21 February in Wellington, New Zealand. 

The conference is organised by the Southern eDNA Society (SeDNAS) and it is the region’s premier meeting bringing together academics, researchers, experts, professionals, and early career researchers to share their knowledge, insights, and innovations. The conference offers meaningful exchanges, discussions, and networking with professionals across New Zealand, Australia and internationally. This conference is a crucial platform for advancing knowledge, fostering collaboration, and promoting excellence in our diverse scientific community. 

We encourage you to take this opportunity to present your research, innovative programs, and significant findings to an engaged audience of professionals in the community. Presentations at the conference enrich the discussions and contribute to the growth of knowledge in our field. 

We offer various presentation formats, including oral presentations, lightning presentations, posters, and workshops, to ensure a diverse and engaging program. 

We encourage submissions from Indigenous communities, students, researchers, industry, educators, government and community workers, and from early-career professionals and researchers. 

Presentations are encouraged to be focused on original research, case studies, frameworks, or practical applications relevant to the conference theme: eDNA Synergy – Innovate, Collaborate, Implement. Submissions will be reviewed by our program committee to ensure the selection of high-quality contributions for presentation. 

To submit your abstract, please visit our submission portal on this website and follow the instructions provided. Please don’t hesitate to contact our conference managers, at mail@conferencedesign.com.au, if you have any questions. 

We look forward to receiving your abstract and having you join us for an inspiring and stimulating conference. 

Kind regards, 

Anastajia Zaiko & Cecilia Villacorta Rath
Conference Convener & Program Committee Chair 

Submit an Abstract

Submission Instructions
Presentation Formats
Presentation Themes
Review & Selection Process
Other Information

Important Dates

  • Call for Presentations Open
    June 2024
  • Call for Presentations Close
    16 August 2024 – Extended to 25 August
  • Notification of Acceptances
    Late September/Early October 2024
  • Presenter Registration Closes
    6 December 2024 
  • Conference Starts 
    18 February 2025

Abstract Submission Instructions

All abstracts are submitted online via the portal above. 

1. Prepare your Abstract 

  • Title: Use a descriptive title of up to fifteen words that indicates the content of the abstract. Titles are printed in uppercase. 
  • Authors:  Include the given name and family name of every contributing author, separated by a comma. 
  • Affiliations: Include each author’s organisation, suburb, state, and email address (optional). The presenter will be indicated in the program, not the abstract. 
  • Abstract: Prepare a 250-word abstract for all presentation types including:
    • The purpose of the presentation
    • The nature and scope of the topic
    • The issue or problem under considerationThe outcome of the conclusion reached. 

2. Corresponding Author

Open the submission portal and enter the contact details of the corresponding author. 

3. Abstract Submission Details 

You will need to enter the following details for each abstract you submit: 

  • Presentation title (15 words) 
  • Abstract (250 words) 
  • Preferred presentation format 
  • Preferred theme 
  • Names of authors 
  • Affiliations of authors 
  • Indicate the presenter. 
  • Short biography of the presenter (100 words) 

Presenter Registration

All presenters must register for the conference and pay the appropriate registration fee. Presenters also need to meet their own travel and accommodation costs. 

Correspondence

The submitting author will be the only point of contact for all communication regarding the abstract, including acceptance notification. 

Abstract Guidelines

  • Abstracts must be original and unpublished. 
  • You must declare a potential conflict of interest. 
  • Ensure that your abstract is grammatically correct and free of other errors. 
  • Use single spacing for all text. 
  • Do not use abbreviations in the title of the abstract.
  • When using abbreviations in the abstract, spell them out in full at the first mention.
  • Capitalise the first letter in trade names. 
  • Abstracts should NOT contain references, tables, or figures. 
  • Accepted abstracts will appear exactly as submitted, and made available on the conference website, attendee app, and online conference portal.
  • Industry representatives are welcome to submit an abstract for consideration, however, submissions that are commercially or sales-focused will not be considered .

Presentation Formats

You are asked to nominate a preferred presentation format when submitting an abstract. As there are limited places, the committee may request that you consider an alternative format. Authors will be advised and asked to confirm if they wish to present in the new format. 

Oral Presentations

Oral presentations will be allocated 15 minutes (12 minutes presentation + 3 minutes Q&A). Oral presentations will be grouped into sessions on a common theme. 

  • A 15-minute presentation, (12 minutes presentation + 3 minutes Q&A).

Lightning Presentations

Lightning presentations are short, focused oral talks that allow presenters to quickly share a concise overview of their research or a specific aspect of their work. Lightning talks will be part of a session featuring multiple presenters. 

  • A 5-minute presentation 
  • A maximum of 2 PowerPoint slides including the title slide 
  • Group Q&A at the end of the session

Display Posters

Display posters allow for direct interactions with other attendees and facilitate detailed discussions. Posters can present research in progress, projects, clinical topics, quality improvement initiatives, and case studies. 

  • An A0-size portrait poster displayed for the duration of the conference. 
  • The abstract and a PDF of each poster will be included in the conference app for delegates to view on their smart devices. 
  • Presenters will also be asked to attend their poster during the poster reception to discuss the poster with other delegates. 
  • Poster presenters will also be given the opportunity to submit a 2 minute video with their poster to be viewed via the conference app and scannable QR code next to their poster.

Display Poster Dimensions

AO Poster Dimensions 

  • AO Portrait 
  • 841 mm wide x 1189 mm high 
  • 33.1 inches wide x 46.8 inches high 

PDF Poster Measurements for the Conference App

  • A4 Portrait 
  • 210 wide x 297 mm high 

Pre-Conference Workshops Expressions of Interest

The program committee is seeking proposals from individuals and/or organisations interested in leading workshops to be held as pre-conference sessions for the upcoming 2025 eDNA conference.

Workshops provide an interactive and hands-on format for in-depth discussions, skill development, or collaborative activities. The workshop will allow participants to engage with facilitators and peers to explore topics or learn new techniques.

If you are submitting a workshop EOI, please note the conference will be charging delegates a registration fee per workshop that is not included in the conference registration fee. This is necessary in order to cover catering, venue, and organisation costs for the workshops.

  • Full Day Workshop: $250 per person.
  • Half Day Workshop: $200 per person.

If your EOI is successful and you would prefer your attendees to pay a reduced cost to attend your workshop you are welcome to subsidise their attendance; this can be arranged with the conference managers.

The conference will offer one complimentary registration for presenters per workshop. Additional presenters must register for the workshop any pay the prevailing registration fee.

When submitting, Workshops authors will need to provide the following information:

  • Provide information of the workshop (500 words)
  • What are the objectives of the workshop
  • Who is the target audience
  • Preferred duration (full day or half day).
  • Any constraints on the number of attendees for your workshop.
  • Any particular skills or knowledge attendees should have for your workshop.
  • Whether attendees need to install any special software to participate in your workshop.
  • Whether attendees need to complete any preparation for your workshop.

Submissions will be reviewed by the program committee and those successful will be contact in late September/early October.

Presentation Themes

Select one of the following theme options when submitting your abstracts. Authors will also have the option to provide a second theme and provide their own theme. 

  • Beyond presence-absence 
  • Biodiversity, Biogeography and Distribution 
  • Bioinformatics, analysis and visualisation
    Comparative analysis of pipelines, ways to visualise data, ecological modelling with eDNA data, use of AI/ML, taxonomic annotation algorithms and available databases 
  • Biosecurity and Monitoring 
  • Citizen-Science uptake and translation
    Citizen science, regulatory acceptance 
  • Data integration: multidisciplinary approaches
    integrating eDNA data with other information (GIS, remote sensing, etc) 
  • Data: use, re-use, and reference libraries
    FAIR eDNA, dark taxa, best practice for creating and using reference libraries 
  • Diet and Trophic Interactions 
  • eDNA method validation 
  • Frameworks and Initiatives 
  • Novel applications and environments
    Trophodynamics, ecological process, ancient and historical samples 
  • Technical innovation in sampling and analysis
    Passive collection, how much water-soil-air to sample, devices, autonomous collection, eDNA in terrestrial environments, eRNA, general methods, PCR free analysis, enrichment technologies 
  • The ecology of eDNA

Review & Selection Process

Double-Blind Review

Authors and affiliations will be removed from each abstract and they will be reviewed by at least two reviewers using pre-defined criteria. Reviewers’ recommendations and scores will then be assessed by the program committee.

Selection Process

The Program Committee will allocate presentations to the program considering the score of the abstract, recommendations from reviewers, the author’s preference for presentation format, and the balance of the program.

Abstract authors will be notified of acceptance, rejection or change of format via email at the date specified above. Presenters are then required to confirm their acceptance and their participation in the conference. Unsuccessful abstracts submitted for oral presentation will be offered a poster presentation if the selection criteria are met. No correspondence will be entered into as to why individual abstracts did not receive an oral presentation.

Scoring

All submissions will be reviewed against set criteria to ensure consistency and fairness in the review process.

  • Readability/Quality
  • Interest to Delegates
  • Suitability to the Conference Theme

Submission & Presentation Information

Authors’ Permission

By submitting an abstract all authors are deemed to have agreed to release the content to the conference organisers and give permission to publish the abstract and presentation in all conference publications including on the website, in the app and printed material.

Presenter Guidelines

A set of guidelines to assist presenters will be made available before the conference.

Cancellations or Change of Presenter

Please avoid late cancellations or changing the presenter as material will be pre-printed with the speaker’s name and organisation and cannot be changed at a later date. If you need to cancel or change the presenter, please advise Conference Design at mail@conferencedesign.com.au as early as possible.

Copyright and Ownership of Material

All materials, including but not limited to presentations, slides, posters, abstracts, papers, and any other written or visual content presented at the event, are the intellectual property of us or the respective authors and presenters. The authors or presenters retain ownership rights to their materials.

Will People be Able to Record or Download My Presentation?

During the registration process, attendees agree to the conference Terms & Conditions, which include rules on unauthorised photography and recording of conference material. We cannot enforce this rule completely, so presenters should assume a participant may take unauthorised photographs, screenshots, audio, or video recordings. You may wish to adjust the content of your presentation accordingly. Presentations in the online portal and conference app are available only to view and cannot be downloaded.

Speaker Biography

A brief biography of the presenter is to be provided when you submit your abstract. Biographies may include the presenter’s position, career details and major work achievements. Biographies should be written in the third person. If your abstract is accepted, your biography will be used when introducing you as a speaker at the conference.

Uploading Your Presentations and Posters

You will be sent links to upload your PowerPoint slides and posters via Drobox.

Publishing your Presentation in the Online Portal

Presentations will be made available to registered delegates for viewing in the online portal for three months unless you advise otherwise. Any additional files authors choose to share via the online portal, as well as live Q & A/panel discussions, will also be available to view during and after the presentation. Access to the portal will be password protected and limited to conference registrants. If presentations are to be used or published in any other format or forum, your specific consent will be requested.

Permission for Material Presented

Please ensure you have documented permission to use any images, music or other content in your abstract and presentation. Do not include any images copied from the internet. Getty Images and other image agencies crawl the internet looking for images that have been copied without the appropriate licenses. You are liable for all copyright infringements that arise from your presentation.

Online Oral Presentations

For online presenters, it is anticipated your presentation will be streamed live to delegates via Zoom meetings. Presenters can share their screens and present slides using the standard Zoom meetings functionality. Presenters will need to supply a copy of their slides before the conference as a backup in case of technical difficulty.

Audio Visual Equipment

Each session room will be equipped with the following equipment:

  • A presentation laptop running Windows 10 or 11
  • Data projector
  • Screen
  • Lectern
  • Microphone, including sound for your presentation
  • A clicker to progress your slides
  • A laser pointer or mouse for pointing

All slides will be run from the presentation computer.

If you have a complex presentation, which includes multiple media files, we suggest you bring your laptop as a backup in case of difficulties loading your presentation.

If you use a Mac, have a complex presentation or require a specific or uncommon program, we suggest you bring your laptop as a backup in case of difficulties loading your presentation. You will need to arrange this in advance with the AV technicians. Please provide any specific audio-visual requirements to the Conference Secretariat at mail@conferencedesign.com.au.

PowerPoint Presentation Tips

  • All presentations should be in PowerPoint.
  • PowerPoint should be in a 16:9 aspect ratio.
  • Video and audio clips should be embedded in your slides rather than linked to external files.
  • There should be no more than 5 x 1-line bullet points per slide.
  • The optimum title text is 45 – 55 points and no smaller than 36 points.
  • Body text should be at least 26 points.
  • Avoid UPPERCASE letters as they are hard to read.
  • Please keep to the time limit of your presentation

Speaker Preparation Room

Please bring your presentation to the conference on a USB stick as a backup. Go to Speaker’s Preparation room at least 4 hours before or the day before your presentation. A technician will be available to load and check your presentation and to discuss any audio-visual queries you may have. If you are not providing slides for your presentation, please advise the AV technician in the Speaker’s Preparation room 4 hours before your session.

Writing an Abstract

An abstract is a short document that captures the interest of potential attendees of your session. Your abstract should engage the reader by telling them what your presentation is about. The title of the proposed presentation is also important; short attention-catching titles are the most effective, however, it is also important to ensure that the title describes the subject.

These are questions to consider when writing your abstract.

  • Does the title succinctly describe the topic?
  • Does the abstract clearly state the topic of the presentation?
  • Does the abstract say how the research or project was or is being undertaken?
  • Does the abstract give a concise summary of the findings?
  • Does the abstract indicate the value of the findings and whom the findings will benefit?
  • Does the abstract engage the reader by telling them why they should attend the presentation?
  • Is the abstract well written in terms of conciseness, language, and grammar?
  • Does the abstract conform to the structure outlined and the word limit?

While the format of your abstract will vary with the topic and type of information you are presenting, most abstracts will include the following:

  • Background of the project or initiative,
  • Method of research or project implementation,
  • Results of the project or research
  • Discussion of the outcomes and implications.

Finally, your abstract should not include diagrams or images; references are not required in the abstract.

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