Selection of Venue

GUIDELINES FOR THE SELECTION OF A WORLD CONFERENCE VENUE

The General Assembly on the advice of the Council is responsible for the selection of the location of the conferences. To assist them in this procedure, societies that wish to be considered should forward a formal letter of invitation to the Secretary General (address above) together with the supporting documents at least three (3) months before the next meeting of the General Assembly (November 2008).

The supporting documents should include the following:

	Evidence of adequate facilities to accommodate the housing, administrative and program needs of the congress. It is recommended that some low-cost accommodation be available, to permit the attendance of young scientists and those with very limited budgets.
	Documentation of support by government and national scientific organisations of the country offering the invitation.
	Assurance regarding free entry to all delegates irrespective of country of origin.

The Secretary General will forward all the invitations to the Council who at a meeting prior to the General Assembly meeting will prepare a recommendation regarding the venue of the next world conference for submission to the General Assembly.

At the General Assembly meeting the procedure for site selection will be held in two (2) parts, separated by a period of informal discussion. In the first part a representative from each society who has submitted a formal invitation will make a brief presentation. Following this the meeting will be open for general discussion. The President will announce the recommendation of the Council, and invite a general discussion on the recommendation. The discussion will then close.

A period of 48 hours will be allowed for each society representative of countries that have submitted a formal invitation and that wish to mount a display, distribute materials and / or inform delegates about the venue and about their plans for the conference, if selected. The “promotional” activities will be limited to a designated area approved by the General Assembly during the first part.

A Teller Committee consisting of two (2) members will be nominated by the General Assembly. A written ballot will be taken: each General Assembly member representing a society in good standing and all office bearers (Council) except the President will have one vote. The Tellers will count the ballots. The President shall not vote, except in the case of a tied vote. The invitation receiving the majority vote will be accepted.

The potential host will organise a workshop with broad (intercontinental) representation to design the scientific program three (3) years ahead of the conference dated.