Events down under

A full roster of conferences in Australia and its Asia-Pacific neighbours make the region a good place to visit this year. To start with, Australia's BIO equivalent, AusBiotech2004, will this year be held in Brisbane from November 7-10, with a theme of 'Going Global'.

The conference, which for the third year in a row will include a business partnering and investment forum, will focus on three areas of biotechnology: therapeutics and human health, agriculture, food and the environment, and medical devices and diagnostics.

Among the invited speakers are US biotechnology venture capitalist Steve Burrill, and Sir Richard Sykes, the former head of GlaxoSmithKline and now rector of Imperial College London.

A bioindustry exhibition will also be held to provide conference participants with the opportunity to promote their businesses and products, and the conference's popular 'biotechnology for non-biotechnologists' initiative is also expected to feature.

And a number of satellite meetings for AusBiotech's satellite groups are planned for November 11, while the Queensland branch of AusBiotech's annual ClubBio conference will be held on November 12 in Cairns with a focus on Biodiversity.

This year, the AusBiotech2004 conference has been moved from its previous August slot on the biotech calendar to the November dates, in part to attract increased participation from international speakers and companies, says AusBiotech's executive director Tony Coulepis.

"The August date coincided with northern hemisphere summer holidays, and it was also too close to BIO -- the later date allows local participants to rev up again," he said.

Coulepis said the theme and focus of the conference has evolved since the inaugural AusBiotech conference in 2002, to parallel the development of the Australian biotechnology industry. "In 2002 our theme was 'Building Excellence through Partnerships', and in 2003, the theme was 'From Invention to Product'," he says. "This year it is 'Going Global' and next year it will be 'Linking the Region'."

The conference organisers expect around 1500 delegates this year, including a substantial contingent of international participants and trade missions. Last year there were participants from 16 countries, and according to AusBiotech's policy and communications manager Paris Brooke, the global component of the conference will be even stronger this year, reflecting the theme.

"It's the next step in becoming an international meeting instead of just a national meeting," says Coulepis.

An increasingly important part of the meeting is the business partnering and investment forum, which this year will span two days of the conference. Coulepis said 75 companies participated last year, and he expects similar numbers this year. US biocommunications specialist Doug Macdougall, who helps companies develop their pitch and presentation, will be running training sessions for companies interested in improving their skills in this area.