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From the WGA Executive Office
Kuldev Singh, MD MPH, Executive Vice President, World Glaucoma Association
I recently joined the Program Committee co-chairs for the upcoming World Glaucoma Congress, to be held in Paris from June 29th through July 2nd 2011, for a site visit. We were also met by staff from the WGA as well as OIC, the meeting organizers, during our visit to the Palais des Congrès de Paris, the convention center which will host the Congress. This meeting venue perfectly fits our needs for organizing what promises to be the largest and most comprehensive glaucoma meeting to date. The center's location, adjacent to the largest park in Paris and a ten-minute walk from the Arc de Triomphe, is hard to beat. There are hotels of all caliber within walking distance from the convention center. The Program Committee is in the process of putting together an exciting and innovative meeting. We will continue the tradition of national and regional glaucoma society meetings on Wednesday morning as before. As in Boston, there will be an emphasis on cataract and glaucoma surgery on Saturday morning. One new feature of this Congress will be an all-day Friday session dedicated to innovation and advances in glaucoma surgery, to be held in one of the main amphitheatres.
During my visit to Paris, I had the privilege of meeting with leaders of the French Glaucoma Society, who showed great enthusiasm for co-hosting the Congress with the European Glaucoma Society. While the meeting will primarily be in English with available simultaneous translation for French speaking attendees, there will be sessions and courses given in French with English translation in certain rooms. Soon after the trip to Paris, the WGC Organizing Committee approved the following individuals to comprise the Local Organizing Committee for the Congress: Christophe Baudouin, Alain Bron, Philippe Denis, Yves Lachkar, Jean-Philippe Nordmann, Jean-Paul Renard, Jean-Francois Rouland, Tarek Shaarawy, Eric Sellem (cochair), Carlo Traverso (co-chair) and Francoise Valtot. I have been in contact with several of these individuals regarding possible venues for our Friday evening dinner event and, not surprisingly, there are many outstanding opportunities. When it comes to the combination of beautiful locations matched with exquisite cuisine, Paris has no equal.
There was a time when Paris could be an intimidating city to the outsider. That era has long passed. I found the city's inhabitants to be extremely friendly despite my lack of comprehension of their native language. The number of English speakers in Paris appears to have increased dramatically over the past decade. The Paris metro was most impressive. My French colleagues pointed out that you are never more than 500 meters away from a metro stop in Paris. The numerous stations combined with frequent trains and a safe environment make the Paris metro arguably the best public transpor ta tion system in any large metropolitan area of the world.Paris is indeed the ideal location for this upcoming Congress. As I metioned in a prior newsletter, the opportunity to come to Paris for such a meeting was only made possible by the recent economic downturn which allowed us to secure the venue at a reasonable price. Every effort will also be made to get the best possible hotel rates for meeting attendees. I encourage you to go to the WGA website at www.worldglaucoma.org if you wish to learn more about this Congress. Abstract submission opens and closes on September 15, 2010 and January 15, 2011 respectively. Congress and hotel registration opens on November 1, 2010. We look very much to seeing you in Paris next year.
Kuldev Singh, MD, MPH Executive Vice President