The National Institute of Building Sciences is gearing up for the industry’s only conference for the entire building community to connect, collaborate, and design solutions for the built environment – and we are looking for speakers.

The 11th annual Building Innovation conference will take place September 5–7, 2023, at the historic Washington Hilton in Washington, DC. We look forward to engaging the community in person to network and learn from industry professionals.

This year’s conference will focus around four key topic areas: Resilience, Technology, Building Performance & Sustainability and Workforce Development. A few topics we are specifically looking for abstracts to cover are:

  • Building information modeling
  • Digital twins
  • Affordable housing
  • Alternative building materials
  • Facility management
  • Carbon neutral construction
  • Net zero building design
  • Hazard Mitigation
  • ESG
  • Cyber and data security
  • Building Science education
  • Off-site construction

Preparations now are underway for BI2023, and NIBS is reaching out to thought leaders, industry stakeholders and members to present at the meeting.

Industry leaders with valuable insights, case studies, best practices, lessons learned and/or remaining challenges are encouraged to share their knowledge and experiences with a broad audience of building industry stakeholders by submitting an abstract for consideration no later than May 1, 2023.

Abstract Requirements

  • Approved abstracts should plan for presentations to run for 40 minutes, with an additional 10 minutes for Q&A; a full 50-minute session without Q&A; or a 20-30-minute lightening session (insert check boxes here).
  • Speakers may submit an abstract for either an individual presentation or multi-person panel. If submitting for a multi-person panel, all panelists must be committed prior to abstract submission. Panels should not exceed 4 people, include a moderator, and should represent the diversity of our industry, varied perspectives or industry viewpoints. NIBS reserves the right to organize panels and select moderators as needed.
  • Submitting an abstract is a professional commitment. If the abstract is accepted, the speaker/panelists commit to attend the event. If the speaker/panelist is unable to attend the conference, it is incumbent upon him or her to find a substitute.
  • Speaker/panelist commits to providing his or her own education and content on NIBS’ branded PowerPoint slides.

Via the online form, interested parties should submit the following:

  • 250-500-word abstract
  • Four learning objectives
  • Five keywords describing the presentation
  • 150-word biography for all intended session speakers and moderators

NIBS strongly recommends submitting a video of a recent speaking presentation.

Abstracts are due to abstracts@nibs.org. For questions about submitting speaker abstracts for BI2023, please contact Jennifer Hitzke, jhitzke@nibs.org via email or call (202) 289-7800 x112. Approved speakers/panelists will be notified on or about June 7, 2023.

Promotional presentations on products or services will not be considered.

If selected, speakers will need to submit a high-resolution headshot and final PowerPoint presentation by August 18, 2023. Speakers will receive complimentary conference registration to attend the day of their speaking event or a 50% discount on full registration.

Abstract and speaker information submission dates:

  • March 13, 2023 – Call for abstracts open
  • May 1, 2023 – Call for abstracts close
  • June 7, 2023 – Approved speakers/panelists to be notified
  • August 18, 2023 – Deadline for speakers to submit final PowerPoint presentation, high resolution headshot, and biography

September 5-7, 2023 – Building Innovation Conference at the Washington Hilton, Washington, DC

NIBS is committed to cultivating and preserving a culture of inclusion and connectedness. We strongly believe in an environment built on respect and dignity. We believe that diversity, equity and inclusion are critical to the strength of the built environment and building industry as a whole. Therefore, NIBS encourages all submissions to reflect these same values.