Dear Distinguished Fellows of the Academy,
We are writing to today to confirm some of the plans for meeting together at the IUFoST World Congress in Rimini and also to ask for your involvement in other key areas of IUFoST and IAFoST activity.
1.) This first request is addressed to Fellows already inducted into the Academy. As you know, Fellows have the additional responsibility, and honour, of deciding if the IUFoST Distinguished Lecturer should be admitted into the Academy. The IAFoST Statutes allow for Fellows to admit the Distinguished Lecturer into the Academy but they must make this decision themselves at each world congress. Therefore in that regard, we are asking Fellows to confirm that they wish Dr. Steve Wearne, Chair of the Codex Alimentarius Commission to be admitted into the Academy in 2024, at these induction ceremonies. For further background information about Dr. Wearne, please see https://iufost.org/news-brief-march-2024 for his profile. Please reply to secretariat@iufost.org before 7 September if you do not concur with his admittance.
2.) Next, for those of you who will be joining us in Rimini, if you have not yet indicated your interest in attending the Academy Dinner, this is the last week in which to do so. This should be indicated by completing this form. https://iufost.org/webform/iafost-and-world-congress-registration. Invoices for the dinner are being sent again this week. If you have not received your invoice by 30 August, please contact the IUFoST Secretariat. It is not possible to pay onsite at the congress.
3.) For those of you registered for the congress, we would like to make you aware of several special activities during the congress time period:
- We would like to welcome you informally and introduce you to others in IAFoST and IUFoST between 5 and 6 before the opening reception begins on Sunday, September 8. We plan to gather in the Tempio 1 Room at the Convention Centre for this purpose. Hope to see you there!
- We invite you (more details below) to join one or more of the working groups during the congress period focussed on strategies and action plan for IAFoST and IUFoST going forward.
- On Wednesday, September 11th, the Academy Plenaries of the Lifetime Achievement Award Winner and Distinguished Lecturer take place alongside the Fellows 2024 Induction Ceremony from 10 – 11.30. All Fellows present at the congress are asked to seat themselves in the designated reserved area of the Auditorium (front middle section) for this special occasion. There will be group photos taken at the end of this special session. Inductees will receive additional instruction on seating and other arrangements. However, you can be sure you will be in the front row.
- In the Auditorium from 1 – 2.30 p.m also on Wednesday is the IAFoST organised scientific session on Nutritious and Safe Food For all (8 billion mouths) through novel food sources, plant-based alternatives, new applications and reduction of food loss and waste.
We hope that many of you will join all the excited finalists for the AWARDS presentations to cheer them on beginning on Thursday at noon and then attend the General Assembly as observers immediately following the congress closing. You do need to register for the GA if you have not already done so (https://iufost.org/webform/iafost-and-world-congress-registration) as a light lunch will be served to those attending.
4.) For all Fellows, we would like to provide you with this opportunity to review the IUFoST Draft Strategies and Work Plan for the next five years. We want your input and even more importantly we seek your active involvement in implementing this Work Plan. We ask that you respond with initial replies to this Q&A that accompanies the Draft Work Plan once you have had a chance to review the document. The Q&A responses will be reviewed and discussed during the congress week and at the IUFoST General Assembly. Further there will be breakout groups during the congress for those of you present, to discuss and debate strategies in specific focus areas of the IUFoST and IAFoST mandates.
We look forward to hearing from you and to seeing many of you soon in Rimini.
Charles
Dr. Charles Aworh, President IAFoST
on behalf of the AEC
Strategies and Work Plan Draft document attachment here.
Guidelines for Strategic and Action plan of IUFoST Document – For Response from IAFoST Fellows here.
