A Call for Case Studies - Seeking Posters, Presentations, and Demonstrations
The Transportation Research Board (TRB) is inviting proposals for posters, presentations, and demonstrations to be included in a Scenario Planning conference in Portland, OR this upcoming August. This announcement describes the conference and areas of particular interest for this call.
Background
Scenario planning is a way of understanding some of the driving forces at work today that will shape the future. Major factors like technological advances, demographic shifts, the global economy, and climate change are effecting changes that are difficult to account for in long-range plans and investment strategies.
TRB is convening a conference August 14-17, 2016 focused on practical applications of scenario planning for transportation. The conference features interactive, hands-on experience combined with insightful direction and illustrated with relevant case studies. Tools and applications will be showcased.
Necessary attention will be paid to scenario planning involving trends/forecasting and end-state/visioning approaches but the focus of this conference will be on providing hands-on workshops and skill building session for exploratory scenario planning, explicitly incorporating future uncertainty into planning processes and plans.
The goal of this call is to identify a range of examples – real-world experiences, innovative strategies, tools and techniques – to feature in the conference. The target audience is transportation planners from state, regional, and local agencies interested in learning about the fundamentals of scenario planning as a means of exploring future uncertainty and incorporating it into their planning processes. It is anticipated that roughly 200 people will attend the conference.
While there will be some opportunity to address advanced scenario planning methodologies, the main focus is on the practical needs of participants who are relatively new to this process. Of particular interest are proposals featuring low-tech / content-rich processes or tools that are non-proprietary and accessible to a wide range of agencies.
Submission Requirements
Proposals should clearly explain the project, strategy, or tool you are recommending for consideration. It should explain why this proposal is uniquely suited to the conference theme and audience.
Each proposal should indicate whether a poster presentation, podium presentation, or hands-on application is desired. Note that the majority of proposals selected will likely be for a poster presentation; in addition to a special session featuring the poster presentations, posters will be on display for the duration of the conference and will serve as a backdrop for conference events. If the proposal entails hands-on application, it should clearly explain the resources and logistics that will be provided to support the proposal. Proposals for podium presentations should assume a presentation time slot of about 15 minutes plus questions and answers.
Proposals are limited to 1,800 characters in length. Successful proposals will be selected and proposers notified before the end of May.
