SOT Council has been exploring possible ways to enhance the overall experience at the SOT Annual Meeting and ToxExpo and increase member engagement. You will be hearing about several of these activities over the next couple of Annual Meetings. The first changes will be implemented for the 2018 meeting in San Antonio.
A common criticism often noted is that the proposal submission timeline (essentially a year in advance of the next Annual Meeting) does not effectively allow for the incorporation of truly emerging or “hot” issues into the program. To address this issue, SOT Council decided to dedicate a single 90-minute session at the 2018 meeting to an emerging topic that is of concern to many: toxicological concerns surrounding perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS). In San Antonio, this session will be held on Tuesday, March 13, from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm. If well-received, the Scientific Program Committee will include a placeholder for such a session(s) in future meetings and develop a process to invite proposals in January prior to the Annual Meeting in March. Please stay tuned for further announcements.
In addition to the pilot Scientific Session, there will be a "graffiti wall" in the main lobby of the convention center in order to enhance member engagement. Much like the popular #YouTox graffiti wall that has appeared in the SOT Pavilion over the last few years (and will be in place again this year), the lobby graffiti wall will contain a prompt phrase or question, and attendees are encouraged to share their responses and thoughts by writing directly on the wall.