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WELCOME


Welcome from the Congress President 2011

The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical
Immunology (EAACI) and the Turkish National Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology cordially invite you to the 30th Annual Congress of EAACI, which will take place in Istanbul on June 11 - 15, 2011.

Istanbul has maintained a distinguished position among the metropolis of the world with its unique geographical location and a cultural heritage of thousands of years. The french poet Alphonse de Lamartine once said “If one had a single glance to give the world, one should gaze on Istanbul”.

Istanbul has been the capital of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires through the centuries, and is the European Capital of Culture in 2010. As the travel writer Jan Morris said “If culture is to mean the whole range of human experience and achievement, then nowhere is better qualified to be the Cultural Capital of Europe than Istanbul. It is his style, his history, his lively intellectual life, his own shifting circumstances, that qualify the city for its status, in 2010, as cultural capital of us all”. In 2011, we will have the unique opportunity to build on top of this cultural festivity and make Istanbul the capital of the World of Allergy for 4 days. That is why the theme of our Congress is “Bridging Science and Culture”. With this theme, we mean bridging past and present, bridging Asia and Europe, bridging and embracing all religions and all cultures, and finally bringing them all to a common language, the language of science.

The Scientific Committee, initially under the leadership of J. Christian Virchow and then Lars K. Poulsen, has worked hard to bring up a complete scientific programme covering basic/clinical aspects and academical/practical approaches, much of which is based on proposals by members, interest groups and sections. We have also prepared a one-day programme for general practitioners/family physicians and nurses that include practical issues.

The Congress will be held at the brand new Istanbul Congress Center located in the heart of the city.
The center is accessible by a variety of ground transport vehicles and is surrounded by a number of high quality hotels which places it in a very convenient position for organising big events. It offers more than 10000 square meters of exhibition space.

We have prepared a variety of social events and tours for you. In the Opening Ceremony, we will have an “Anatolian Fire” show followed by orchestra and music to bring up the “European Fire” inside the delegates. Among the social tours, “Istanbul by dawn” gives one an excellent view of the modern and ancient city without the hassle of daily life and traffic. Istanbul is not all about history. There is a lot of modern art which you can enjoy during a full day of modern art tour. During the time of our Congress the “39th Istanbul Music Festival” will take place. This is a world famous, prestigious festival hosting top performances. For those of you who are more interested in nature, a Bosphorus tour will show you both continents just by the turn of your head.
In 2011, our aim is to organise the biggest EAACI event ever. We are expecting delegates not only from Europe but also from the Americas, the Middle East, the Russian Republics, North Africa, Asia and the Asian Pacific Region. We would like to create the setting for science and culture to meet in this wonderful city.

I will finish with the famous Turkish poet Orhan Veli’s Istanbul:
“I am listening to Istanbul, intent, my eyes closed.
The Grand Bazaar's serene and cool,
an uproar at the hub of the Market,
mosque yards are full of pigeons.
While hammers bang and clang at the docks
spring winds bear the smell of sweat;
I am listening to Istanbul, intent, my eyes closed”

We invite you to come and listen to Istanbul.
We promise you great science within the exotic
yet modern surroundings of an ancient city!


Ömer Kalayci
Congress President



  Dear Friends and Colleagues,

On behalf of the EAACI, I am very happy to welcome you to Istanbul and the first EAACI Congress ever organised in Turkey! A congress that will be inspiration to us all.

Our Congress is continuously developing to maintain the position as the world’s strongest Congress within the field of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, and for the Istanbul Congress we are anticipating further growth beyond the record meetings in Barcelona and London 2008 and 2010! The 2011 Congress President, Professor Ömer Kalayci, has together with his Local Organising Committee, the Turkish Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and the EAACI Scientific Programme Committee, developed an outstanding scientific programme. Together with the oral abstract sessions and poster presentations we are expecting more than 120 sessions!

As usual, every EAACI member has been invited to propose sessions and speakers. The different sections and interest groups of EAACI have then processed these suggestions, and brought a large number of proposals to the Scientific Programme Committee, lead by Lars K. Poulsen. In this way, all EAACI members influence the content of the Congress, which probably is one explanation for the continuously increased popularity of this event. It is certainly a great joy to observe the professionalism, interaction and commitment of those who are putting the different pieces of any EAACI Congress together.

Why are we going to congresses such as the EAACI Congress? My answer is that we do it for “inspiration”. Regardless of whether we are clinicians, clinical scientists, basic scientists or other professionals in the field, we all need to be inspired. The Congress provides opportunities of networking, discussing science, and to develop collaborative efforts beyond the borders of our clinics, laboratories and countries, and is thus a fantastic platform for inspiration. Inspiration we need to deliver better the rest of the year in our professional lives.

The EAACI Congresses are continuously growing – in numbers of submitted and accepted abstracts, as well as attending delegates from all over the world. We have received very positive feedback for the previous congresses, but EAACI is also working hard to further improve the event. I am convinced that the Istanbul EAACI Congress will be the most important platform for scientific and social interaction and inspiration – as well as the largest allergy event ever organised.

I very much look forward to seeing you in Istanbul in June 2011.

With my very best regards


Jan Lötvall
EAACI President