ACCESS Annual Assembly 2023: Event Guide and Evaluation Report

Abstract

This report evaluates the 2023 ACCESS Annual Assembly. It reports demographic details about attendees and analyses their perceptions of the event, using multiple data sources collected before and afterwards using surveys. The rationale for evaluation is to review our successes and challenges, and to feed into a process of continuous improvement, specifically planning for the 2024 event.

The 2023 Assembly aimed to promote connectivity between participants across boundaries of career stage, discipline and sector, to showcase state of the art environmental social science research insights, and to improve understanding of the ACCESS work programme, while minimising environmental impacts. As with all aspects of our work programme, the Assembly provides a mechanism for ACCESS to act on our Guiding Principles, notably commitments to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Knowledge-Co-Production and Environmental Sustainability.

The 2023 Assembly was attended by 82 individuals in total and findings show overwhelmingly positive feedback. The event succeeded in bringing together a diverse mix of participants, and was delivered in a friendly atmosphere that was considered to be conducive to networking. The evaluation also shows areas we could target for improvement when designing and delivering the 2024 Annual Assembly.