IASS News August 2020

In this newsletter we will let you know about an upcoming IASS Annual General Meeting, the next IASS webinar, a need to revise the Cochran-Hansen Prize and conference-related news. This monthly newsletter will now be emailed directly to IASS members.

Links to more information:

The IASS Executive Committee encourage members to subscribe and contribute articles to the Statistics Journal of the International Association of Official Statistics. Website: https://officialstatistics.com/aims-scope .

Please feel free to send items to publish in future IASS newsletters to James Chipperfield james.chipperfield@abs.gov.au  

Annual General Meeting (2020) of The International Association of Survey Statisticians

Soon we will invite IASS members to attend the virtual 2020 Annual General Meeting of The International Association of Survey Statisticians. The AGM is an important gathering of IASS members to hear about recent and on-going developments of the IASS. The meeting also provides a forum for members to put forward their ideas for the future of the IASS. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the IASS Executive Committee is intending to change IASS statutes to allow virtual AGMs into the future. Without such a change, such virtual meetings will soon not be possible according to Dutch law.

IASS’ 2nd Webinar

The next webinar will again be on Covid-19 surveillance surveys. We will be announcing the details soon. The ISI license of GotoWebinar supports 500 attendees (up from 100 attendees in the 1st IASS webinar).

Revise the terms of the Cochran-Hansen Prize

The World Statistics Conference 2021 will go virtual. Accordingly, the IASS EC will need to revise the terms of the Cochran-Hansen Prize, which in previous years included travel expenses to attend the WSC. 

Joint Statistical Meeting 2021

The IASS has been asked to submit a proposal for an invited session for JSM 2021. The theme for JSM 2021 is “Statistics, Data and the Stories They Tell,” but not all sessions have to adhere to this theme. Formats vary for invited sessions; however, all are 110 minutes in length and have a session chair. The sessions typically include 2–6 participants, including the chair, with two of the most popular and successful formats being 2–3 speakers with a discussant or a panel discussion of 3–5 panelists. The submission site will close in the first week of September.

 If you would like to propose an IASS session to JSM2021, please send the session proposal to James Chipperfield (james.chipperfield@abs.gov.au), copying Denise Silva (denisebritz@gmail.com), with the required information as specified at (https://ww2.amstat.org/meetings/jsm/2021)

Conferences

Due to the corona virus pandemic some conferences have announced postponements, changes to format (from an in-person to a virtual conference) or suspended registration. Other conferences are in the process of doing so. Where this information is available, it has been noted below. This is a fast-evolving situation so, if in doubt, please check the conference website.

Conference and Special Issue of Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A in memory of Fred Smith and Chris Skinner Southampton, UK, 8‐10 July 2021

Call for Abstracts

Abstract submission deadline: 1 October 2020

We warmly invite abstract submissions for presentation at a conference in memory of Fred (TMF) Smith and Chris Skinner, who both passed away during winter 2019/20. The conference will be based around the themes that interested Fred and Chris during their research careers, including (but not limited to)

  • analysis and modelling of complex survey data
  • time series methods in the analysis of survey data
  • statistical disclosure control
  • official statistics

Several keynote speakers with associations to Fred and Chris have agreed to speak and their contributions will form one part of a special issue of the Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A (JRSS‐A), which it is planned will appear later in 2021. There is also an open call for contributions for this special issue.

Presentation Formats

The conference will have plenary and parallel sessions, and will also offer a poster session with an opportunity for ‘rapid fire’ short presentations. Oral Presentations will be presented in concurrent sessions. Each oral presentation will be given 15 minutes to present, and 5 minutes for Q&A, for a total of 20 minutes. Rapid Fire Poster Presentations will be presented during dedicated rapid fire concurrent sessions. Each poster presenter will have 4 minutes to present their presentation, using only one slide, followed by a Q&A with the audience. Presenters are encouraged to present their findings in an innovative and/or entertaining way. Use your imagination!

The presentation schedule and poster viewing times and schedule for the posters will be publicised after the call for abstracts is completed and presentations are selected. Further instructions will also be provided to guide presenters.

Submission Guidelines & Key Dates

The submissions will be assessed in a staged approach. Extended abstracts of up to 500 words should be submitted to FredandChris2021@soton.ac.uk by 1 October 2020. The abstract should indicate whether it is proposed for the conference, or the JRSS‐A special issue, or both. If for the conference, also indicate whether it is suitable as a presentation and/or a poster.

On the basis of the abstracts the conference programme committee will make a decision by 2 November 2020 on which proposals are accepted for the conference, and which proposals are to be invited to make a full submission for the JRSS‐A special issue. Those invited to contribute to the special issue need to provide a full paper by 1 April 2021 through the JRSSA submission system, and these will be subject to review in the usual way. Conference papers are optional; they will be hosted on the conference website.

Conference information

The conference will take place in Southampton from 8 to 10 July 2021 (we will keep under review whether part or all will need to move online). It is an official satellite meeting of the World Statistics Congress (WSC) in The Hague, and will finish at lunchtime on 10 July to allow a respite before the WSC, which has already been made on‐line. More details of the conference organisation will follow on a website in due course.

All accepted presenters must register for and pay to attend the conference, and are responsible for their own related expenses. In addition, if the accepted presenter invites additional speakers to present with them at the conference, they must also register for and pay to attend the conference. Travel and accommodation costs will not be covered.

IASS-Supported Conferences Planned for 2020

Conference for Population Surveys, Data Users and Producers, took place 5-6 February 2020, Nigeria, Africa

ICES VI – The International Conference on Establishment Statistics was planned to take place 15–18 June in New Orleans, U.S but has been postponed to June 14-17, 2021

Website: https://ww2.amstat.org/meetings/ices/2020/conferenceinfo.cfm/   

SAE2020- BigSmall – Conference on Small Area Estimation was to be held 6–8 July in Naples, Italy, with the theme “Big Data for Small Areas”. Due to the corona virus pandemic, the conference will be held 5-7 July in Naples as a satellite conference to the World Statistics Conference in 2021.

Website: https://sae2020.org/ 

Summer School on Survey Statistics 2020 was planned to be held 24–28 August in Minsk, Belarus but it has been postponed to 2021. Details to be announced.

Website: https://wiki.helsinki.fi/display/BNU/Events.

11e Colloque International Francophone sur les Sondages – 11th International Francophone Conference on Surveys was planned for 13–16 October in Brussels, Belgium. It has been postponed. Details to be announced soon.

 Website: http://sondages2020.sciencesconf.org.

Other 2020 Conferences on survey statistics and related areas