The 2021 ABMA conference will be 18-23 April in Atlanta, GA! This will be a joint conference with IMATA.
Upload your conference photos here! **By uploading your photo(s) you agree to the ABMA photograph general disclaimer: The undersigned (the "Photographer") hereby irrevocably grants to the Animal Behavior Management Alliance (the “ABMA") full and complete permission to use the photos submitted in any ABMA publication, including, but not limited to, use and display on newsletters, illustrations, advertisements, and internet content. With the exception of the foregoing, ABMA makes no claims to ownership of the submitted photographs and ownership rights are retained by the Photographer.
Quick Links for Conference Information
Did you know that ABMA’s Behavior Management Fund (BMF) committee has a travel scholarship available for one lucky member at each of our annual conferences? Abstract deadline for the BMF Travel Scholarship will be announced in the fall.
This scholarship is to assist an ABMA member whose institution is unable to give them financial support. The Travel Scholarship will help the award recipient by giving them the ability to present their work and it will help the organization by giving ABMA members the opportunity to hear presentations that the membership otherwise would not have the opportunity to hear and as such, the Travel Scholarship supports the ABMA Core Value of “Sharing the Knowledge.”
The abstract submission deadlines for the annual conference are generally:
early January- Abstracts due
mid January- Winner notified
end of January- Winner accept/deny
The scholarship will provide:
• Transportation: Up to $500.00 reimbursed at Conference with receipt of purchased ticket or based on government per diem if driving, verification of mileage is required.
• Hotel room for the entire conference.
• Conference registration fee (including site visits, the banquet, and any meals included with registration).
*Airport to hotel transportation and meals on your own will not be provided.
Applicant Requirements
• Applicant must be an ABMA member in good standing. ABMA membership must be valid through the dates of the conference for the given Travel Scholarship Award year.
• Applicant may not have received this scholarship in the previous year.
• Applicant must submit the online abstract submission form, check the BMF scholarship box within the form, and complete the additional scholarship questions after checking the BMF box within the online form. Incomplete submissions will not be considered. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure application materials are complete; applicants will not be notified if the application materials are incomplete.
Application Process:
There are 3 required components of the BMF Travel Scholarship application:
1. Complete the online Abstract Submission Form. Don’t forget to check the box for BMF!
2. Complete the BMF questions within the online abstract submission form after you check the box for BMF.
3. Travel Scholarship winner must officially accept the award within one week of email notification, otherwise the award will be offered to the runner-up.
Abstract review will be based on quality of the abstract, content and subject matter of the paper, application of the ABMA mission statement, and incorporation of the theme of the conference. Please keep in mind that we receive a number of quality submissions each year, and not all abstracts can necessarily be accepted for presentation. When your abstract is accepted for either a poster or presentation you are required to submit a paper for the conference proceedings prior to presenting. This submission deadline is one week before the conference. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the Conference Content Advisory Committee Co-Chair, Antonio Ramirez, at abmaabstracts@gmail.com or the 2021 Vice President, Tricia Dees at ttutricia@yahoo.com.
Presentations are 20 minutes total. Presenters should plan for a few minutes of questions afterwards (e.g. 17 minute presentation, 3 minutes for questions). It is encouraged to be available for questions throughout the remainder of the week. Poster presenters are required to stand by their posters on poster night and discuss their poster with conference attendees. Posters will be available to view during the entire conference so please be prepared to turn in your poster at registration so it can be set up the next day. If poster night is held off site, ABMA will transport and set up your poster but you are responsible for it after poster night concludes.
General Timeline for Abstract Submissions are:
mid January- abstracts due by midnight EST
late January- notifications to presenters
end of January- presenters accept/decline
One week before conference- papers due for proceedings
If you’re an AAZK or IMATA member you can receive the ABMA member rate! Please download & submit the registration form. We do not accept American Express. Pricing for the ABMA conference will be announced in the fall.
Weekly registrations are for the week of 18-23 April 2021. The icebreaker and the banquet are included in the cost of your weekly registration- do not purchase these from the a la carte menu unless you plan to have an extra person attend for that event only. There will be no weekly registrations the week before the conference to allow us time to compile accurate numbers to the hotel.
Contact us if you have any questions.
REFUND POLICY:
100% until 30 days before the start of the conference
50% from 29 days until 8 days before the conference
No refunds starting the week before the conference
CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS (CEU’s):
We will again be offering CEU’s for a variety of organizations. Once the program is finalized we will submit for credits and post here. We normally offer CEU’s for the following organizations:
IAABC
IATCB
CCPDT
NAI
We look forward to seeing you in next year!
The conference hotel is the Hilton Atlanta. Room rate is $169/night double occupancy.
ROOMMATES: Do you need a roommate for the conference? We will have a roommate coordinator, which will be announced in the fall. If you need a roommate, the following information will be needed:
- Your gender and your roommate gender preference
- How many roommates you would like to have
- How many days you need a roommate
- Your name and email
AMENITIES: Details coming soon.
PARKING: Details coming soon.
DINING: Do you have dietary restrictions? The hotel will be happy to accommodate you! Please inform them upon check-in of your dietary needs. Don’t forget to let the ABMA know of your dietary restrictions during the online registration process.
Hotel Location: Hilton Atlanta is located at 255 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303. Their phone number is 404-659-2000.
Airlines: Try these search engines for low international fares. Momondo and Skyscanner. Delta Airlines has a hub in Atlanta and sometimes flights into a hub can be cheaper.
WEATHER:
INTERNATIONAL ATTENDEES:
Currency: The dollar is the official currency of the USA. If you have a credit card with a chip, you shouldn’t have any problems, but you should know your card’s pin number just in case it’s needed for verification. If you do not have a card with a chip, it will require a pin to process the transaction.
You can use an exchange rate calculator, such as xe.com, to convert currency to USD. Keep in mind rates change frequently.
Power: The US runs on 110V, so you will need an adapter to run your gadgets. Adapter packages are fairly inexpensive to purchase, so make sure you get one before you arrive.
Details coming soon.
Details coming soon.
To be green, the ABMA does not hand out printed programs. We also have an interactive app with the program and other exciting features available in the app store (i phone) or Google Play (android). Search for “ABMA Conference”. If you have the app from a previous conference you need to delete the app and upload the new app once it’s available.
ABMA Conference General Schedule of Events
Sunday- Registration check-in and Icebreaker
Monday-Friday- presentations, workshops, site visits, silent auction, banquet (Friday night)
Thank you for attending the ABMA conference!
Details will be posted as they are finalized. If you have questions, don't hesitate to contact us. We look forward to seeing you in Atlanta in 2021!