Donald's Email to members and friends about TDWG 2009

"In recent years TDWG conferences have moved away from their earlier format, with significant emphasis on working group meetings, to become more of a reporting conference on the activities of TDWG-related projects. This has had some benefits, but has also in some ways weakened the organisation by reducing our focus on the core activity of developing and promoting standards. The vitality of our working groups in large measure depends on the conference providing a focus for their activity.

For this reason, TDWG 2009 will be structured differently. Monday and Friday of the conference have been reserved for plenary sessions, but for the rest of the conference we plan to run three parallel (and, I hope, intersecting) streams of activities. One of these will be on the use of biodiversity informatics to support agriculture and crop diversity. Another stream will be for TDWG to initiate activity in response to the roadmap developed at e-Biosphere 2009. The third stream is still be be selected. Each stream will include a range of activities (e.g. symposia, seminars, task group sessions, hackathons) planned to address key issues and to result in real deliverables to progress biodiversity informatics in the area.

We are establishing a Programme Committee to plan the conference in detail and will keep you informed of progress."

TDWG 2009 Programme Committee

• Annie Simpson (asimpson@usgsREMOVE-THIS.gov)
• Patricia Mergen (patricia.mergen@africamuseumREMOVE-THIS.be)
• Joel Sachs (jsachs@cseeREMOVE-THIS.umbc.edu)
• Elizabeth Arnaud (e.arnaud@cgiarREMOVE-THIS.org)?
• Adrian Rissone (A.Rissone@nhmREMOVE-THIS.ac.uk)
• Charles Kahindo (ckahindo@yahooREMOVE-THIS.com)
• Helmut Knuepffer (knupffer@ipk-gaterslebenREMOVE-THIS.de)

-- LeeBelbin - 12 Mar 2009