President's Welcoming Address

Friends and Colleagues,

It gives me great pleasure to invite you to our eleventh meeting of CIPP - The International Congress on Pediatric Pulmonology. After almost two decades of activity we venture to Asia for the first time.

The historic and cultural richness and diversity of this continent makes the choice of the optimal city challenging. We chose Thailand because of its natural beauty, invaluable art treasures, its mix of old and modern, and its tradition of excellence in Pediatric Pulmonology. We are cognizant that there are quite a few other countries in that part of the world that fit this description. We hope that over time, we will have more opportunities to explore others as well.

Our meeting - CIPP - remains the only global meeting that is fully dedicated to pediatric pulmonology. Over the last two years we changed our meeting to an annual paradigm, and saved no effort in our congresses in Vienna and Versailles, to not only bring together leading authorities on various topics, but also make the meeting more inclusive in inviting and supporting presenters and speakers from poor-resourced countries. These researchers and clinicians are challenged by inadequate funds but are rich in skill and experience, and shared with us the many amazing things that they do. Obviously, the move of the meeting to Bangkok, will give us an opportunity to include more of our colleagues from Asia and Oceania as speakers and presenters, and with alter the flavor of the meetings to make them even more inclusive.

We are particularly proud of the platform we offer thourgh our Young Investigator Awards. For years and consistently these have been exciting presentations of young researchers on the cutting edge of clinical and basic science, whose work has been filling plenary sessions and he best of them are awarded generous prizes.

The continuing success of a meeting of a small subspecialty as is ours, indeed its survival, depends on adequate participation, and we hope that you will consider coming and spread the word of the meeting to colleagues in our field and related disciplines. Cognizant of the limiting economics that affect us all, I invite our European and American colleagues to take this unique opportunity, and make the effort to mix the best of science in our field with a cultural experience. Those of us who have previously visited Thailand and the neighboring countries will attest that the mix of natural treasures, art, culture and tradition, mixed with unique hospitality will stay with you for a lifetime.

Despite its growth and global reach, CIPP remains small enough to offer intimacy. It has transformed from its role as a place of learning and scientific exchange, to one that also offers a venue to revive old friendships and establish new ones. As we branch out to a new continent, such encounters will broaden horizons, builds cros-cultural bridges, and contribute to unite us all as a better, more educated and open, wiser global community.

I with my colleagues in the various committees of the organization hope to see you in Bangkok.

Andrew Colin, MD
President, CIPP XI