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As someone wryly observed last year, "I was hoping the future of
meetings would be no meetings at all". Though this might sound
cynical, it is an insightful observation on the current execution of
meetings and conferences, and how much value they offer their
attendees. Nature Astronomy has just published our Comment conveying
our experiences and lessons learned in organising "The Future of
Meetings" (TFOM) symposium, where we advocate for a better normal rather than
seeking to return to pre-COVID ways of interaction. In this article,
we outline the benefits and challenges of the virtual format and argue
that the future of scientific progress should not depend on a rush
back to in-person interaction. Rather, it would be great to use this
unique opportunity to reflect on all aspects of the way we work,
collaborate and interact, and take action to define a future that is
more accessible, inclusive and sustainable than the world we left
behind at the start of 2020. We hope that
this article will get people
thinking about their own contexts, and what steps can be taken to
ensure better interaction experiences (both virtual and in-person) for
all involved.
The image above shows the members of the TFOM Organising Committee gathering
in the virtual TFOM space, hosted in the social virtual reality platform AltspaceVR.
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