Logo by Allie Packard
VisComm brings together practitioners and researchers from a wide range of disciplines to address pressing questions about how data visualization is evolving in our everyday lives. We particularly encourage participation from journalists, designers, health communicators, policy advocates, educators, and others who may not typically attend IEEE VIS but who play a vital role in shaping how data reaches the public.
This year, the VisComm workshop places particular emphasis on visualization for public data dissemination. We are especially interested in how visualizations are used in public service announcements (PSAs), educational exhibits, museum-like installations, physical visualizations, and other non-traditional print or digital formats. These approaches aim not only to inform, but also to raise awareness, provoke reflection, and spark behavior change. We welcome discussions about the design, deployment, and impact of such visualizations in real-world contexts.
Another key focus of the workshop is visualization literacy: how people interpret, trust, and act on visual information. As visualizations become increasingly embedded in civic, health, and environmental communication, it is essential to understand the diverse audiences they serve and how to design for accessibility and comprehension.
The workshop will be held at the Austria Center Vienna, Bruno-Kreisky-Platz 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria, date and time TBD.
VisComm invites contributions that explore how data visualization can effectively communicate to broad public audiences across a variety of contexts and formats. This year, we especially welcome work related to public data dissemination, including PSAs, museum exhibits, physical visualizations, and other non-traditional or informal media. We seek submissions addressing (but not limited to) the following topics:
We encourage submissions from researchers, designers, journalists, health communicators, educators, museum professionals, and others who use visualization to inform or inspire broad audiences.
VisComm has four submission tracks: short papers (research or position), visual case studies, and late-breaking works in progress. Selection criteria are clarity, relevance to the workshop, innovation, and quality of questions for attendees.
We invite submission of research papers between 2 and 6 pages long, including references, with length matching content. Research papers will be reviewed based on how well claims are supported by evidence. Submissions are expected to include all materials and data needed to replicate and reproduce any figures, analyses, and methods. If anything cannot be publicly shared (e.g., for data privacy concerns), state the reason in the paper.
We invite submission of position papers between 2 and 6 pages long, including references, with length matching content. Position papers are problem discussions or statements describing the author's relevant experience and ideas with regards to methods and methodologies for visualization research, and in particular the focus topic of the workshop. Position papers will be selected according to their importance and relevance for the workshop topics and how well they will fit the planned discussions.
We invite practitioners to submit a one-page write-up together with a link to an online piece or a short video. The write-up should explain what you made, why you made it, outcome/responses (both expected and unexpected), etc. The goal is to show the work of journalists, designers, people working for governments or non-profits, etc., who use data to inform and communicate.
The purpose of this category is to present work in progress and receive feedback from attendees.
For research that is in progress, this session will provide a supportive atmosphere for helpful feedback and fresh perspectives on your aims and/or methods. Recommended structure for your one-page submission is: introduction, preliminary methods, preliminary findings (if applicable), and questions for attendees.
For practitioners, this is an opportunity to present contributions that showcase innovative visualizations or provide provocations for new ideas to emerge. Your one-page brief should include project background, design objectives, methods or design process, links to visualization design alternatives, preliminary findings (if available), and questions for attendees.
Your paper, abstract or write-up should take the form of a PDF file, formatted in the VGTC conference style, which has both LaTeX and MS Word templates. However, please replace the statement about IEEE copyright and reprints with the following text: "This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License."
All submissions should contain full author names and affiliations. If applicable, a short video (up to 5 min. in length) may also be submitted. Submissions will be juried by the organizers. At least one author of each accepted submission must register for the conference (even if only for the workshop). Registration information is available on the IEEE VIS website.
All accepted submissions will be posted on the workshop website.
We expect authors of accepted submissions to post their documents on the Open Science Framework's preprint archive, using the instructions we send. Authors are welcome to post an initial version of their submission earlier. Our OSF workshop papers are not considered archival by IEEE, and may be published elsewhere at a later date. However, we understand that authors from non-engineering disciplines may have different prior publication standards; please contact the chairs if you must publish your accepted submission differently.
Presenting authors can make use of a reduced workshop-only registration fee at IEEE VIS. Additionally, the IEEE VIS Inclusivity & Diversity Scholarship Committee provides complimentary conference registration based on need.
deadlines occur at 11:59 PM in the last timezone on Earth.
At VisComm, we want to provide avenues for collaboration and networking. We are creating a directory of people willing to be contacted about their areas of expertise. The directory will be unveiled during VIS week and thereafter will be available to anyone who signs up for the VisComm email list. Follow this link to add your entry to the directory
The quickest way to contact VisComm's organizers is via their shared email, viscomm_chairs@googlegroups.com
Alvitta Ottley, Washington University in St. Louis
Jonathan Schwabish, Urban Institute
Paul Parsons, Purdue University
Ali Baigelenov, Purdue University
Md Dilshadur Rahman, University of Utah
Prakash Shukla, Purdue University
Saugat Pandey, Washington University in St. Louis
2023 schedule, papers and posters
2022 schedule, papers and posters
2021 schedule, papers and posters
2020 schedule, papers and posters
2019 schedule, papers and posters
2018 schedule, papers and posters