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<div><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Dear all,</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">I wholeheartedly share the views of Marcelo and Alana regarding conference registration fees. It can be assumed that conference organisers do their best to put on events
that serve the needs of their constituencies, and that in doing so they generously sacrifice their time and labour for the good of the academic community. The currently dominant model of academic conferences, however, contains serious flaws, one of which is
prohibitive registration fees. In this debate, it is important to note that there are examples of conferences that effectively complicate any defence of high registration fees. One that I know of well is </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">London
Conference in Critical Thought</span></i><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> - an annual conference that attracts 100+ participants each year and is FREE for everyone to attend.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The
LCCT will take place next week for the fifth successive year. Due to the groundswell of support that our event has had, we will b</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">e launching an affiliated journal - the </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">London
Journal of Critical Thought</span></i><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. The existence of the LCCT quite simply proves beyond doubt that it is possible to hold a large annual conference that avoids the ethically
suspect model currently dominant in academia. For more information on our ethos and how the conference/collective works please visit
<a href="http://londoncritical.org/" class="OWAAutoLink" id="LPlnk694897" title="http://londoncritical.org/
Cmd+Click or tap to follow the link">
http://londoncritical.org/</a></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">For those of you who still harbour doubts about whether it is possible to put on a high quality and sustainable annual event that is free for all to attend, please feel free
to contact myself or one of the other founders of the LCCT. There are, however, some fairly basic strategies that can be mentioned here:</span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">No keynotes</span>
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<li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">There is no justification for appropriating money from 'normal' conference participants to pay the way for other 'star' participants. Offering a reduced rate or bursaries
for some participants does not remove the moral problem (and need I mention that a free conference has no need for such discounts).</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In my experience, most participants at annual society-based conferences do not attend because so-and-so happens to be a guest speaker. While it may be the case that some
participants don't come without sufficient 'star attraction', many others will come because the free entry makes it financially possible. If a 'star' participant is not able or willing to take care of their own travel/accom then they do not attend, which is
of course the situation for 'normal' participants to being with. </span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Eliminating keynotes frees up a lot of the schedule, so that a 3 day event can fit into 2 days, thus reducing costs significantly.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Eliminating keynotes also goes a long ways towards creating an inclusive environment that mitigates the hierarchical structures prevalent in many academic conferences.</span></li></ul>
</li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Rooms provided gratis by host organisation</span>
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<li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">If this is a problem then the conference is held at another university/department where it is not a problem. In five years we have yet to fail in finding a university/department
in London that can accommodate, leading me to suspect that it would be even easier for the conferences of nation/region-wide associations.</span></li></ul>
</li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Catering either not provided or funded by a means other than registration fees</span>
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<li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Provision of lunch is not necessary - indeed, many of the large annual conferences do not cater for lunch (though still charge large registration fees).</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Coffee/cake may be overpriced by university caterers, but if this is the event's only expense then it is not that hard to find the money by means other than registration
fees. This may require some clever thinking or pulling in favours, but the benefits of doing so are clearly worth it.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">If catering cannot be funded without resorting to registration fees then it should not be provided - in my experience, the absence of terrible coffee has never prevented
the exchange of ideas between people, but the same cannot be said for registration fees.</span></li></ul>
</li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Involvement of publishers/other interested parties</span><br>
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<li><span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Receptions can be paid by participating publishers and double as a book launch</span></li></ul>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">As Tony said in his reply, all conferences are slightly different and may have their own unique costs involved. However if strategies such as the above are pursued (and there
are no doubt many others) then it is difficult to see how and why prohibitive registration fees are required. Our experience at the LCCT proves that it is not beyond academics to figure out alternative solutions - after all, we are supposed to be a clever
bunch. What has been lacking is sufficient acknowledgement that the status quo is wrong and that alternative models are possible if we have the will to realise them.</span></div>
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Kind regards,
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<p>Craig</p>
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<p>-----</p>
<p><b>Dr Craig Lundy</b></p>
<p>Senior Lecturer in Social Theory</p>
<p>Division of Sociology | School of Social Sciences</p>
<p>Nottingham Trent University</p>
<p>Nottingham | NG1 4BU</p>
<p>UK</p>
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