9th Annual ESHE Meeting - 19-21 September, 2019 - Liège, Belgium

The 9th Annual ESHE meeting will take place at the Palais des Congrès along the edge of the Meuse River from the 19th-21st September, 2019. Preregistration and the public keynote lecture will take place on the 18th of September. The annual ESHE excursion will be on the 22nd of September.

Please find the conference programme here.

We extend a special thanks to our local organizers: Kévin Di Modica, Grégory Abrams, Dominique Bonjean, Stéphane Pirson, Veerle Rots, Damien Flas, and Pierre Noiret.

ESHE 2019 thanks:

Scladina Cave Archaeological Centre

Association Wallonne du Patrimoine

Service Public de Wallonie

Ville d'Andenne

University of Liège

TraceoLab

Prehistomuseum

Espace de l'Homme de Spy

Grottes des Goyet

Province de Liège

Loterie Nationale

Deadlines

• - Abstract Submission Deadline
• June 8 - Conference Funding Deadline
• - Members Registration Discount Ends
• - Online Meeting Registration Closes
• - Student Poster Prize Submission Deadline
• - Last day to upload Pecha Kucha presentations
• September 19 - 21 - 9th Annual ESHE Meeting in Liège
• September 22 - Excursion

Presentation and Poster Guidelines

• Podium Presentations
• Pecha Kucha Presentations
• Poster Presentations

Schedule

Board Election

This year ESHE members will vote in a new set of regular board members (officer elections are next year). Please refer to our elections page for a list of the candidates, and come to the general assembly or the registration desk on Saturday (up through the afternoon coffee break) to vote.

Excursion: The Belgian Neandertals

Schedule: Sunday 22nd September

Tickets cost 30€ per person and places are strictly limited. Tickets to the excursion can be reserved and paid for during registration. If you already registered and want to add the excursion, just write us.

This year’s ESHE excursion will be devoted to Belgian Neandertals. The Meuse river basin has historically played a key role in the early development of Human origin’s sciences since the first discoveries of Neandertal remains in Engis cave by Ph.-Ch. Schmerling during winter 1829-1830. Even if the Engis skull was not recognized as belonging to a species distinct from Homo sapiens at that time, the association of Human remains with stone tools and extinct animal species within the same karstic context led Schmerling to claim a greater antiquity of Men and contradict the biblical view on Human creation. However, Schmerling’s monographic publication - one of the earliest scientific research in Prehistory - was not accepted at that time, more than 20 years before the works of Darwin and Boucher de Perthes, and the eponymous discovery of Neanderthal. Later on, the excavations conducted in La Naulette by Ed. Dupont (1866) greatly contributed to claim an old age for the highly controversial Human type described at Neanderthal 10 years before: precise stratigraphic observations (for that period standards) locate the mandibula “similar to Neanderthal” under a thick sequence of sediments intersected with stalagmitic floors. This led the famous anthropologist P. Broca to write that this fossil constituted “the first fact providing Darwinists with anatomical evidence”. In 1885-1886, the research conducted in Spy cave by M. Lohest and M. De Puydt led to the discovery of two almost complete Neanderthal skeletons in a well described stratigraphic context and for the first time in association with Mousterian artefacts and extinct species.

More recently, multiple Neanderthal discoveries have been made on the field in a precise stratigraphic context (e.g. Couvin, Walou and Scladina cave) and during 19th century collections reappraisal (e.g. Spy and Goyet cave). This last decade, the fossils of Spy, Scladina and Goyet have been subject to an intense scientific investigation and greatly contributed to the development of our knowledge on Neanderthal anatomy, behaviour, evolution and chronology. The significance of the Belgian Neandertals both for the historical development of Sciences and their contributions to our knowledge of this Human type led Belgium to enrol the four most significant Neandertal sites (Engis, Spy, Goyet and Scladina) on the UNESCO Tentative lists (“Les sites à fossiles néandertaliens de Wallonie”, Tentative list ref. 6398).

During the excursion, we will visit 3 of the 4 caves of the tentative list: Spy, Scladina and Goyet, while Engis will be presented in the Prehistomuseum, located nearby the cave. The excursion will fit the entire day, with a departure from Liège at 8.30 am. Tickets cost 30€ per person and places are strictly limited. Tickets to the excursion can be reserved and paid for during registration. After visiting the 3 caves, all participants will meet at the Prehistomuseum, where a farewell drink will be offered beside the presentation of Engis and the possibility for the participants to attend some activities such as flint knapping, fire production or spear-throwers testing. The excursion will finish at 20.00, with two choices for the participants: either to return directly to Liège (30 minutes trip), or to have diner and enjoy local beverages in the restaurant of the museum (cost not included in the excursion price: selection of meals between 8 and 14 euros, drinks between 2 and 6 euros). In this second option, shuttles will drop the participants in Liège around 22.30.

Good to know:

• Participants are encouraged to wear comfortable walking shoes and to consider bringing a hat and raincoat.
• The excursion will last the whole day. Therefore, people planning on departing during the afternoon or early evening are advised to not attend.

Registration

Registration price includes two coffee breaks per day with snacks, the cocktail poster sessions, as well as all lunches during the conference. In order to receive the member registration rate, you must pay all outstanding membership dues and register before . All registrations after this date will be required to pay the non-member fee.

Registration fees for ESHE members

• Professional Member fee: €
• Student Member fee: €

Registration fees for non-ESHE members

• Professional Non-Member fee: €
• Student Non-Member fee: €

ESHE will only issue refunds for cancelled meeting registration before the online registration cut-off date (). This is to ensure we have final numbers in advance for our caterers and suppliers. Please keep this in mind when registering, as we cannot issue any refund claims submitted after this date. Please email info@eshe.eu for any registration enquiries.

Childcare

This year’s conference will include childcare for parents who wish to attend the conference. Childcare will be offered at no additional cost and will be available all day. It will be provided by a reputable, certified and insured local company. Spaces are limited to 5 (0-3 year olds) and 15 (3-12 year olds).

Caretakers this year will speak English and French. If your child speaks another language, please indicate the specific language during registration. We will do our best accomodate every language request, however we cannot guarantee it.

All food, snacks, fruit and water will be provided for children over 3 years of age, however milk, formula and nappies will need to be brought by the parents.

The on-site childcare will take place in a room adjacent to the main conference hall so that parents can easily check in throughout the day.

Please register your interest for on-site childcare during registration, and include information such as the language your child speaks, dietary restrictions, allergies, or other important information. In order to have correct numbers, we ask you to please register before the online registration deadline ().

Abstract Submission - Deadline

• Abstracts must be in English and have a strict minimum and maximum character limit (minimum 2000 characters, maximum 4000 characters, with spaces).
• Each first author can submit only one abstract.
• We discourage simultaneous podium (including Pecha Kucha) and poster presentations by the same group of authors on a similar topic.
• We strongly encourage Pecha Kucha presentations.
• Abstracts lacking in substance may not be accepted. All abstracts should have a clear description of the research with mention of methods and results.
• Abstracts are evaluated using a peer-review, graded scale. Normally all papers are reviewed by 2-4 reviewers per subfield using a quantitative ranking. The top ranking papers are selected for podium presentations.
• For podium presentations, including Pecha Kucha, the significance statement is an important part of the review process. Please distil into a few short sentences for a human evolution scientist outside their particular field of specialty why this presentation is important.
• Accepted presenters will be notified in June.
• Due to time constraints, only a limited number of podiums presentations will be accepted. Therefore, some authors not accepted for podium talks will be offered the option of presenting a poster.

Information and abstract uploads can be found here

Information for Presenters

Podium Presentations

Each presenter will be given 15 minutes to present and a very strict 5 minutes at the end of each slot for questions directed at the presenter. There will be a coloured light on stage to indicate when presenters must make concluding statements and when their time is up. A green light will display during the presentation, followed by a yellow light at the 13-minute mark and a red light at 15 minutes to indicate the end of the presentation. Presenters must have their presentations on a USB drive to be given to our IT assistants before 08:00 (for all morning sessions) or 13:00 (for all afternoon sessions) on the day of the presentation. Presentations must be in .ppt or .pptx format. We recommend the use of 16:9 format for your presentation. The computer will not be connected to the internet, so any videos must be embedded in the presentation.

Pecha Kucha Presentations

Each Pecha Kucha presentation will be strictly limited to 6 minutes and 40 seconds, and must contain exactly 20 slides (inclusive of title and acknowledgement slides). For more information on the Pecha Kucha format, please visit: www.pechakucha.org. We recommend the use of 16:9 format for your presentation. Final presentations must be uploaded to our site in PowerPoint format by .

Poster Presentations

All posters must be in A0 Portrait format. Landscape format will not be accepted due to space requirements. Presenters are expected to print and bring their poster with them to the meeting and display them before the first poster session. Presenters are responsible for hanging their own poster on the designated board. Presenters are responsible for removing their posters before the general assembly.

There are two nearby poster printing locations in Liége: Idécopy and Cogephoto. If you choose to use one of these locations, it is recommended that you contact them well in advance to ensure that your poster is printed and ready to be picked up on time for your presentation.

Student Prizes for Best Pecha Kucha and Poster Presentations

We have up to 3000€ available for student poster and Pecha Kucha prizes. To be considered for a prize you must first submit your abstract via the online system, and check the box which states “Enter the student poster or Pecha Kucha prize”. If a poster, a PDF must be uploaded on our web site here by in order to be evaluated. **Please Note** To qualify, participants must not have completed their PhD before the abstract submission deadline and must not have received an ESHE student prize in the past. Pecha Kucha presentations will be evaluated during the meeting by a team, and the results of both the best poster and best Pecha Kucha presentations will be announced following the last presentation of the ESHE meeting on Saturday afternoon.

Conference Funding Opportunities- Deadline June 8

Student Travel Grants

Following the success of the past two years, the ESHE Board has decided to offer travel grants to students attending the 2019 ESHE meeting.

Criteria:

• Applicants must be members of ESHE.
• Applicants must be presenting either a podium, pecha kucha or poster presentation at the meeting.

How to apply:

• First ensure that you have registered for the 2019 meeting and have submitted an abstract.
• Send a letter of financial justification to president@eshe.eu by Saturday, 8th June. This letter must include: 1) Information on where you will be travelling from, 2) A list of your anticipated expenses, 3) Information on any other funds you already have at your disposal (i.e. grants, scholarships, stipends), 4) A short CV, maximum 1 page.

Childcare

ESHE 2019 will offer two forms of childcare in an effort to reduce barriers to conference participation for students and professionals with children. This funding opportunity has two forms: childcare offered on-site in Liège and vouchers offered to subsidise costs incurred for childcare at home.

Childcare offered on-site:

Childcare offered on-site is provided at no extra cost for attendees at the conference. Please see the above childcare information section for additional information and how to request on-site childcare

Vouchers:

Vouchers to subsidise costs incurred for home-childcare are available by application. Vouchers are up to 200 € per applicant.

• In order to apply, please send an informal letter (no more than one page) explaining how you will spend the money. Examples include, but are not limited to: spending money on a babysitter, or paying travel costs for the grandparents or other caregivers to look after your children in your hometown.
• We can only offer one voucher per family, and applications by students and early career researchers will be given preference. Please submit your application to president@eshe.eu by Saturday, 8th June.

Venues

Conference: Palais des Congrès

The Palais des Congrès is located on the Meuse river, next to the Parc de la Boverie. The address is: 2, Espl. de l'Europe, 4020 Liège, Belgium. Participants can access the venue via the local bus. The 26 and 31 bus lines stop directly in front of the venue and 17, 138, 140, and 240 stop across the street. The bus stop is called LIEGE Palais des Congrès.

Pre-Registration and Welcome Drinks: Palais Provincial, Place Saint-Lambert 18A, 4000 Liège

Participants can pick up their registration packs and pay outstanding meeting fees from here on Wednesday, 18th between 15:00 and 18:00.

From 18:00, a complimentary welcome drink and live music will take place in the courtyard.

Public Lecture: La Salle académique, Main building of the University of Liège, Place du 20 Août 7, 4000 Liège, Belgium

After the pre-registration events, the public lecture will be given by Dr. Hélène Rougier

Closing Dinner: La Boverie

The closing dinner will be catered and will take place at the La Boverie Museum on Saturday, 22nd, after the general assembly. Tickets can be purchased with registration for 40€ per person and places are strictly limited. If you have any dietary requirements or special needs, please indicate these on your registration form.

Local and Travel Information

Travel to Liège:

By Train: As part of the ECO ESHE 2019 intiative, we encourage all attendees to consider environmentally friendly methods of travel, such as opting to take the train if possible. Liège is served by the Liège-Guillemins rail station, which is well connected to the European Rail Network.

By Air: Liège can also be reached via Brussels (BRU) airport and a connecting train ride that takes approx. 1 hour. There is no direct connection to Liège, so you will have to change in Leuven or in Brussels Nord. Please be aware that there are two Brussels airports: Brussels and Brussels South Charleroi. Brussels South Charleroi offers flights from low cost airlines, however it is located outside of Brussels and requires a shuttle bus connection to access the train network (approx. 2 hours).

For participants who must come by air, we encourage you to consider flying non-stop to reduce fuel usage and/or to purchase carbon offsets. Carbon offsets can often be purchased directly from airlines or by supporting projects directly. For examples of where to learn more about carbon offests, see the following websites. Please note ESHE is not affiliated with any of the following organizations.

• atmosfair
• myclimate
• Gold Standard

Travel in Liège:

Liège-Guillemins is a 10-15 minute walking distance from the Palais des Congrès; a 30 minute walking distance from the pre-registration venue; and a 25 minute walking distance from the Public Lecture Venue.

From the Liège-guillemins, you can also take a train to Liège-Saint-Lambert (new name)/Palais (old name). There are frequent connections as multiple lines pass through these stops. From here you are in the historical centre of the city (Place Saint-Lambert), 300 meters away from the pre-registration place, 12 minute walking distance from the public lecture place, and 30 minute walking distance from the Palais des Congrès.

Participants can also take the local bus to easily get around Liège. Bus tickets for the city are called "Next" and cost 2€ for a single ride (if bought via a kiosk) or 2.5€ if purchased directly on the bus. Day passes are available for 4€ via a kiosk (5€ in bus). Finally, 3 day passes can be purchased for 8€ and are only available in kiosks. Please be advised that not every bus stop has a ticket kiosk , so it is recommended that you purchase them before leaving the Liège-guillemins train station.

Accomodation:

The following hotels have offered discounted rates for those attending ESHE 2019.

All offers are subject to availability.

• A four-star hotel located next to the Palais des Congrès
• They offer a 15% reduction on the tarifs as shown on their website. To receive the ESHE rate, please send your request at the following address: reception@hotelliege.eu and mention "ESHE 2019 Liège"

• The only five-star hotel located in Liège.
• They offer 110€ per night for a single room (130€ for a double), incl. breakfast and wellness center when you mention your participation in ESHE 2019
• There is an additional 7€ per night tax
• To receive the ESHE rate, complete this form and email it to the hotel.

• A youth hostel in Liège.
• They offer 10% discounts on the prices of the day (ranging between 26-28€ per night. To receive this rate, book directly through the hostel website and mention your participation in ESHE 2019.

• A three-star hotel located across from the Liège-guillemins train station.
• 20 rooms are reserved for ESHE 2019 participants until 19/08/2019
• They offer 85€ per night for a single room (95€ for a double), incl. breakfast and taxes
• To receive the ESHE rate, complete the following form and email it to the hotel.

• A three-star hotel located in the city center.
• They offer 93,4€ per night for a single room (108,4€ for a double), incl. breakfast and taxes
• To receive the ESHE rate, complete this form and email it to the hotel.

Additional Information:

If you would like more information on the Liège, you can find it at this website: www.visitezliege.be They offer helpful electronic booklets that detail the area and museums and attractions. They even provide an app that you can download: here.