Chile will host the largest international scientific meeting on Harmful Algal Blooms.
October 8th, 2024The organization of the next International Conference on Harmful Algae (ICHA) is progressing by leaps and bounds. This will be held for the first time in our country, this being its twenty-first version. In the last 40 years, these conferences have been held in very diverse countries, and the most recent ones were held in Japan (Hiroshima, 2023), Mexico (La Paz, 2021), France (Nantes, 2018), Brazil (Florianópolis, 2016), New Zealand (Wellington, 2014), among others. The ICHA is organized by more than 60 national scientists from various institutions, headed by the Institute for Fisheries Development (IFOP), and with the important collaboration of the University of Magallanes (UMAG), University of Los Lagos (ULA), San Sebastian University (USS), University of Concepción (UDEC), University of Chile (UCHILE), Catholic University of the North (UCN), University of Atacama (UA), Andean Plankton, Salmon Technological Institute (INTESAL), National Oceanographic Committee (CONA), National Fisheries Service (SERNAPESCA), Undersecretary of Fisheries and Aquaculture (SUBPESCA) and Undersecretary of Public Health (SSP).
Host City
The Conference will be held in Punta Arenas, capital of the Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica region, being the southernmost area of Chilean Patagonia. This city is located on the northern coast of the Strait of Magellan, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The region is recognized worldwide as a natural laboratory, with fjords, channels, islands, glaciers, mountains, forests, steppes and unique wildlife, and also as a relevant sector for Harmful Algal Blooms (HAB) events, which highlights its scientific and historical significance.
About the Conference
ICHA is the main world conference on these events, and is an initiative of the International Scientific Society on Harmful Algae (ISSHA). The main objective of this conference is to provide a forum to learn about the degree of progress in scientific and technological knowledge on HABs (from molecular biology to the use of satellite images), which will be presented to an estimated international scientific audience of 500 people, as well as decision makers from both the public and private sectors.
For these purposes, a Local Organizing Committee will be established in December 2023, led by Dr. Leonardo Guzmán (IFOP), and is made up of 5 subcommittees, which are in charge of planning and organizing ICHA 2025 (Internal Subcommittee, Dr. Máximo Frangópulos; Finance Subcommittee, Rodrigo Leiva; Fundraising Subcommittee, Dr. Patricio Díaz; Scientific Subcommittee; Dr. Catharina Alves de Souza; Public Relations Subcommittee, Dr. © Pamela Carbonell).
Some important dates
The conference will be held from October 19 to 24, 2025, and the call for oral or panel papers will open on January 20, 2025. Registration and respective payments can be made from January 13, 2025.
More information
Social networks: @icha2025
e-Mail: info@icha2025.org
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