2024 Online Conference
Information
Download your copy of the 2024 conference pack (including conference programme and abstracts).
Introduction
With the significant rise in the cost of living, and the need to think more sustainably about how we approach conference attendance, we have decided to host the ASHB conference online in 2024. We hope that in doing so, we will also allow greater participation from the ASHB community at the in-person conference in Auckland in 2025.
The conference this year will take place from the 25th to the 27th of November 2024.
The lightning round poster presentations is a new feature for the 2024 conference, and are modelled on the highly successful 3-minute thesis competition, founded at the University of Queensland in 2008. This format offers speakers an invaluable opportunity to hone their skills at effective, and succinct, communication – something that will be invaluable in their future careers.
Abstract submission and conference registration are now closed.
Acknowledgement of Country
The Australasian Society for Human Biology acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the many Countries on which the conference delegates will be joining. We pay our respects to the Elders past and present, recognising that they hold the memories and traditions of culture and Country.
In-person conference hubs
We are aiming to organise regional conference hubs this year in major centres where delegates will be based. A list of hub convenors will be published ahead of the conference. If you are interested in being a hub convenor, please contact us at [email protected]. The in-person hubs will provide a great way to enjoy the conference with other local ASHB members, with the daily sessions timed to also allow us to share a meal each day.
Pre-conference online social event
We will be hosting a pre-conference online social event this year where we can have a casual catch up with ASHB colleagues ahead of the conference. We will hold this event on the 24th of November at 4 pm AEDT.
Conference fees
This year, we are asking delegates to pay a small fee to directly support the provision of student prizes in 2024 and travel prizes for the 2025 conference in Auckland. Registration for the conference will be $30 for ASHB members and $50 for non-members. You are also welcome to donate to support the student prizes and 2025 travel awards if you would like to.
Keynote speakers
This year's keynote speakers are Dr Rebecca Sear, Brunel University, London, and Dr Brenna Hassett, University of Central Lancashire, Preston.
With the significant rise in the cost of living, and the need to think more sustainably about how we approach conference attendance, we have decided to host the ASHB conference online in 2024. We hope that in doing so, we will also allow greater participation from the ASHB community at the in-person conference in Auckland in 2025.
The conference this year will take place from the 25th to the 27th of November 2024.
The lightning round poster presentations is a new feature for the 2024 conference, and are modelled on the highly successful 3-minute thesis competition, founded at the University of Queensland in 2008. This format offers speakers an invaluable opportunity to hone their skills at effective, and succinct, communication – something that will be invaluable in their future careers.
Abstract submission and conference registration are now closed.
Acknowledgement of Country
The Australasian Society for Human Biology acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the many Countries on which the conference delegates will be joining. We pay our respects to the Elders past and present, recognising that they hold the memories and traditions of culture and Country.
In-person conference hubs
We are aiming to organise regional conference hubs this year in major centres where delegates will be based. A list of hub convenors will be published ahead of the conference. If you are interested in being a hub convenor, please contact us at [email protected]. The in-person hubs will provide a great way to enjoy the conference with other local ASHB members, with the daily sessions timed to also allow us to share a meal each day.
Pre-conference online social event
We will be hosting a pre-conference online social event this year where we can have a casual catch up with ASHB colleagues ahead of the conference. We will hold this event on the 24th of November at 4 pm AEDT.
Conference fees
This year, we are asking delegates to pay a small fee to directly support the provision of student prizes in 2024 and travel prizes for the 2025 conference in Auckland. Registration for the conference will be $30 for ASHB members and $50 for non-members. You are also welcome to donate to support the student prizes and 2025 travel awards if you would like to.
Keynote speakers
This year's keynote speakers are Dr Rebecca Sear, Brunel University, London, and Dr Brenna Hassett, University of Central Lancashire, Preston.
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Dr Rebecca Sear, Brunel University, London
Dr Sear is a demographer, anthropologist and human behavioural ecologist, who uses an interdisciplinary approach to understand human behaviour, through incorporating an evolutionary theoretical framework. Dr Sear is keen to promote a greater understanding of evolutionary explanations for human behaviour in the social and health sciences, and to facilitate interdisciplinary work more broadly. Dr Sear works on questions of demographic and public health interest, including fertility and reproductive development, child health and mortality, and health inequalities; and she has a particular interest in the family, and how family relationships influence these outcomes. Keynote abstract: 21st century eugenics, scientific racism and academia: how science is manipulated to promote political ideology Eugenics – the ideology that human populations can be ‘improved’ through policies such as selective reproduction – emerged as a popular political movement in the early 20th century. Its popularity ostensibly waned during the late 20th century, but eugenic ideology never went away, and discussion of eugenics is now resurging. In this talk, I will outline the instrumental role of academia in promoting eugenic ideology. I will focus particularly on the issue of scientific racism – the misuse of science to justify racial inequalities and hierarchies. Scientific racism aims to further the ideology that certain people and groups are inferior to others, a fundamental principle of eugenics. I will end by discussing how academia can counter this exploitation of the research community for political ends. |
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Dr Brenna Hassett, University of Central Lancashire, Preston
Dr Hassett is a biological anthropologist and archaeologist. Her research focuses on childhood, health, and growth in the past. Active research areas include dental anthropological approaches to understanding early development, health and growth in the transition to sedentary and agricultural living, and the history and practice of archaeology. She writes books for popular audiences on bones and teeth including 'Built on Bones: 15,000 Years of Urban Life and Death' and 'Growing Up Human: the Evolution of Childhood'. She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and is also one quarter of Team TrowelBlazers, a project advocating for equality and the recognition of women's contributions to the digging sciences. Keynote Abstract: Life History under the microscope: what can we actually learn about human life history strategies by looking at growth? Life history theory has formed a cornerstone of biological approaches to understanding the complex interplay between processes of growth and reproduction in determining the timing of life events from birth to death and all stops in between. A certain level of agency in our own species has left a trail of confusion, however, as the chronology of gestation, somatic growth, reproduction, and senescence are subsumed inside human cultures and societies and we are left fumbling after the outlines of life history strategies we so easily identify in other animals. This talk will look at the methods we have built to identify the chronology of life history in our species (and our relations), and what that data is actually telling us about our odd human lives, and particularly where the high-resolution chronology of growth locked in dental enamel can (and can’t) take us. |
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Important dates
Conference pack
Download your copy of the conference pack, including the conference programme and abstracts, here.
- Abstracts due: 20th September 2024
- Registrations due: 20th October 2024
- Program released: 30th October 2024
- Pre-conference social: 4 pm 24th November 2024
- Conference dates: 25th to the 27th November 2024
- Auckland conference: scheduled for early December, 2025
Conference pack
Download your copy of the conference pack, including the conference programme and abstracts, here.
2024 Online Conference Payment
To pay via credit card, please click the relevant registration type from the options above.
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