Presenter Information
The International Association of Wildland Fire and its partners place high importance on integrity, responsibility and reputation and expect members to display high standards of behaviour that are conducive to creating and maintaining diverse and inclusive practices. This includes the manner in which we conduct ourselves in normal business practices and at our conferences.
To better assist conference presenters, panel members, and other participants, we have prepared these guidelines to help improve understanding of our changing social environment, the importance of considering audience perception, and how to prepare to ensure that appropriate language and images are used during presentations at conferences and workshops. In this guide we provide some helpful advice on presentation ethics; oral presentation language in terms of implications to sensitivity, respect, and inclusivity; thoughts on developing presentation visual aids; and identified areas of inappropriate behaviour.
IAWF and partners expect all presenters to:
- Provide opportunities for others to learn and develop in ways that are in keeping with the IAWF commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behaviour, materials, and speech.
- Refrain from harassment of or any form of discrimination against another participant, staff member, volunteer or others.
- Always fully disclose and resolve any existing or potential conflicts of interest.
- Always keep proprietary information confidential unless the appropriate person authorizes its disclosure.

Speaker Portal in PheedLoop: We will be using PheedLoop for our hybrid conference platform; all presenters, both in person and remote will have a Speaker Portal. All presenters will need access to their speaker portal in PheedLoop. If you do not have the link, please reach out to us.
Once you enter the speaker portal, you should:
- Update your profile (add City, State/Province, and Country for Location)
- Review your session title for accuracy.
- Review and update your session description if needed – you may update for typos or grammar, please do not change the intent of your presentation.
- Check your Assigned Tasks – mark complete when finished.
- Add session files, you can add resources that you would like made available to the attendees, just do not mark the Private File box. This is also where you will upload your presentation closer to the conference.
Presenter Orientation: Here is the the presenter orientation in case you missed it.
Register: All presenters are required to registration and pay for the conference. The deadline for presenters to register is September 19; if you are unable to pay when you register, you can select the “invoice me” option. Registration
IMPORTANT DATES
- July 25 – complete the Google Form with your attendance intention
- September 19 – register for the conference.
- October 13 & 14 – presenter orientations
- October 24 – pre-recorded presentations due for remote presenters
- October 31-November 4 – Wildland Fire Canada Conference
- Check the detailed program schedule (which will be finalized around August 1st) for the exact length of your presentation as they may vary.
- Allow plenty of time for Q&A and transition.
- Practice in advance to ensure you do not go over your allotted time.
- Format your presentation in widescreen (16:9), this is generally the default in PowerPoint.
- Ignite Talks are 5-minute presentation.
- Presenters get 20 slides, which automatically advance every 15 seconds.
- These are meant to be fast paced; there is not time allotted for Q&A.
- Practice in advance to ensure you do not go over your allotted time.
- Format your presentation in widescreen (16:9), this is generally the default in PowerPoint.
- The Poster session will be scheduled by August 1st
- Presenters are expected to be present at their poster to discuss their poster during that period.
- You may set up your poster starting at 3:00 pm on Monday, October 31st. Your poster may be left up for the entire conference even though you will only be required to present your poster during the designated session.
- Please remove your poster by 5:00 pm on Thursday November 3.
- Poster Specifications: Posters should be no larger than 100 cm tall and 90 cm wide. We will provide you with pushpins or Velcro to attach your posters to the panel.
- Please include a photo of the individual who will be presenting the poster. This will allow conference participants to locate you if they have questions about your poster
In each presentation room, we will provide:
- PC Laptop Conference
- LCD Projector
- Screen of appropriate size
- Podium
- Microphone
- PPT advancer and laser pointer
- Internet Access
- Audio from computer
To ensure a smooth transition, all presenters are required to use the provided computer.
Presentation Upload: Presenters will be responsible to load their presentation onto the computer in the room in which you are presenting. The computers will be set up in the rooms starting Monday afternoon. Please add your presentation to the appropriate folder on the desktop. Label your presentation with your last name and the time you are presenting.
In-person presentations must be uploaded no later than 5:00 pm, the day prior to your scheduled presentation.
Remote presentations:
- All remote presentations must be pre-recorded.
- Pre-recorded presentations must be uploaded by October 24th.
This will allow you to load your presentation early—no more finding the presentation loading station or waiting in line to get this done at the conference. And it will allow us to ensure the presentations are loaded on to the appropriate computer and working properly. Please be considerate and submit your presentation on time!
- Be honest, avoid plagiarism, and identify sources.
- Decide when to cite – all information that is not public knowledge should be cited.
- Cite sources properly.
- Understand paraphrasing and direct quotations.
- Use accurate citations.
- Be mindful of potentially sensitive graphics and words
- Provide honest and open communication.
Principles of Responsible Presentations:
Speakers must balance perceptions, intentions, speaker rights, and responsibility to audiences. Any person participating in IAWF activities is expected to refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behaviour, materials, and speech.
Ethical communication may not be hard to deliver, but at times can suffer from failure to fully understand effects of aspects of communication. All presentations must strive to:
- Promote diversity,
- Use inclusive language,
- Avoid hate speech, and
- Present clear and respectful visual aids.
Promote Diversity:
- Speakers have a responsibility to appreciate differences among individuals and groups.
- Consider both your audience and your speech content.
- Use both sexes in hypothetical examples.
- Use co-cultural groups in hypothetical examples.
- Do not use negative or derogatory comments related to to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, age, national origin, socio-economic status, nudity and/or sexual images.
- Avoid stereotypes.
- Always remember, even if it doesn’t concern you – it may offend others.
- Look at your slides – try to balance the type of people presented so they are not all the same or in stereotypical roles.
Use Inclusive Language:
- Avoid sexist language.
- Inclusive nouns are important for example, instead of fireman, use firefighter or chairperson, instead of chairman.
- Use gender-neutral pronouns. Gender neutral pronouns include they, them and their.
- Gender decoders exist to provide assistance in appropriate word selection: Several of these decoders can be found at the following links:
Avoid Hate Language:
- Words are powerful, choose them wisely.
- Avoid using words that convey any expression of intolerance and hatred.
Present Clear and Respectful Visual Aids:
- Understand that times and social expectations have changed and cultures are different around the world – what was acceptable in the past may no longer be acceptable now and what may be acceptable or taken as humorous may be offensive in other cultures.
- If you are making a joke, or think it is funny – it may not be to others – remember you don’t know their circumstances. Try to understand your audience and prepare accordingly.
- Visual aids should be evaluated in terms of the wording and pictures they use, and analogies they convey.
- Visual aids must value sensitivity, incorporate respect, and be inclusive.
- Be mindful to those who have colour blindness (look into the colours) –https://usabilla.com/blog/how-to-design-for-color-blindness/
- If in doubt – don’t use it.
- Presentations should be accessible to a broad audience.
- Text must be of a reasonable size (suggest 24 point), in a clear, easily legible font.
- Figures must have legible axis and colour scheme.