Oral and poster contributions for conferences: Some observations and recommendations

The recent 13th South American Symposium on Isotope Geology (SSAGI) in May 2024 in Buzios (Brazil) was an excellent conference, showcasing the current diversity and high standard of isotope geochemistry and geology at universities and research institutions across Latin America. Three days of oral and poster presentations provided a great forum for scientific and social exchange. This conference, however, also further supported observations made at earlier events that many oral and poster presentations by postgraduate students and docents alike suffer from a number of problems. There is ample scope for improvement, in the interest of more efficient information transfer and better exchange with colleagues. The main problem areas noted (e.g., overloading of powerpoint slides, and of posters, with diagrams and/or text; application of poor color, etc.) are discussed here, and suggestions are made how to avoid these issues and improve our scientific communication. •Both oral and poster presentations at geo-conferences are frequently not optimally prepared.•Major observations/problematics regarding style and efficiency of presentations are discussed.•Recommendations are made on how to alleviate these problematics in science communication.