SYMPOSIUM SERIES HISTORY

This symposium series was first begun to encourage research collaboration between environmental scientists from the Peoples’ Republic of China and scientists from North America and Europe, under the USA-PRC Protocol for Environmental Protection. The First Symposium in the series was held at Zhongshan University, Guangshou, PRC, in September 1988, and attracted 13 scientists from Europe, Canada, and the U.S., as well as 16 authors and several other attendees from the PRC and Hong Kong. The Second Symposium was held two years later in September 1990 in Sacramento, California, and although the majority of attendees were from the U.S., 11 of the 22 papers presented were authored or co-authored by scientists from the PRC. The location for the Third Symposium was Nanjing University in Nanjing, PRC, in November 1992. Although nine of the 20 papers presented were by authors from the West, only one of these authors was from Europe. Again, the audience in attendance was principally drawn from the scientific community within the PRC.

A special effort was made for the Fourth Symposium, held in Bozeman, Montana in September 1995, to encourage participation of scientists from Europe, as well as from the PRC, North America, and Mexico. Scientists from 10 countries presented 27 papers, including nine authored by scientists from Europe and Mexico. The Fifth Symposium was held at City University, Hong Kong, in November 1998. Ten countries were represented among the 23 papers accepted for presentation, and this time three Asian countries in addition to the PRC, were represented. The Sixth Symposium was held in La Paz, Mexico, in January 2001. In addition to attracting a large audience from the Mexican scientific community, the 30 papers accepted for presentation represented 15 countries, more than any previous symposium. At the Sixth Symposium 11 papers were given by European scientists and two by participants from South America.