Contribution Guidelines
NSS considers contributions that showcase scholarship on sustainability topics and feature case studies, best practices, collaborative interdisciplinary or cross-sectoral projects, or other works that connect to the NSS conference themes.
Open Symposium Proposals
Submission period: JANUARY 13 - FEBRUARY 16
Sessions are 75 minutes. In your proposal, you will identify your session (1) type and (2) category. You will also provide a 300 word description.
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If accepted, your symposium session will be announced as part of the call for individual contributions (opening February 24th). In collaboration with the NSS planning committee, you will lead the review of the submissions.
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Depending on the number and quality of individual contributions/applications submitted, and your willingness to chair multiple sessions, there can be more than one session under your session topic. Individual submissions not selected for your symposim will be further reviewed by the NSS planning committee for consideration in other thematically-based sessions.
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Symposia can have up to 2 co-chairs.
TYPE:
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Symposium: 4-5 oral presentations, with slides. 10-12 minutes each
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Symposium: 8-10 ignite talks, with or without slides. 5-6 minutes each.
CATEGORY: Case study, Research, or Collab (see contributions page for descriptions)
DESCRIPTION:
Regardless of type and category, symposium proposals must be innovative, exchange-oriented, and engage the conference theme. Proposals should include a symposium description of 300 words in length and should follow this format:
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Open with the problem: What is the key sustainability challenge/topic you are tackling? Why is it relevant to a cross-sector audience?
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Follow with the action: How does this idea, project, work, or you, your team or organization approach this challenge? Provide a succinct description of the approach or products. Include strategy, methods, data, and audience if relevant. Indicate the timeline, whether aspirational, in progress, or complete. Include actualized or expected hurdles or limitations.
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Directly invite speakers to submit to your specific symposium topic/goal.
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Finish with the outcome, again using non-sector or discipline-specific language. Provide 1-3 key takeaways from the session, with reference to both the sustainability challenge/topic and the theme of “Courage, credibility, and collective action.”
REVIEW CRITERIA
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Alignment with theme: Does the submission clearly address the core concepts of courage, credibility, and collective action?
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Focus on sustainability: Does the submission directly related to achieving or hindering specific sustainability goals?
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Type Appropriateness
Research: Does the submission present a genuine, well-defined scholarly inquiry?
Case Study: Does the submission present a genuine, well-defined practical application, initiative, or project rather than a purely theoretical discussion
Collab: Does the submission present a genuine, impactful, and well-defined collaboration action opportunity
4. Cross-Sectoral Relevance, Insight, and Impact: Does the submission aim to demonstrate, advance, or analyze cross-sector collaboration?
5. Clarity and structure: Is the submission logically structured and easy to follow? Is the language clear, concise, and free of jargon that is not properly defined?
Closed Symposium and Roundtable Proposals
Submission period: FEBRUARY 24 - MARCH 31
Sessions are 75 minutes. Closed sessions have all speakers identified and confirmed. In your proposal, you will identify your session (1) type, (2) category, and for symposia. You will also provide a 300 word description.
TYPE:
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Symposium: 4-5 oral presentations, with slides. 10-12 minutes each
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Symposium: 8-10 ignite talks, with or without slides. 5-6 minutes each.
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Roundtable. Possible formats:
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Panel Discussion: A moderated discussion by experts on a theme related to some aspect of sustainability research, practice, or education. Panels with representatives from multiple sectors can be particularly enlightening.
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Action Charrettes: A fast-paced, collaborative session where a multi-disciplinary team works together to solve a specific design or policy problem.
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"Speed-Dating" & Matching: Structured, timed rotations designed to match mentors with mentees or researchers with industry partners based on shared interests.
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Collective Mapping: A hands-on exercise (physical or digital) where participants map out stakeholders, supply chains, or environmental justice "hotspots."
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Fishbowl Dialogues: A format that allows for a small group to discuss a sensitive topic (like building trust or admitting failure) while the larger audience observes and "swaps in" to the conversation.
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Policy Sprints: A focused workshop aimed at drafting a one-page "call to action" or agreement on a specific sustainability standard.
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CATEGORY: Case study, Research, or Collab (see contributions page for descriptions)
DESCRIPTION:
Regardless of type and category, session proposals must be innovative, exchange-oriented, and engage the conference theme. Proposals must include a session description of 300 words in length. Symposium proposals must also include abstracts for each speaker of 300 words in length. All descriptions should follow this format:
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Open with the problem: What is the key sustainability challenge/topic you are tackling? Why is it relevant to a cross-sector audience?
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Follow with the action: How does this idea, project, work, or you, your team or organization approach this challenge? Provide a succinct description of the approach or products. Include strategy, methods, data, and audience if relevant. Indicate the timeline, whether aspirational, in progress, or complete. Include actualized or expected hurdles or limitations.
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Finish with the outcome, again using non-sector or discipline-specific language. Provide 1-3 key takeaways from the session, with reference to both the sustainability challenge/topic and the theme of “Courage, credibility, and collective action.”
REVIEW CRITERIA
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Alignment with theme: Does the submission clearly address the core concepts of courage, credibility, and collective action?
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Focus on sustainability: Does the submission directly related to achieving or hindering specific sustainability goals?
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Type Appropriateness
Research: Does the submission present a genuine, well-defined scholarly inquiry?
Case Study: Does the submission present a genuine, well-defined practical application, initiative, or project rather than a purely theoretical discussion
Collab: Does the submission present a genuine, impactful, and well-defined collaboration action opportunity
4. Cross-Sectoral Relevance, Insight, and Impact: Does the submission aim to demonstrate, advance, or analyze cross-sector collaboration?
5. Clarity and structure: Is the submission logically structured and easy to follow? Is the language clear, concise, and free of jargon that is not properly defined?
6. Diversity of speakers: Do the confirmed speakers represent a variety of backgrounds (e.g. sector, seniority, gender, geography, etc)
Individual Contributions
Submission period: February 24 - March 31
Individual contributions can either be submitted to open session proposals (already submitted and accepted), or submitted independently and subsequently integrated into a thematically-oriented session with other individual contributions.
In your contribution submission you will identify whether you are (1) submitting to an open symposium proposal or (2) not, in which case you will provide your contribution type and category.
TYPE:
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Symposium: A 10-12 minute oral presentation - open or independent
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Ignite talk: A 5-6 minute oral presentation - open of independent
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Poster/Expo: A visual presentation displayed throughout the conference and presented during a designated poster session. Posters can showcase research, case studies, collab opportunities, or any other program/project/idea you would like to showcase.
CATEGORY: Case study, Research, Collabs (see contributions page for descriptions)
DESCRIPTION:
Regardless of type and category, contributions must be innovative, exchange-oriented, engage the conference theme, and, if applicable, speak to the open symposium proposal. Contribution descriptions should be 300 words in length and follow this format:
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Open with the problem: What is the key sustainability challenge/topic you are tackling? Why is it relevant to a cross-sector audience? (If submitting to an open session, how does it address the goals of that session?)
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Follow with the action: How does this idea, project, work, and/or you, your team, or organization approach this challenge? Provide a succinct description of the approach or products. Include strategy, methods, data, audience if relevant. Indicate the timeline, whether aspirational, in progress, or complete. Include actualized or expected hurdles or limitations.
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If submitting to an open symposium proposal: the above action description should speak directly to the specific session topic/goal.
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Finish with the outcome, again using non-sector or discipline-specific language. Provide 1-3 key takeaways from the session, with reference to both the sustainability challenge/topic and the theme of “Courage, credibility, and collective action.”
REVIEW CRITERIA:
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Alignment with theme: Does the submission clearly address the core concepts of courage, credibility, and collective action?
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Focus on sustainability: Does the submission directly related to achieving or hindering specific sustainability goals?
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Type Appropriateness
Open symposium (if applicable): Does the submission respond to the open symposium call with a topically relevant contribution?
Research: Does the submission present a genuine, well-defined scholarly inquiry?
Case Study: Does the submission present a genuine, well-defined practical application, initiative, or project rather than a purely theoretical discussion
Collab: Does the submission present a genuine, impactful, and well-defined collaboration action opportunity
4. Cross-Sectoral Relevance, Insight, and Impact: Does the submission aim to demonstrate, advance, or analyze cross-sector collaboration?
5. Clarity and structure: Is the submission logically structured and easy to follow? Is the language clear, concise, and free of jargon that is not properly defined?
Workshop Proposals
Submission Period: February 24 - March 31
Workshops are 2 hours in length and will be held on Monday, August 17th, the first day of the conference. Workshops are an optional opportunity for participants to gain in-depth knowledge about a topic or tool for tackling sustainability challenges through an interactive seminar experience. Workshop proposals must clearly describe the key outcomes of the workshop for participants.
Workshops are organized and facilitated by the person(s) submitting the contribution, with some assistance from the NSS Resource Team. Attendance will be capped at 30 participants (not including a maximum of 3 facilitators).
Your 500 word workshop contribution description must include:
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A jargon-free introduction that provides a basic introduction to your workshop, so that it is understandable to a broad audience (students, scholars, practitioners, policy-makers, donors, non-government organization representatives, grassroots organizations, etc.)
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An indication of who would benefit from attending your workshop.
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A statement of the practical objectives of your workshop. For example, are you introducing a specific tool, skill, dataset, methodology?
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A description of the specific outcome(s): What will participants take away and be able to use after your workshop?
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Your workshop methodology and a draft agenda. Please include the specific learning/participatory activities and expected outcomes.
Also required:
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A 200 word biography for each facilitator.
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A 300 word workshop advertisement. If accepted, this and the facilitator bios will be shared on the registration page. Read these NSS Exemplar Workshop descriptions, or review the complete line-up of workshops from the 2024 and 2025 conferences.
REVIEW CRITERIA:
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Alignment with theme: Does the submission clearly address the core concepts of courage, credibility, and collective action?
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Focus on sustainability: Does the submission directly related to achieving or hindering specific sustainability goals?
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Learning outcomes: Does the submission clearly define what a participant will be able to do differently after the workshop, and is the format/agenda sufficient to support that change?
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Interactivity and methodology: Does the methodology move beyond passive listening to include specific, structured opportunities for participants to engage with the material, the presenter, or each other?
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Clarity and structure: Is the submission logically structured and easy to follow? Is the language clear, concise, and free of jargon that is not properly defined?
