Innovation in a crisis: rethinking conferences and scholarship in a pandemic and climate emergency

Robinson, Sam, Baumhammer, Megan, Beiermann, Lea, Belteki, Daniel, Chambers, Amy C ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3801-3582, Gibbons, Kelcey, Guimont, Edward, Heffner, Kathryn, Hill, Emma-Louise, Houghton, Jemma, McCahey, Daniella, Qidwai, Sarah, Sleigh, Charlotte, Sugden, Nicola and Sumner, James (2020) Innovation in a crisis: rethinking conferences and scholarship in a pandemic and climate emergency. The British Journal for the History of Science, 53 (4). pp. 575-590. ISSN 0007-0874

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Abstract

It is a cliché of self-help advice that there are no problems, only opportunities. The rationale and actions of the BSHS in creating its Global Digital History of Science Festival may be a rare genuine confirmation of this mantra. The global COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 meant that the society's usual annual conference – like everyone else's – had to be cancelled. Once the society decided to go digital, we had a hundred days to organize and deliver our first online festival. In the hope that this will help, inspire and warn colleagues around the world who are also trying to move online, we here detail the considerations, conversations and thinking behind the organizing team's decisions.