Dear NZGS Members

The Organizing Committee and NZGS are pleased to confirm that the NZGS 2020 Symposium is to be held (as planned) in Dunedin.

Thank you for your participation in our online poll, which demonstrated a strong preference for an “in-person” Symposium in Dunedin.

The organising committee was also humbled by the positive response from our sponsors who in majority expressed the desire to continue to support the Symposium and the NZGS.

Technical Programme

We have received a record number of high-quality papers (over 80) and the peer review process is almost complete. The organising committee is currently working on developing the technical programme. Information will be uploaded on our website as the planning progresses, so keep watching this space.

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages offshore, we expect to have to make a few changes to the symposium programme, especially with respect to the international keynote speakers, who may join us via virtual means.

Pre-Symposium workshop and field trip

We were pleased to see your positive responses and anticipation of our Pre-Symposium event. We want to confirm that this event is still on, but the organising committee was forced to make changes due to the pandemic side-effects. We will issue separate announcements shortly with respect to the final format of this event as our planning evolves.

Registrations

That leaves me with the pleasure of inviting you to join us in Dunedin in October. We want this event to be our long-desired get-together, after a period of challenge and isolation.

I encourage you to register now to secure your place. This is the best time to make your travel plans, as historical low prices in airfares and accommodation are currently on offer.

I would like to re-assure you that the organising committee will keep monitoring the situation and has developed robust alternative plans should the situation change again, to make sure that the event will happen in a safe manner. We are also looking into a range of registration fees and more cost-sensitive alternatives so that as many NZGS members who want to attend can.

I confirm that in the event of a change in Symposium format and/or registration fees, the fee difference will be reimbursed in full.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Eleni Gkeli
NZGS 2020 Convenor