ARVO Annual Meeting - Social Events

ARVO has organised two formal social events this year, featuring fantastic guest speakers, food and drink, networking opportunities and also the chance to fundraise for the ARVO Foundation. The Foundation sponsors many of the MIT initiatives, including research and travel grants as well as fellowships and leadership development for underrepresented minorities and developing researchers. The events require advance ticket purchase and can be bought online:

ARVO Foundation Gala ― Saturday, April 30 | 6pm MT ($100 members, $50 MITs): The Foundation Gala brings together members and friends of ARVO to honour individuals and organisations who have shown dedication to the ARVO Foundation and its mission. Honorees are nominated and selected by the ARVO Foundation Board of Governors.

The Gala is also a great networking opportunity. Many of those attending will be among the most prominent and senior members of the eye and vision research community. It’s definitely worth attending as a first timer to the Meeting. It is an inspiring evening where you can hear about and meet individuals and organisations who have committed themselves to ARVO and made a significant impact on the vision research community. Could be you one day!

This year's honorees are Susan M. Epstein, Ingrid Kreissig, Paul Sternberg, Jr., and Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc. More details can be found here: 2022 ARVO Foundation Honorees

WEAVR Event ― Tuesday, May 3 | 6pm MT ($50 members, $25 MITs): The Women in Eye and Vision Research (WEAVR) is an initiative of the ARVO Foundation to further develop and strengthen women who are pursuing careers in the visual sciences. WEAVR supports and promotes networking, career development, and access to research opportunities for female vision scientists. Every year at the Annual Meeting they host a social event with a featured speaker. All are very welcome to attend! 

This year, Kimberly Muller, Executive Director of CU Innovations from the University of Colorado and former Deputy Director of the Yale Entrepreneurial Institute (YEI), will share her pearls of wisdom in what promises to be an event highlight. Her current business development responsibilities include investing, company creation, innovation management, forming key strategic industry partnerships, and licensing and establishing large-scale industry collaboration in areas such as AI and drug development. 

Denver is also famous for its food and drink culture, so plan ahead to make the most of it while you’re here!