11th Meeting of the International Pest Risk Research Group
Predictability and Uncertainty in Pest Risk Analysis
29th August -Â 1st September 2017
Ottawa, Canada
*** A heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended this year’s meeting and made it a success! ***
IPRRG 2017 participants (Ottawa, Canada)
We’d like to recognize the following award winners from the meeting:
Best presentation: Erica Kistner, USDA Midwest Climate Hub
Best poster: Amy Morey, University of Minnesota
Best student presentation: Jenny Liu, University of Guelph
In the next few weeks, we’ll provide access to presentations and other materials from IPRRG 2017. This page will be taken down at that point.
However, we’ll also begin to provide details so you can make plans to attend the IPRRG 2018 meeting (our 12th!) in Taiwan. Stay tuned!
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Meeting announcement: The International Pest Risk Research Group (IPRRG) will be hosting its 11th annual meeting in association with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) from Tuesday 29th August Friday 1st September 2017 in Ottawa, Canada. (Click here for a PDF version of the announcement and abstract call.)
Abstracts: The call for abstracts has now closed.
About the meeting: The programme booklet, which includes the meeting agenda and presentation abstracts, can be downloaded here. We are pleased to announce that Prof. Brian Leung of McGill University has accepted our invitation to provide a keynote address, “Predictive Ecology: Modelling the Risks of Invasions”. In addition to technical presentations and discussions, time will be allotted during the meeting for professional networking and collaborative work on group projects, such as the IPRRG global assessment of the risks posed by the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, to plant health. This undertaking, code-named Project Stinky, is designed to catalyze the development of international training materials that demonstrate accepted procedures for modelling the spatio-temporal variation in pest risk. CFIA is covering much of the meeting costs, but a registration fee will be payable to IPRRG in advance or on arrival at the meeting to cover additional expenses (see below).
Online meeting registration: *Online registration is now closed. Please contact our Secretary-Treasurer, Darren Kriticos (Darren.Kriticos “AT” csiro.au), regarding late or drop-in registration options.* The meeting registration for regular members is AUD$365 (approximately US$289 and 246). IPRRG members designated as students in the membership directory are eligible for a reduced rate of AUD$332.50 (approximately US$263 and 224). The registration fee covers all sessions, a half-day technical excursion, coffee/tea service at break times, lunch on the first three days of the meeting, and one group dinner. All attendees registered by 16 August will also receive a shirt commemorating the meeting.
*Important note for travelers from outside the USA and Canada*: Although attendees from many countries will not need a visa to enter Canada, you still may need to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). The online eTA application process is simple and inexpensive (CAN$7), but we recommend doing it right away in case you are asked to submit supporting documents. You can learn about the visa and/or eTA requirements for your country (i.e., the country that issued your passport) here, and you can apply for an eTA here.
Meeting venue and accommodation: The meeting will be held at the Albert at Bay Suite Hotel in downtown Ottawa. We have reserved a block of rooms (full suites with kitchenette, bedroom, bathroom and sitting / living area) at a discounted, double-occupancy rate of CAN$169 (approximately US$134 and Euro114; Canadian and Australian dollars are roughly on par). This discounted rate will be applicable from two days before until two days after the meeting dates. Note that the expiration date for booking at the block rate was 14 July 2017; you may want to contact the hotel to see if this rate is still available.
Booking information from the hotel: Please contact the hotel reservation department directly to make your reservation at the negotiated rate of $169.00 plus taxes and fees for a One Bedroom Suite. Please quote the IPRRG 2017 Conference to gain access to the group rate. This special rate will be available to you until July 14 2017. Underground parking for vehicles of 6Ft in clearance is available for $22.95 per day + tax, with in and out privileges and is based on availability.
Hotel reservations phone number: 1.800.267.6644
Hotel reservations can be made online at: IPRRG 2017 Conference Online Booking Link
This link will be active until the cut-off date of July 14 2017.
435 Albert Street Ottawa Ontario Canada K1R 7X4
www.albertatbay.com
Local transportation: A taxi from the airport to the hotel will cost about CAN$30-$35. The taxi stand is just outside the main airport exit, and you’ll have to join a queue to wait for the next available taxi.
For the adventurous or frugal, take the bus. Price for the bus is $3.40 cash fare. No change is provided. Bus tickets are available at the Ground Transportation Desk at the airport (located on Level 1 at the centre door, beside the Information Desk you’ll need two). Â Step outside the airport at that very door and walk across the first roadway to your right on the second roadway is the bus shelter. Wait for bus Nr. 97 it is the only bus serving the airport, and depending on the time of day, arrives between every ten and twenty minutes. It will take you on the transitway through to downtown, and takes about 30 to 45 minutes, depending on traffic downtown and on the highway. The bus enters downtown from the east. Get off at Bay, near the west end of downtown (there are electronic signs on the ceiling that name the next stop, and often there’s an audio announcement also) you are already on Albert. The bus stop is just a bit past the main door to the hotel, on the hotel side of the road. Just walk back a short bit, and you’re there. To announce that you want to get off, pull the cord that runs over the windows, or look for a red button on a vertical pole.
If you miss Bay, get off at Bronson and walk back along Albert. If you miss Bronson you’re out of downtown and back on the transitway and it’ll be a bit of a hike back.
You will get a transfer ticket as your proof of payment when you pay it will come out of a box at mid-thigh level, to your right and perhaps slightly behind you. Keep that until you get off. The transit police will ask you to show it if they board along the way, and the 97 is a popular route for spot checks, because it is one of the longest routes and carries a lot of traffic. That transfer allows you to re-board for free, which will be handy if you miss Bay and end up out beyond Bronson. Youâll want to bus back â note the return run is on Slater, one road south of Albert and parallel to it.
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Please check this page regularly for updates. Looking forward to seeing you in Ottawa!
