Presenter and Speaker Guidelines
Share your knowledge and promote your work.
THEMES FOR SUBMISSIONS
Following the World Trails Conference’s past events of interactive and engaging presentations, we invite you to share your story, best practice or failure turned into a success, expertise, data, innovation, or analysis to reflect upon our main theme and its three subthemes.
2024 Theme: Connecting People, Places, and the Planet
Theme: Connecting People, Places and the Planet
The 2024 World Trails Conference will focus on connection – to people, places and the planet. Explore the profound bonds that link humanity to the natural world and develop a new understanding of how our trails impact the environment, communities and each other. This theme encourages a holistic perspective and celebrates the intricate web of connections that shape our trails. Sessions and discussion will seek to inspire collaborative efforts to preserve and nurture these essential connections for sustainable, successful trail networks.
Sub-themes
- Sustainability: Explore innovative approaches and strategies for sustainable trail management and development, with an emphasis on minimizing environmental impact and preserving natural ecosystems.
- Conservation: Highlight the critical need for trail conservation efforts to safeguard our planet’s natural treasures and promote responsible stewardship of our environment.
- Tourism: Examine the multifaceted role of tourism in trail destinations, considering economic benefits, responsible travel practices, and the power of tourism to foster cross-cultural connections.
- Arts and Culture: Celebrate the vibrant intersection of trails, art, and culture, promoting the cultural richness of trail regions and their potential to foster creativity, appreciation, and expression.
- Digitization & Technology: Investigate the evolving landscape of trail management through digital innovation, emphasizing advancements in technology to enhance trail accessibility, safety, and user experience.
- Education and Inclusive Engagement: Showcase the importance of educational initiatives and inclusive practices, ensuring that trails are welcoming and accessible to all, and that local communities actively participate in their preservation and growth.
- Knowledge: Emphasize the value of sharing knowledge and best practices within the trails community, promoting collaboration and information exchange to drive innovation, sustainability, and responsible trail management.
This year the Trans Canada Trail and the World Trail Network are especially keen on hearing voices from all over the world. We would be grateful if you could help us spread the word about this call with your contacts from around the globe!
Should any questions arise do not hesitate to get in touch with us, we are here and look forward to hearing from you!
Your conference team
CONFERENCE HOST
The conference host is defined as the Trans Canada Trail (TCT), who is responsible for hosting the World Trail Conference 2024, a product of the World Trails Network (WTN).
SUBMISSION & SELECTION PROCESS
The World Trails Conference (WTC) programme will be designed by a Program Team experts from WTN and the TCT. Every speaker will be evaluated by at least three experts by the following criteria:
- Alignment with the conference theme/subtheme
- Level of innovation and originality (content and format)
- Prospect of transferability
- Engagement and Interactivity
After review, and selection, the Programme Team will curate session development based on the theme and subthemes and assign speakers to the relevant sessions to paying particular attention to geographical and gender balance to represent the diversity of the sector.
TIMELINE
Submissions due: January 31, 2024
Review period: January 31- March 1, 2024
Notice of Acceptance: March 15 ,2024
Speakers Announced: March 31, 2024
GENERAL
The following Terms & Conditions apply to the World Trails Conference 2024 – Ottawa, Canada. These terms are an agreement between the conference host and individuals delivering presentations as speakers or presenters at the conference. The term “speaker” or “presenter” refers to all persons participating in the conference using a speech in person.
CONFERENCE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE RESPONSIBILITIES TOWARDS SPEAKERS
The Conference Organizing Committee is there to assist speakers by offering assistance to questions or enquiries and by coordinating requirements from both sides to deliver a successful conference for all participants. This includes appropriate technology.
In addition, it includes delivering information regarding the presentations, such as time, date, and theme in a timely manner before the conference. It is the responsibility of the organizers and their communications support to offer a media kit, which the selected speakers may use to promote the conference and their participation to their respective communities.
SPEAKER RESPONSIBILITIES AND OBLIGATIONS
As a presenter at the World Trails Conference 2024, speakers commit to being present at the conference venue for the entire time allocated to the panel on the day of their presentation and to be available for a minimum of 25 minutes for a panel discussion session in addition to their presentation, at the end of the thematic session.
Speakers agree that their presentation and the panel discussion they are part of will be recorded and made available after the session for viewing on the World Trails Network channels.
SPEAKER SUBMISSIONS
To submit your proposal please go to WTC24 CALL FOR SPEAKERS Portal.
Please have the following ready for submission prior opening the portal:
- 100 word bio
- Headshot
- 400 word summary of workshop or presentation
FEES AND PAYMENTS
Speakers agree to purchase a conference ticket that grants admission to all days of the conference (30 September- 03 OCT), certain meals, coffee break beverages, local trail excursions. The conference cannot reimburse travel or accommodation expenses for speakers. We have deliberately kept attendance fees to an absolute minimum.
Speakers must please secure their place on the programme by paying the $420 CDN speaker registration fee here. Speakers must pay their attendance fee by 1 August 2024, speakers who have not paid by then will be removed from the programme. We thank those speakers who have already paid for their registration.
UNABLE TO ATTEND
Should any speaker be prevented from attending and presenting due to unexpected circumstances, they agree to inform the conference hosts immediately by email: conference@worldtrailsnetwork.org
ACCOMMODATION AND GETTING AROUND
All speakers are responsible for booking their own accommodation. The conference official hotel is the Delta City Centre Ottawa and rooms can be booked here Hotel and Travel.
CONFERENCE PROMOTION
To ensure appropriate promotion of the event and associated individual presenters, speakers agree that both a portrait photo and a short bio and summary of their submitted presentation will be shared on the conference event page and associated social media channels. Speakers are encouraged to promote the event and their presentation on appropriate channels using the social media kit provided.
RECORDINGS AVAILABILITY AND SPONSOR’S LOGO
Speakers agree that the recordings of their presentations will be distributed and available to network members and conference delegates, snippets of which may be made available on various social media channels. Furthermore, logos and trademarks of the conference’s various sponsors may be publicly displayed in connection with the presentations.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
All speakers and presenters own all their respective intellectual property in their presentations and nothing in this agreement transfers any intellectual property to the World Trails Network. Speakers warrant that the content is an original work and does not infringe the rights of any third party, including without limitation intellectual property rights.