About 3,000 participants, including environmentalists, ecologists, engineers, researchers and administrators from about 50 countries will converge in Seoul for the VIII INTECOL(International Association for Ecology) International Congress of Ecology, which will take place from Aug. 11-18 at the COEX Convention Center.

The congress is expected to review recent advances in ecological science and discuss new ideas and valuable insights, and some symposia are open to the public for free in order to raise environmental awareness. The congress has been convening once every four years since 1974 and is jointly sponsored by the Ecology Society of Korea this year.

Under the main theme of "Ecology in a Changing World", more than 1,300 academic papers in various ecological areas will be presented by researchers, administrators, industrial managers and other ecology-related scientists. About 70 symposiums and thematic workshops are scheduled.

The convention covers various ecological issues such as climate change, environmental pollution, biodiversity, forest conservation, preservation of the wetlands and ecosystem within Demilitarized Zone(DMZ). Among the subjects, the significance of wetlands on Korea's west coast, China's desertification process and the Yellow Sandstorms and forest fires will be discussed in depth.

Some of the titles of these symposia are as follows: Biodiversity in Korea, Past, Present and Future(by Dr. In-kyu Lee, a professor), Forest Vision and CSO's Roles(by Kook-hyun Moon, President of Yuhan-Kimberly), Measuring Sustainability: Toward a Pluralist and Integrative Framework for Evaluating Anthropogenic Environmental Impacts(by Bryan Norton, a professor at Georgia Institute of Technology), A Plea for Small Reservoirs: Their Role in Nurturing Tomorrow's Conservationists(by Daniel Perlman, a professor at Brandeis University), Literature and Ecological Study(by Kyung-ri Park, a writer), etc.

In conjunction with the congress, an exhibition featuring ecology-related products and services will be held at the venue during the congress period, with about 100 international exhibitors participating. In addition, various social events and tour programs to experience Korea's unique culture and nature will be offered such as visiting to the DMZ, the Incheon Ceramics Village and Haegang Ceramics Museum, and Korean Folk Villages. For post-Congress excursions, three-day trips to Mt. Odaesan, Ganghwa Island and Mt.Seorak will be featured as well.

For more information, visit http://www.seoulintecol.org/