STM has published its Event Chair and Session Organizer Guidelines, a framework designed to help organizers plan more inclusive, accessible, and representative programs for STM events.
Developed by STM’s Diversity and Inclusion Task & Finish Group, the guidelines address the full scope of event planning. They include recommendations for assembling diverse planning committees, broadening speaker searches, designing sessions, ensuring accessibility, and measuring progress. The framework sets working targets for geographic representation, publisher size, career stage, and gender balance, while also outlining steps to reduce bias in speaker selection and avoid tokenism in program design.
The guidelines are available to all STM event chairs and session organizers, with full adoption planned for STM Frankfurt in autumn 2026.
Sarah Phibbs, Consultant for Equity & Inclusion at STM, stated that the guidelines reflect a commitment to making STM events more welcoming and representative of the global community. She explained that the Task & Finish Group focused on practical measures to achieve meaningful change, and the guidelines are the outcome of that effort.
Click here to read the original press release.
