5th Symposium of the Canadian Society for Virology

The 5th Symposium of Canadian Society for Virology (CSV2024) will highlight the excellence of Canadian virology research. The importance of strengthening virology research both in Canada and internationally is illustrated by the enormous impact viruses have had on human and animal health. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic alone is now estimated to have an economic impact nearing $100 trillion. This meeting will bring together Canadian virus researchers across many disciplines to generate new collaborations and capacities to address virus infections. The attendance at the CSV symposium has continued to grow from 175 participants in 2018 to over 300 in 2022. Based on this success we are planning for a one day extension to the meeting to facilitate more science and more opportunities for collaboration. CSV2024 serves to promote collaborative and learning experiences for trainees, within the discipline of virology, as well as offering exposure to new career opportunities. A number of opportunities are tailored specifically for trainees including dedicated meet and greet sessions with keynote speakers, dinner with scientists (where they can participate in multiple roundtable discussion with peers and a number of scientists), speaking opportunities, multiple poster sessions, a workshop on equity, diversity and inclusion and a workshop for early career researchers. We are looking to build on past successes and continue to make new opportunities for trainees. Registration fees and support from sponsors will cover the majority of the symposium costs; however, we are requesting $20,000 from CIHR-III to provide travel awards to approximately 35 trainees (graduate students and post-doctoral fellows) from across Canada to encourage as many virologists as possible to attend, with the remainder supporting travel for the two keynote speakers.