For some, Feb. 23-26, 2025 might seem as if it’s a long way off, but for those who plan to present a paper at the MINEXCHANGE 2025 SME Annual Conference & Expo or the World Gold 2025 Conference in Denver, CO now is the time to start planning. A call for papers for both events is out and both events are now accepting abstracts. The co-located events will take place at the Colorado Convention Center and attendees will be able to take advantage of additional programming and social events. The Colorado Mining Association will also be hosting its 127th National Western Mining Conference alongside MINEXCHANGE and World Gold.

Technical programing is the backbone of these conferences and not only does the programing provide immense value to attendees, but there is a great value to those who put in the time and effort to create and presentation and share their knowledge.

Heather Halderman is senior project manager II at Knight Piesold and Co. and has presented two times at the MINEXCAHNGE conference. She recently and shared her thoughts about the value of presenting.

“Presenting in a technical session at the conference is a way to support and spread the word regarding advancements in our industry, share lessons learned, and share important analytical and/or academic conclusions,” said Halderman. “Additionally, presenting provides an invaluable chance to network and a platform for professionals to talk and exchange ideas. Contacts made during these sessions can lead to insights into research and/or opportunities to advance the presenter’s career.”

MINEXCHANGE technical sessions cover the breadth of the mining industry, from exploration to mine closure and everything in between. Abstracts for technical sessions are being accepted until Aug. 1 at https://smeannualconference.org/abstract-submission/

World Gold is an international conference that is being hosted in the United States this year and as the name suggests, it has a specific focus on gold. Abstracts for that conference are being accepted until July 15 https://smeannualconference.org/world-gold-2025/

Presenting a paper can be a challenge, but also very rewarding.

“I think the biggest challenges are finding the time to prepare a paper, getting approvals from clients or management within their own company, and being far enough along (in a work project or academic analysis) to have the information/data/conclusions needed to be a worthwhile paper,” said Halderman.

When asked for advice about presenting, especially for a first-timer she was very encouraging.

“Just do it, you will be so happy after you have done it,” said Halderman. “If you enjoy telling people about the work you’re doing, data that you are analyzing, and/or project that you have spent a lot of time working on, then you should share that enjoyment with the industry.”

And after your abstract is accepted Halderman offered the following advice.

“Be prepared by practicing ahead of time, but don’t try and memorize everything to the point you sound mechanical. Also, limit the amount of information you put on a single slide; the best presentations are the ones where people talk to the slides but don’t read off them for all their information,” she said.

Presenting to your peers is a great opportunity and the time to get started is now.

 Photo: A technical session during the MINEXCHANGE 2024 SME Annual Conference & Expo