IUPAC | CCCE 2021 FAQ

We look forward to having you participate in the IUPAC | CCCE 2021 technical program. Once you have received your acceptance to the conference, here are the next steps. 

1. Review important documents: 
   1. Information for presenters includes information about the presentation format and relevant conference policies. Read Recording Best Practices and Tips to learn all the tips and tricks for successfully recording and uploading your presentation. 
2. Confirm the date and time of the accompanying live discussion portion of your presentation: 
   1. If you are delivering multiple presentations in the technical program, ensure there are no conflicts between the presentations. 
3. Register for the conference: 
   1. Attendees participating in the technical program and/or presenting in any sessions must register for the conference before July 16th at 11:59 pm ET. 
4. Share the news! 
   1. Share that you will be presenting at the IUPAC | CCCE 2021 on social media and start connecting with other attendees of the conference using the hashtag #IUPAC2021 

The IUPAC | CCCE 2021 Organizing Committee is excited to be sharing many of the sessions; however, there are a few that still need a little bit more time to be finalized before being released. We are working towards having those remaining abstracts reviewed and scheduled ASAP and promptly notify all participants in those sessions once their schedule is finalized.

Just as with an in-person event, the best way to maximize your conference experience is to block out the time during the week to ensure you’re able to participate. However, we understand with a virtual conference, your daily responsibilities do not stop once you log in. The conference has been structured in a manner to build your conference your way.

Connect with global leaders

Daily plenaries will occur throughout the week of the WCC, with topics focusing across the 5 themes. In addition to the traditional plenary lectures, IUPAC | CCCE will provide unparalleled opportunities to connect with plenary speakers during a 30 minute 30-minute “Meet the Speaker” session, which occurs immediately following their formal lecture. Come prepared to this moderated discussion session with your burning questions from their lecture and build connections with leaders in the field.

On-demand scientific content and live discussion

The scientific content for the conference will be delivered in an on-demand format to better accommodate the various time zones of the individual participant(s) in IUPAC | CCCE. These on-demand presentations will be accompanied by scheduled live discussion periods. For oral presentations, these 50-min live discussion sessions will occur twice daily, with one occurring from 11:30 am – 12:20 pm ET and one from 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm ET. For poster presentations, these 60-min live discussion sessions will occur daily from 6:30 pm ET, with a special session on Wednesday at 1:30 pm ET.

As an attendee, maximize your experience by ensuring you have watched the scientific presentations prior to the live discussion and come prepared with questions to stimulate an engaging discussion on the speaker’s work and the future of science.

As chemical science professionals, we know conferences are a key venue for professional development, networking, and scientific advancement and these principles stand true for a virtual event. A virtual IUPAC | CCCE 2021 has the added benefits of allowing you to:

• Save money by enjoying the conference in your favourite PJs without the costly travel, hotel, and food expenses; 
• Replace travel time and long days with more time with loved ones;
• Participate in a more accessible event to allow your science to reach a global audience;
• Access people you want to talk to easily: no more awkwardly waiting for the speaker to finish talking to someone else before you can ask your questions;
• Reduce your environmental footprint;
• Build your conference experience around your busy schedule and maintain your work-life balance; and
• And, most importantly, protect the safety and well-being of our communities.

The IUPAC | CCCE 2021 organizing committee is working diligently to translate and optimize all the in-person programming for a virtual environment. This includes:

• All symposia including invited lectures, oral contributions, and panel discussions;
• Poster sessions;
• Workshops;
• Exhibits; and
• Social and networking events.

The dates for IUPAC | CCCE 2021 will remain the same, with the World Chemistry Congress (WCC) and Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition (CCCE) occurring between August 15 – 20th, 2021; however, attendees will be given access to the platform by August 9th, 2021. Early access will allow you, as an attendee, ample time to view the on-demand presentations and prepare questions to ask speakers during the live discussion times.

The congress will strive to accommodate various time zones when scheduling; however, with delegates joining from across the globe we are aware that the scheduled times will not always be convenient. As a virtual event, we are pleased to be able to offer the scientific content on-demand so you will be able to view at your leisure, with additional ways to connect with speakers throughout the event. 

We know that our attendees have busy schedules with ever changing responsibilities from work and home that can make attending a virtual conference difficult. To maximize your experience, we have shifted our scheduled events for IUPAC | CCCE 2021 to focus on live programming that encourages engagement and networking. With attendees joining from across the globe, this shift to on-demand scientific content and live engagement will allow you to build your conference experience around your own busy schedule. Within this schedule, you can expect to see multiple places where you can connect in real-time with other attendees and speakers, including:

• Daily plenary level discussions;
• Daily symposium level discussion sessions with speakers;
• Poster session discussions; and
• Virtual socials.

Please note the above-described live discussions will not be recorded.

The annual conferences will continue to serve as a venue for our chemical sciences community to create connections and future collaborations. While we cannot replicate an in-person experience, there will still be significant opportunities to network formally and informally at this virtual event.

Throughout the program, the accompanying live discussion sessions with symposium speakers act as an informal opportunity to meet new members of the community. Reinvigorating the traditional question-and-answer period, these discussion sessions are no longer simply a back and forth with a speaker, but an open conversation with multiple people in the field.

In addition to the live discussion sessions, there will be various social events integrated into the program to provide new opportunities to connect with your chemistry community. These socials will have various focuses and activities to meet the needs of our diverse membership. These social hours will include traditional mixers and connection hubs found during the IUPAC and CCCE events (e.g.., coffee breaks, divisional mixers). Most of the networking for the conference will occur through the platform “Gather. Town”. Gather combines video-calling with a 2D map, letting you walk around and talk to the people around, hold private conversations, and connect in a way that feels familiar but new. If you are interested in organizing a social event, connect with us!

Lastly, we understand that not everyone will be able to meet during the scheduled times. Throughout the event, you will be able to use the platform’s integrated networking capabilities, including discussion boards, and one-to-one messaging, to reach out to other attendees to learn more about their research and form meaningful connections. Connecting has never been easier, with just a click of a button.

For many people, virtual networking may feel unfamiliar and awkward; however, to make the most of your conference experience, we encourage you to take the plunge to form new bonds and collaborations.

We recognize that presenting virtually may be a new experience for many. To alleviate concerns for presenters, session chairs, and session organizers, we will be offering additional resources and training material. These additional resources will be posted at a later date.

To register and attend the virtual meeting, you will need a free CIC ID. This will be your single set of login credentials to access membership (if applicable), registration, and the virtual event.  

The conference will use one main virtual conference platform, which will be your hub for all of the conference content and programming. Within this platform, you can tune in to the plenary broadcasts, watch all of the pre-recorded technical program content, and use the built-in Zoom rooms for the live Q&A sessions and workshops. 

The main platform gives you all the technical program content, but we’ll also be using a secondary platform, Gather.Town, to facilitate virtual networking and social events. All of the info (and links) you need to get to the secondary Gather.Town platform will be right in the main conference platform with the session listing. 

The virtual conference will use a combination of the main virtual conference platform, with Zoom Meetings and Webinars built in, and Gather.Town. 

The main conference platform and Gather.Town both work directly in your internet browser, with Google Chrome as the recommended browser. The live sessions in the main platform will occur through built-in Zoom rooms. For an optimal experience, we recommend downloading Zoom Desktop Application. You can use the web version of Zoom instead, but there may be limitations with that version. 

Information relating to how awardees will receive their award will be sent to the recipients shortly. Throughout the virtual event, there will be new and exciting ways to celebrate our CIC/CSC awardees.