Please contact Ron MacPherson or Tammy White for assistance completing your registration.
We look forward to welcoming health information professionals from near and far. Members of the Medical Library Association (MLA) are eligible for registration at the CHLA/ABSC member rate. Unfortunately, this reciprocal registration agreement does not extend to members of other library associations.
Please contact Ron MacPherson, our Web Manager, with proof of current MLA membership, and instructions will be sent to you along with a discount code to be entered when registering.
Each Institutional membership entitles two members from that institution to register at Member Rates. If you will be registering under an Institutional Membership, please contact Ron MacPherson and provide your name, instruction, email address and work phone number. Your contact information will be associated with your institution’s membership, and you will be emailed with directions for registering.
The student rates apply to Library Technician, MLIS/MI and PhD students only.
Registration fees for CHLA/ABSC sponsored events including Continuing Education sessions, are refunded (minus a $25.00 processing fee) if written notice is received at least 28 days prior to the event. Cancellations requested in writing for medical reasons are accepted at any time and refunded at 50%. Those failing to supply written notice or those who are no shows at the event will not receive a refund. Contact Tammy White for support with registration cancellations.
We are pleased to offer discount codes for flights with Air Canada and WestJet. Information regarding transportation to and around Halifax can be found on the conference website Transportation page. This page includes information about travelling from outside of Canada and also links regarding any travel or public health restrictions to check before you travel.
Recognizing that travel has serious environmental impacts, we encourage attendees to seek the most environmentally friendly mode of transportation to Halifax possible. The David Suzuki Foundation recognizes that changes in the aviation industry will result in more significant environmental impacts than individual choices alone. The Foundation recommends specific actions to take when you must fly, as well as ways you can advocate for change in the aviation industry. We encourage all presenters and attendees to review this guidance from the David Suzuki Foundation to inform your travel for this conference.
The booking link for the conference hotel can be found on the conference website Accommodation page.
Parking is not included in hotel room rates or conference registration, but you can pay for parking at the hotel. On-site parking is $4.50 an hour or $26 daily. There is also off-site parking available at Casino Nova Scotia, 0.5km away. For more information, visit the hotel website.
Booking directly through the hotel is important as it allows CHLA/ABSC to meet its contractual obligations, and put on the conference for a reduced cost for attendees. The hotel rates for CHLA/ABSC attendees at the Halifax Marriott Waterfront Hotel are very favourable compared to other accommodations in downtown Halifax. Also note that there are multiple university convocations during the conference period, so there may be limited availability elsewhere. Be aware Halifax is in the process of regulating short term rentals and access to them may fluctuate over the next few months (source: https://www.shapeyourcityhalifax.ca/short-term-rentals).
The program-at-a-glance is posted to the website and includes a list of the contributed content and presenters. The full program will be available for download from the website after the early bird deadline, a few weeks before the conference starts. Information about our keynote speakers can also be found on the website.
We have three great CE sessions this year, two online ahead of the conference, and one in-person in Halifax on June 2. You can learn more about them and register on the conference website CE page. Registration at the conference itself is not required to participate in the affiliated CE sessions. Register by May 1 to ensure your spot in these topical sessions on climate, law, and policy.
Planning for the Halifax conference began in 2017, and we had a hotel contract signed prior to the pandemic for 2022. We were able to bump the Halifax conference back to 2023, which allowed the Association more time to accommodate the contracts for Niagara Falls in 2022 and plan for a time with fewer restrictions on travel and meetings. In order to meet our contractual obligations, the Halifax CHLA/ABSC 2023 conference is in-person. We look forward to all the benefits of gathering together to share information and move towards action!
Much of the feedback received after the hybrid conference in 2022 highlighted the challenges with merging the excellent conference experience CHLA/ABSC attendees have come to expect from both in-person and virtual conference formats. While we love a good challenge and commend the amazing work of the 2022 CPC, those frequent comments - combined with the goals for financial and logistical sustainability - led to the conclusion that a fully hybrid conference was not feasible this year. Did you know that organising a 100% hybrid conference takes as much work and costs nearly as much as running TWO full conferences? Because the viability of CHLA/ABSC depends on a successful conference, we are focusing on bringing the best possible conference experience to Halifax attendees, including our generous sponsors, and unfortunately the logistics and costs of live-streaming in and out of the conference venue are prohibitive.
Meanwhile, feedback received after the 2021 virtual conference celebrated the benefits of all attendees being in the same virtual space and we recognize that for many reasons, some individuals will not be able to join us in Nova Scotia. For those unable to attend the conference in June 2023, we hope to see you at one of the conference CE offerings online. In addition, the CHLA/ABSC Board will explore options to offer CHLA/ABSC members supplemental virtual event(s) at a later date to facilitate connections with those who cannot join us in Halifax in June 2023. We will share more details as they are settled.
Based on the success of the CHLA/ABSC 2021 virtual conference, hosted by an amazing CPC based out of Winnipeg, and the benefits of online meetings made clear by the circumstances of the past few years the answer is unanimous: Yes! As an association, CHLA/ABSC looks forward to integrating regular, 100% virtual meetings into the rotation of conference sites across Canada. Due to existing contracts for venues in Halifax and Winnipeg, planning a full virtual conference is still a couple of years away, but feedback from members and past planning committees has been heard that we enjoy connecting all together in a virtual space.
Yes, all presenters are required to register for the conference at the early bird or regular rate. Based on the experience from previous years and due to the logistics of determining food and space requirements, we are not offering a one-day or half-day registration option. However, there are reduced rates available for those who are retired or unemployed, library technicians, and students as well as registrants who self-identify as belonging to equity-deserving groups (including, but are not limited to, those represented by race, sex, age, physical disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identity, neurodiversity, and socioeconomic status). See the posted registration rates on the conference website and check in for updates in early 2023. We want to also remind presenters that CHLA/ABSC offers members a number of funding opportunities to support registration at the Annual Conference and associated professional development opportunities (https://www.chla-absc.ca/awards_and_funding.php).
The dates for the Halifax conference were picked several years ago, and when the conference was moved back due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the venue transferred the booking to the closest dates available in 2023 to our original ones. We know there’s a lot of people for and against holding the conference over the weekend, and it’s not that we didn’t hear the feedback about the weekend dates - but commitments made several years in advance mean we can’t adjust the set dates without significant costly changes to signed contracts.
Although masking and vaccination mandates are not currently in place on a national or local level, the CPC and CHLA/ABSC Board are committed to following best practices recommended by public health to avoid spreading airborne diseases. Therefore, we will be recommending consistent use of high quality face masks when gathered indoors. We will have additional masks on hand for delegates. We encourage all delegates to follow guidance within your own health regions for maintaining vaccination status to help reduce transmission and decrease the burden of disease on individuals and systems.
We trust that all delegates will follow recommendations to avoid travel and gathering if they have symptoms of respiratory illness, including those associated with COVID-19. For more information on refunds and cancellations, please refer to the cancellation policy and procedure noted above.
