Our Annual Symposium has quickly become a highlight of the DGRG’s calendar as an opportunity to meet and discuss the digital with like-minded researchers. Due to COVID-19 we cannot meet in person, and we know that this is a difficult time of people in lots of different ways. However, in the spirit of staying in touch and trying to support each other, we have decided to go ahead with the symposium, albeit in a virtual and low impact form.

As academics, we use digital technologies every day. From emails to social media, teaching to research methodologies, the digital has become inescapable. Digital research methodologies are receiving increasing attention from geographers and academics in other disciplines, and there are ongoing discussions about digital teaching methods. There are still more conversations to be had, however, and the other ways in which academics engage with the digital have been largely overlooked. For our 4th annual symposium, the Digital Geographies Research Group has decided to explore these issues by focusing on how academics use the digital, in all its myriad forms. This is an opportunity to take stock of how the digital has transformed academia in the twenty-first century and reflect on the implications of this transformation, whether they are bad, good, or somewhere in between.

The Symposium will include a keynote panel, digital shorts, and breakout discussion groups.

We invite abstracts from anyone interested giving a digital short. Digital shorts are summaries of your research in 2-5 minutes. They are deliberately designed to require limited preparation, so are ideal for postgraduates, early career researchers, and those with COVID-related caring responsibilities or other commitments. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

• Digital research methodologies
• The protection and preservation of digital data
• Digital pedagogies
• Digital approaches to outreach and impact
• Academia and social media
• The impact of the digital on academic working practices

If you are interested, please submit an abstract to Dr. Hannah Awcock (hannah.awcock.91@gmail.com) by Friday 29th May. Include your name, institution (if you have one), career stage, the title and a short description of your presentation.

The schedule and the programme for the event can be found here: https://digitalgeographiesrg.org/virtual-annual-symposium-2020

UPDATE 01/07/2020: Registration has closed but you can still attend. Just send an email to hannah.awcock.91@gmail.com for the Zoom invite.