Thank you for agreeing to moderate a session at the 5th Bahamas Natural History Conference, May 4-8, 2020. The success of the conference will not only be determined by the quality of the presentations, but also by our management of the sessions (i.e. moderation). For the conference, each presentation has been given a 20 minute timeslot (15 minutes for presentation and 5 minutes for questions).

Moderating Protocol

We are asking all presenters to be to their respective sessions at least 40 minutes before their scheduled times to introduce themselves to their moderator. Hence we are also asking you to be in place 40 minutes before your session begins.

Starting the Session

• Start the session on time!
• Introduce yourself / welcome the audience. Announce the session topic for this session. Announce any last minute changes (if needed). A BNT staff member assigned to the room will make you aware of any changes.
• Remind speakers to observe time limits.
• Introduce the presenter(s) using his/her name, affiliation and title of presentation.

During the Session

• We will provide colored cards to inform speakers of time remaining in their presentations. The green card means 5 minutes remaining, yellow means 2 minutes remaining and red means their time is up. If the speaker has not completed his/her talk when the red colored card is shown, interrupt him/her to ask that he/she close his/her presentation with a final sentence. In fairness to the following speakers and to the audience, do not allow a speaker to use more than their allotted time. If you have a situation where someone does not use all their allotted time, be prepared to ask/entertain questions.

At the End of the Session

• After the conclusion of each presentation (and the applause) thank the presenter(s).
• After acknowledging the last presenter in your session, inform audience of the next activity.
• If your session is followed by a break or lunch, inform audience when the next session will begin. This will be adjusted to compensate for sessions running behind and BNT staff will inform you of this.
• You may choose to provide a short summary of what was presented or moderate a short discussion, if you deem it useful and there is extra time.
• Remind the audience of:
  a. Exhibitors and poster sessions in the corridors next to the conference room.
  b. Participate in various breakout sessions, check conference schedule for details.
• Remind the audience the next items on the BHNC 2016 schedule.
• Availability of BNT and BNHC merchandise for sale. Details to be provided to you before the start of the conference.
• Acknowledge and thank all conference sponsors. A list of sponsors will be available on the podium.