01 · Registration and Access:
Easy peasy! Just fill out the form and pay the €5 registration fee, unless you’re from a Lower or Lower-Middle Income country according to The World Bank. If you’re from a country facing issues with international transfers or PayPal, don’t sweat it! Drop us a message, and we’ll figure out a solution. Despite inflation, we’ve kept the registration fee unchanged to make it accessible to everyone. But hey, if you want to lend a hand, we’ve set up a space for donations this year, so we can keep hosting more editions without bumping up the costs!
Once you’re successfully registered, we’ll shoot you an email with a username and password. That’ll get you into all the presentations and let you mingle with other participants!
02 · Presentation and Review:
Abstracts are submitted through this platform. Remember, they’ll undergo peer review, so don’t forget to include your favourite reviewers! We send abstracts for peer review to ensure top-notch quality, ’cause let’s face it, we’re not experts in every palaeontology field! Later, once all abstracts are accepted, we’ll publish an abstract book alongside previous years’.
We’re all about maintaining high scientific standards here. That’s why we send the abstracts we receive to the best specialists in each field, which includes you! Feel free to make any comments or changes directly to the text or use the evaluation sheet we sent along with the email. Remember, you’ve got 5 days to accept or amend it and 10 days to send us the corrections. Plus, as a token of appreciation, you’ll snag a free registration!
03 · Participation and Other Details:
The Palaeontological Virtual Congress (PVC) is committed to creating a respectful, inclusive, and safe environment for all participants. By participating in the PVC, you agree to uphold the following principles and guidelines.
GUIDELINES
Participant Responsibilities
- Show respect and consideration for all individuals, refraining from dominating discussions.
- Listen actively, making room for diverse voices in group discussions, panels, and other activities without pressuring those who prefer not to speak.
- Foster collegiality and collaboration, being mindful of how your tone, position, experience, or privilege might impact others.
- Value differing perspectives by engaging in open, civil communication and critiquing ideas, not individuals.
- Be inclusive and intentional in welcoming diverse individuals and identities when networking, organizing panels, or inviting others to contribute.
- Respect presenters’ requests to refrain from taking pictures or recordings unless expressly permitted.
- Report any concerns promptly to PVC staff to ensure they can address and resolve issues efficiently.
- Maintain the confidentiality of individuals involved in conduct concerns during reviews and resolutions.
- Immediately and respectfully comply with any request to stop behavior deemed inappropriate by PVC staff or session leaders.
Prohibited Behaviors
- Interrupting or intentionally talking over others.
- Engaging in biased, demeaning, intimidating, or harassing behavior or comments, including those made in jest, based on gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, national origin, or other identity-related factors.
- Making personal attacks or engaging in bullying.
- Commenting on someone’s personal appearance unless explicitly welcomed.
- Displaying nudity or sexual images in public spaces or presentations.
- Creating or contributing to unsafe or exclusionary situations, including threats or acts of violence or harm.
- Taking or distributing photos or recordings without explicit permission.
- Retaliating against anyone for reporting a concern or cooperating in an investigation, or making accusations in bad faith.
PVC’s Commitment to Diversity, Inclusion, and Safety
The PVC unequivocally opposes all forms of abuse, harassment, and discrimination. We are dedicated to fostering a community where participants from diverse backgrounds feel safe, respected, and empowered to contribute equally. This commitment aligns with European regulations, including the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the Directive on Work-Life Balance, ensuring equality, dignity, and protection against discrimination for all individuals.
Additional Provisions
- Abstracts found to contain over 33% plagiarized content will be returned to the authors for revision before acceptance.
- Scientists currently involved, under investigation, or convicted of any form of abuse, as well as presentations involving such individuals as co-authors, will be excluded from the Congress.
- The Organizing Committee reserves the right to exclude participants or submissions involving authors or co-authors for reasons they deem appropriate.
Minors’ Participation
Participants under the age of 18 must provide written consent from their parent(s) or legal guardian(s) in compliance with European data protection and online safety laws. This consent must include the following:
- Parental or Guardian Consent Form
- A signed document granting permission for [Child’s Name] to participate in the online congress.
- This document should include your full name, the name of the minor, and your contact details, and a copy of the ID card.
- Emergency Contact Information
- A reliable phone number and email address where you can be reached during the congress dates.
- Acknowledgment of Online Safety Guidelines
- Please review and confirm that [Child’s Name] will adhere to our guidelines for participating in the virtual environment.
This documentation ensures that the minor’s participation aligns with legal and safety standards while fostering a secure and inclusive environment for all attendees.
Reporting and Handling Concerns
- Transparency and Confidentiality: Any reported concerns will be handled promptly, confidentially, and impartially by the PVC Organizing Committee. Participants are encouraged to report incidents immediately.
- Contact Information: Reports can be made by emailing palaeovc@gmail.com. Please include details of the incident to help us address the issue effectively.
- Resolution Process: The PVC will assess all reports carefully and take appropriate action, which may include mediation, warnings, or exclusion from the Congress.
Recognizing Positive Contributions
The PVC acknowledges and values participants who demonstrate exceptional commitment to fostering inclusivity, collaboration, and respect. We welcome and encourage these contributions as part of our mission to maintain a positive and enriching environment for all.
Note on Differences of Opinion
Discussions should remain focused on the topic at hand. Participants are encouraged to express differing opinions, provided they do so respectfully and without interfering with others’ ability to feel welcome and participate fully.
Head over to this website for a guide on crafting your presentation and possible templates.
Nope, that’s a no-go! It’s strictly forbidden. Respect your colleagues’ work!
Absolutely not! You, and only you, retain copyright to your presentation. We only hold onto the presentations during the conference, and afterward, they’re wiped clean from our records. All we keep are the abstract book, names, and emails for keeping you in the loop about future updates, and these won’t ever be shared with third parties!
Each edition gives participants the chance to submit articles based on their abstracts to high- impact journals. But you have to do this directly through the platform of the journal of your choice, not through the conference organisers..
Check out this page for contest guidelines. Remember, there are some awesome prizes up for grabs, and just for participating, you’ll score a free conference registration!
If you’ve got questions or just wanna shoot the breeze, registered folks will have the official Discord channel available for interacting with others. Plus, you can drop comments on each presentation.
Piece of cake! Before the thematic session proposal deadline, session organizers need to send us an abstract, including an identifying image representative of your thematic session, along with the organizers’ names and affiliations. Once we green-light it we will let you know, then feel free to spread the word! We need a minimum of 5 presentations per proposed session for final publication. And hey, all organizers get a free registration and a special certificate! And don’t forget, organizers have obligations too: they need to promote the thematic session among their peers, moderate the discussions in Discord and comments section, and have their works peer-reviewed, plus they must accept abstracts based on reviewers’ and their own suggestions (though the final call lies with the conference organizers).
As a PVC ambassador, your job is to spread the word about our conference and share our social media posts on your own platforms to reach as many colleagues as possible! Plus, you’ll snag a special certificate, free conference participation, and a spot of honour on our website and in the abstract book.
A Virtual Fieldtrip is basically a 15-30 minute video showcasing your favorite museum, fieldtrip location, or excavation site! Just make sure to send us an abstract beforehand so we can include it in the abstract book!
There’s no program! All presentations are available 24/7 throughout the 15-day conference period, so you can enjoy them whenever suits you best!
Remember, it’s an online event! All you need is an internet connection to dive into the conference.
Absolutely! We’ll send out attendance, participation (one per presentation), review, thematic session organization, and ambassador certificates during the conference.
Thanks to all our participants and your support, we’ve grown every year! Check out the results from previous editions .
Palaeontological Virtual Congress is a non-profit organization based in Spain, run by us palaeontologists, and it doesn’t line our pockets, that’s for sure! If anything, it’s a health hazard!
Feel free to shoot us an email at palaeovc@gmail.com if you need more info, or hit us up on our socials!