5th International Barcode of Life Conference

So far you have probably heard only rumors and saw a small announcement but now it is official. After London, Taipeh, Mexico City, and Adelaide, Kunming will be hosting the Fifth International Barcode of Life Conference.

Organizers are the Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Kunming Institute of Zoology, CAS. The conference is co-hosted by iBOL and the iBOL China National Committee. The conference will be from 27-31. October 2013.

DNA barcoding has come a long way since December 2011 when we met in Adelaide for the Fourth International Barcode of Life Conference. The 2013 conference will provide an opportunity for delegates from around the globe to showcase and discuss scientific advancements in DNA barcoding and the wide-ranging socio-economic applications developed since the Adelaide Conference, and to review the progress in this field over the past decade. The Kunming conference will bring barcode researchers together to exchange ideas and plan new activities, and to learn about barcoding activities in China and the region. The theme of the conference is “Global Change and the Barcode of Life: Opportunities and Challenges”. The conference will be held at the Lian Yun Hotel near Green Lake with a stunning view of Kunming. There will be two days of pre-conference workshops, including full-day short courses that will introduce participants to the lab protocols of DNA barcoding and to the management and analysis of barcode data. The week of events will culminate in a barcoding event for the public in the Kunming Botanic Garden of KIB.

So this time the DNA Barcoding world meets in the "City of Eternal Spring" and the "Capital of Flowers". Kunming's history dates back more than 2000 years. Once a major textile distribution center on the Southern Silk Road it is now the fourth largest city in Western China and the political, economic, and cultural center of the Yunnan province.

Registration and abstract submission will start soon. A call for papers, symposium and workshop proposals will come out in a few days. I don't know what the venue capacity is but the organizers stress that it will be limited, so better register sooner than later.

I am a member of the scientific program committee and will post any news and important updates as soon as I learn about them.