[agents] Call for bids EUMAS'22

[D. Grossi]

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Call for Bids to Host EUMAS’22
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We are currently soliciting bids to host the 19th European Conference on Multiagent Systems (EUMAS) in 2022. We will consider bids from all European regions. Bids should be made by individuals or small groups, with the backing of a host institution (typically a university or research center). Please note that we seek bids from volunteers from the scientific community. All correspondence regarding bids should be directed to the EURAMAS board member serving as liaison for EUMAS, Davide Grossi (d.grossiXrug.nl, X=@). 
Bids should be submitted to the above contact person by June 1st 2021.

Background The 19th European Conference on Multi-Agent Systems (EUMAS 2022) will follow the tradition of previous editions (Oxford 2003, Barcelona 2004, Brussels 2005, Lisbon 2006, Hammamet 2007, Bath 2008, Agia Napa 2009, Paris 2010, Maastricht 2011, Dublin 2012, Toulouse 2013, Prague 2014, Athens 2015, Valencia 2016, Evry 2017, Bergen 2018, Thessaloniki 2020, Online 2021), and aims to encourage and support activity in the research and development of multi-agent systems, in academic and industrial efforts.
EUMAS is primarily intended as a European forum for anybody interested in the theory and practice of autonomous agents and multi-agent systems to meet, present challenges, preliminary and mature research results. The conferences include a variety of activities, such as plenary keynote talks, parallel sessions, poster sessions, and social events. Tutorials or specialized meetings in forms of workshops may also be planned.

EUMAS is a designated event of the European Association of Multi-Agent Systems (EURAMAS) whose Board of Directors is elected by the EUMAS research community, membership in which is defined on the basis of attendance at EUMAS conferences. The EURAMAS website (http://www.euramas.org <http://www.euramas.org/>) provides links to the past conferences. The Board recognises that the costs of attending conferences has risen significantly over the years and is actively working on helping to reverse this trend. We therefore particularly encourage hosts with access to reasonably priced venues and experience in obtaining outside sponsorship to submit a bid. The Board selects conference hosting bids, and---in cooperation with local organisers---nominates and selects program chairs.  Co-location with other conferences is an option to be considered, but EUMAS participants should register in EUMAS and get the formal proceedings of the conference.

Constraints on Timing and Size Regarding timing, the Board suggests that EUMAS is planned so as to attract submissions a couple of weeks after the AAMAS notification date. Special care needs to be taken not to conflict with other national or international conferences attended by the members of the community, while conflicts to paper submission deadlines must be avoided as well. Based on past experience and trends, EUMAS is normally attended by around 100 people, but the Board’s aim is to expand the EUMAS audience further. Plenary sessions need to be scheduled in a hall of sufficient size. Hosts can lower expenses by using university facilities for the conference programs. This is strongly encouraged whenever possible.

Bid Content and Purpose Bids are geared towards determination of responsibility for local arrangements and designation of a Local Arrangements Chair. Bids will be reviewed by the EURAMAS Board. A bid should consist of a short statement explaining whether you meet the criteria listed below and to what extent.  A bid should then include estimates of the following expenses (in Euros):

charges for the conference venue
charges for food and drinks (coffee, lunches, reception, banquet)
typical hotel and student housing costs
train fares/airfares from a few main European cities
Each bid should identify the proposed team of organisers, and include full contact details. The bid should be led by a member of the scientific community (i.e., an active researcher in the field served by EUMAS), who should remain available to respond to clarification requests, which often come up during review. Finally, while the Board hopes that in-person events will be possible again in the summer of 2022, the Board would like to ask the prospective organizers to indicate in the bid whether they would be able and willing to host the conference also as an online event and as a hybrid event.  The bid document submitted should not exceed 3 pages.

Criteria for Assessing EUMAS Bids The following criteria will be used for evaluation:
Affordability:
Will it be possible to contain the costs associated with the organization of the conference so as to be able to offer affordable registration fees to participants? Fees will be determined together with the EURAMAS Board, but bidders may wish to indicate possible measures for containing costs already at the proposal stage. Please include an estimate of regular and student registration fees (if possible, for both an in-person and an online event).
Sponsorship:
	EUMAS organizers are expected to attract financial support through sponsorship and the
bid should provide evidence on specific national and international sources of sponsorship.
Site Location:
Attractiveness to conference attendees (i.e., nearby attractions, tours, restaurants). Will people *want* to attend?
Transportation:
Location with respect to major airline/train routes and local transportation (trains, buses, automobiles). It is important that the venue be conveniently reachable for attendees. 
Dates:
Relation to possibly conflicting special or local holidays; to conflicting or synergistic conventions or special events at the same time or immediately before or after the conference.
Climate and Season:
Particularly if these factors affect (1) the availability of rooms and rate structure (and provide some negotiating edge with the hotels); and (2) attendance by the local community.
Facilities:
Quantity, quality, availability of meeting rooms, meeting support services, and exhibition hall. This factor is linked to the choice of accommodation, as it may be desirable to co-locate meeting facilities and accommodation. Please include preliminary information regarding any space and equipment rental fees that may be incurred by the conference.
Accommodation:
Accommodation options should range from business hotels to student housing. Please include ballpark figures for hotel room rates.
Experience:
Ability of the local organizers in organizing the event.
Supporting Scientific Community:
The presence of regional and local research communities to support the conference and which will benefit from its occurrence. It may be worth exploiting synergies by co-locating with related events.
Backing of Host Institution:
Does the organisers' institution support the conference? Host institutions sometimes can provide free or low-cost facilities for the conference. They can loan equipment such as projectors and wireless routers. They can provide access to their housing facilities. The use of institutional facilities or equipment might constrain the schedule, but that might be a worthwhile trade-off.
Supporting Local Industry:
Is there local or national industry that may be willing to support the conference in some way? 
Volunteer Labor:
Availability of an active local group willing to help out before, during, and after the conference.
Special Needs Arrangements:
Ability to accommodate various special needs of participants, including dietary restrictions (e.g., Kosher, Halal, vegetarian, vegan) and physical disabilities (e.g., wheelchair access, facilities for individuals with hearing/visual impairments).

















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