For OCB activity participant support, our primary aim is to spread limited funds as fairly as possible.

We also aim to conduct as many of our in-person activities as possible in a hybrid format to broaden participation.

To sustain OCB support for community activities in 2026 and beyond, there will be registration fees for all OCB activities going forward, and fees will apply to all participants, including invited speakers, organizers, and SSC members. We will aim to keep them as low as possible relative to other meetings.

Stretching the budget to encourage greater participation
We will provide partial stipends for invited speakers, organizers, and others who demonstrate need, including early career members of our community. For organizers and speakers, we will assess their point of origin and the local lodging prices and offer a partial stipend to cover a good portion of (but not all/open-ended) their costs. For others, we will offer smaller partial stipends (based on point of origin) to help offset participants’ attendance costs.

Lodging no longer paid for (NSF determination)
For hotels: We will negotiate a room block with an expiration date by which participants must reserve their own rooms. After that date, the rooms in the block are released to the public and you are on your own to find lodging. All participants will make and pay for their own travel and lodging reservations. OCB will reimburse participants for the amount of their assigned stipend after the workshop/activity. 

Due to changes in our funding we now must charge registration fees for participation in the events we support. We aim to keep the fees low compared to large conferences, and have a tiered structure of regular, early career, and online participant amounts. If the fee is a barrier to attending a particular workshop we welcome you to contact us.