[SDI-Africa] GDEST 2008 conference (deadline 15 December 2007)

[Kate Lance]

-- via Paul Bartel, Office of the Science and Technology Adviser, U. S. Department of State

Call for expressions of interest Conference on Geospatial Sciences for Sustainable Development in Africa
Global Dialogue on Emerging Science and Technology (GDEST) 2008  -- deadline 15 December 2007
17-19 March 2008 
Cape Town, South Africa 

The GDEST 2008 Conference on Geospatial Sciences for Sustainable Development in Africa will be held in Cape Town, South Africa from March 17 to 19, 2008.  The aim of the Global Dialogues on Emerging Science and Technology is to increase partnerships and networking among scientists and experts in the United States and across other world regions by building upon and reinforcing existing networks among international partner scientists and governments.  The conference will highlight challenges, opportunities, and potential steps toward the effective use of geospatial science for sustainable development in Africa.
Research papers and posters will be considered for presentation by specialists in the field of geospatial sciences.  All participants selected (based on the attached application) will be reimbursed for their travel, lodging, and meals associated with the GDEST Africa Conference.  All participants will be expected to attend all three days of the conference.
The Conference will address three broad conference themes, listed below.  Workshops on various conference sub-themes will also be offered as part of conference participation.  The conference papers and proceedings are planned to be published following the meeting.
Conference Themes: 
(1) Observing Africa, including examining trends and opportunities in monitoring the environment and sustainability issues; 
(2) Analysis of regional challenges to Africa, how decisions and policies have been directly influenced by modeling, analysis, and visualization tools; and 
(3) The African data stream, constraints and approaches for getting valid data in a timely and affordable manner in a useful format, and how it can be shared among collaborators. 
What is GDEST?
The U.S. Department of State, under the leadership of the Office of the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary, has conducted a series of bi- and multilateral visits and conferences that have examined advanced and advancing science and technology in the various host country or countries.  This initiative, called the Global Dialogues on Emerging Science and Technology (GDEST), has focused on specific areas of emerging interest in different regions of the world.  The GDEST activities are intended to contribute to global security, to address human aspects of sustainability, and to advance opportunities for shared knowledge on emerging science and technology (S&T).  They facilitate interactions between leading U.S. scientists and engineers and their foreign peers, with a special emphasis on involving young investigators. 
Expressions of Interest
Scientists, advanced graduate students, and technical experts in geography, remote sensing, and applied geospatial sciences who wish to attend the GDEST 2008 conference are encouraged to contact the organizing committee by December 15, 2007.  Those whose abstract proposals are accepted for presentation will receive funding support for travel and lodging at the conference, with an effort to balance the participation among scholars, students, and practitioners.  
Papers and posters may be presented at the conference based on the themes defined previously, with priority given to research papers.  Paper presenters are also encouraged to submit posters for exhibition.  There will be limited funds for those who propose to submit only a poster, with priority given to graduate students.  Interested individuals are encouraged to contact the organizing committee, fill out the attached form, and provide an abstract.  Graduate students must also provide two (2) letters of reference from their home institution.  If your proposed paper or poster is accepted, you will be notified no later than December 30, 2007, with details to follow on paper or poster style, travel arrangements, etc.  Please note that English will be the operating language of the conference.  
Point of Contact:
Paul Bartel
Phone: +1-202-203-7787
Fax:  +1-202-203-7790
bartelpp at state.gov
U.S. Department of State
SA-44, Room 602
301 4th Street, SW
Washington, DC 20547
 
Expression of Interest for participating in GDEST 2008
1.  Name: First (given) _______________ Last (surname)________________
2.  Affiliation: __________________________________________________
   Academic/Research ____ Government ___ NGO ____ Private Sector ___Student ____
3.  Your Contact Information:
Post Office Box: ______________________
Street:  __________________________________
 __________________________________
City: __________________________________
Code: ____________
State, Province, or District: __________________
Country: _____________________________
Telephone number, including country and area codes: __________________________
E-mail Address: ___________________________________
4.  Alternate means of contact:  ____________________________________________
5.  Name of nearest Airport: ______________ City _________________
6. Are you requesting travel and housing funding in order to present your paper?  Yes___ No ___;
7. If you answered No to item 6, are you interested in the conference without presenting a paper?  Yes ____ No ____
8. If you answered Yes to item 6, indicate whether you wish to present a paper, poster, or both:  Paper ___ Poster ___ Both ___
If accepted, you must provide a final draft of your paper or poster by March 10, 2008.  
Members of the private sector may exhibit posters.  There will be no charge to private sector representatives to participate in the conference, but they will be required to cover any costs of travel, lodging and per diem from their own funds.
 
Brief biographical sketch (300 words), including areas of expertise, recent publications and current areas of research or technical involvement:


Abstract of Paper or Poster (250 words):


NOTE:  If you are a student, please provide two letters of reference from your home institution via e-mail to Paul Bartel (Bartelpp at state.gov).

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.gsdi.org/pipermail/sdi-africa/attachments/20071107/aff1dd58/attachment.html