2017 WAIS Workshop

Twenty-Fourth Annual WAIS Workshop
October 8-11, 2017
Camp Casey Conference Center
Coupeville, Washington, U.S.A.

The 2017 WAIS Workshop will be held in Coupeville, Washington on Whidbey Island, at the Camp Casey Conference Center. This multidisciplinary Earth system science workshop will focus on the distinctive glaciological, geological, oceanographic, and climatic aspects of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. The 2017 hosts are Knut Christianson of the University of Washington and Ted Scambos of the University of Colorado Boulder.

The meeting begins with an Icebreaker on Sunday evening, October 8. Sessions will be organized by topic, with invited and contributed speakers on aspects of West Antarctic and related polar research. The sessions are followed with a brief panel discussion by the speakers. Poster sessions are held separately. The meeting adjourns after lunch on Wednesday, October 11. The Antarctic Earth Science Meeting follows WAIS at the same venue, running October 11-14. For more information about this meeting see their web site. Note that registration for the Earth Science Meeting is separate from WAIS registration.

This is the first year for WAIS to meet at Camp Casey. In years past, we met at the Pack Forest Conference Center, and with the growth of this meeting over recent years, we have found a new venue in the Pacific Northwest. Camp Casey was established in 1901 as Fort Casey, a U.S. Army fort guarding the entrance to the Puget Sound. Acquired by Seattle Pacific University in the 1950s, Camp Casey welcomes a wide variety of groups for retreats, conferences, and outdoor education programs. It borders two miles of pristine beach along the Sound, and is about 2 hours from Seattle, WA.

Registration is closed as of September 6.

Deadlines

The deadline for Abstract Submission is Friday, August 25. Abstract submission is separate from the registration process.
Student support request deadline is August 18. We have limited funds to support air or ground travel to the meeting.
Registration deadline is September 5.
All lodging is at Camp Casey. For those preferring to stay at a hotel, there are some in the nearby town of Oak Harbor, details are below.

Please note the Camp is about 2½ hours from the Seattle airport. Ground transportation options are listed below.

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Registration

The registration fee includes breakfasts, lunches and dinners on Monday and Tuesday, and breakfast and lunch on Wednesday for those staying on-site or in nearby hotels. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks and coffee are provided. Please indicate any dietary restrictions you may have on the registration form and the caterer will do their best to accommodate. 

Lodging at Camp Casey is in rustic quarters on the Puget Sound. Staying on site allows interaction and collaboration among the meeting participants in an informal and beautiful setting. For the true WAIS Workshop experience, we recommend staying on-site. Lodging will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. For those preferring a hotel, there are several options nearby. And for those staying at Camp Casey for the Antarctic Earth Science Meeting, we recommend you stay on-site for ease of your stay for the week.

Registration fees:

The Full Registration fee for WAIS include 3 nights' lodging and meals for the 2.5 day meeting.
$300 for professionals, including post-docs
$225 for active students (pre-PhD)

For those preferring to stay off-site at their own cost, the Off-Site Registration option includes all meals for the 2.5 day meeting.
$275 for professionals, including post-docs
$200 for active students (pre-PhD)

For Locals in Washington state commuting from home for one or more days:
$150 fee covers coffee breaks and lunches daily.

Registration is closed as of September 6.

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Lodging and Hotel

We recommend that everyone stays at Camp Casey for the best WAIS experience. If you prefer to stay at a hotel, there are options about 30 minutes away in Oak Harbor (not 10 minutes away as previously indicated). Transportation between the venue and hotels is not offered.

Ride sharing board -- We will set up an electronic ride-sharing board for those wishing to carpool to or from the airport. When that is available we will update this web site and send an announcement through our email list.

Map of the route from the Seattle airport to Camp Casey is coming.

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Agenda

Plan to arrive Sunday, October 8 for a light dinner and socializing; we ask for a small donation to cover the cost of pizza and drinks. The workshop is 2½ days, concluding with lunch on Wednesday, October 11. We will have around 40 talks. Following each set of oral presentations, a panel (the session's speakers) and the moderator will lead an open discussion about the general theme, and examine what the significance of new insights presented in the talks is for the WAIS system. This open, engaged discussion has been a very positive aspect of WAIS.

In addition to talks, WAIS will have space for about 30-40 posters. There will be an opportunity to give a very brief overview of a poster topic to the audience just prior to the poster sessions. Posters receive a great deal of attention at WAIS.

View the agenda here.

Guidelines for Abstract Submission and Presentations

Abstract format and submission:

• Abstract Template: We ask that you follow the fonts and sizing found in the abstract template so that the abstracts have the same style. Download the Abstract Template for the details. Then upload your abstract using our online tool. Note that the number of talks and posters are limited. You'll indicate whether you prefer poster or talk when you register for the workshop. 
  

Talk guidelines:

• Talks are 15 minutes, plus a few minutes for one question and to switch presenters. We have a full meeting so please be mindful of your time and courteous to the next presenter. A discussion period concludes each session where further questions can be addressed.
• All presentation files will be loaded on one central laptop to expedite the transition between presenters. We request you provide us with your presentation the day prior to your assigned time. Dinner time is a good time for this.
• Powerpoint or PDF files are preferred. Keynote is available.
• After the conference, presentations will be posted with the agenda on the WAIS Workshop site. If you prefer we don't publish your presentation, e-mail Betsy at: waisworkshop@nsidc.org.

Poster guidelines:

• Posters set up times will be on the agenda. Posters will remain on display through the duration of the meeting. You are your poster’s keeper – please remember to remove it yourself at the end of the workshop.
• The size of the poster boards is 48"wide x 36" tall -- please make your poster no larger than that.

See the list of submitted abstracts here to get a sense of the scope of this year's topics.

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Meals

Registration fee includes breakfasts, lunches and dinners on Monday and Tuesday, and breakfast and lunch on Wednesday. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks and coffee are also included. Please indicate any dietary restrictions you may have on the registration form and the caterer will do their best to accommodate.

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Air Travel and Ground Transportation

We recommend you fly into Seattle International Airport, and either carpool or use an airport shuttle service:

We will offer a Ride-sharing Board for carpooling between the airport and the venue.

Directions to Camp Casey are found here.

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Weather and Activities

Highs about 60, lows about 40. October is in the transition period to the rainy period. It could still be dry. However during the last two years it has been quite stormy, with multiple inches of rain in a single storm and quite a bit of wind, so folk should be prepared for that. 

Deception Pass State Park (http://parks.state.wa.us/497/Deception-Pass), and it's a very short ferry ride to the Olympic Peninsula. The ferry terminal is basically right on the venue (the opposite side of Fort Casey State Park). The Olympic Peninsula is home to some of the most scenic parks in the United States, including: the Olympic National Park, Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, Olympic National Forest, and five wilderness areas (for those who are camping inclined). The Olympic mountains and the Hoh rain forest are both within Olympic National Park. On the other side of the strait are the Mt. Baker/Snoqualmie National Forest and Mt. Baker Wilderness area – home to Mt. Baker and numerous other peaks for those who prefer mountains to coast. 

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Student Support

The WAIS group supports early career scientists, encouraging interaction between early-career and established Antarctic researchers. To this end, our budget includes domestic airfare support (or registration fee support for those within driving distance or who are traveling from outside of the US) for a limited number of students and early-career researchers. We ask that interested people propose a talk on their recent research for consideration for the funding. Please submit a letter (by email to waisworkshop@nsidc.org) requesting travel support and providing a short justification. We estimate that we have travel support for 10-15 students or recent post-doctoral researchers (<3 years since degree) total. Please highlight the relevance of your abstract to West Antarctica, ice sheet stability, ice-ocean or ice-biology interactions, or polar climate change; and any other relevant information regarding your funding. We will aim to inform students of the decision on their support in late August to allow time to purchase tickets and register; deadline to request funds is August 25 (extended from August 18). 

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Questions? Please contact us at waisworkshop@nsidc.org