Welcome Messages: CSC2006 89th Canadian Chemistry Conference

Welcome from the Mayor of Halifax

On behalf of Halifax Regional Municipality, I would like to take this opportunity to extend
warm greetings and a special welcome to all attending the Canadian Society for Chemistry
2006 Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition at the World Trade and Convention
Centre, May 27–31, 2006.

The 89th Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition, “Charting a New Course,” will raise
awareness and address the latest in chemical research and education. It will be an educational
experience that will provide participants with the opportunity to collaborate, share knowledge,
ideas, and experiences with both national and international delegates.

I am pleased that you have chosen Halifax Regional Municipality as the site of your Conference and invite you to enjoy all our area has to offer, our Region’s culture is noted for its unique blend of history and tradition, co-existing comfortably with the contemporary. Enjoy!

Respectfully, I remain

Peter J. Kelly
Mayor of Halifax, Nova Scotia

Welcome from the Conference Chair

On behalf of the Conference Organizing Committee and the Scientific Program Committee, it is my great pleasure to welcome you to Halifax and to the 89th Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition. I extend a particularly warm welcome to the many international delegates, as well as to all our participants from industry, government laboratories, and academia. I hope that in addition to contributing to the many symposia you will also have an opportunity to explore our wonderful city as well as the province of Nova Scotia.

The theme of this conference, “Charting a New Course,” indicates the many new directions in chemistry that will be highlighted in a maritime city that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. This is expressed also in our logo, combining the Halifax town clock and waterfront with the structure of a benzylhydantoin molecule, a model for a family of anticonvulsant drugs studied by one of our local research groups. And chemistry research and education are indeed charting new courses: the conference program counts as many joint symposia as there are symposia organized by single divisions, with interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary topics varying from drug design to materials chemistry, from green chemistry to energy storage and conversion, and from biogeochemistry to photonics. A highlight for all of us undoubtedly will be the plenary lecture presented by Sir Harold Kroto, FRS, titled “Architecture in NanoSpace.” It is my great pleasure to welcome Sir Harry back to Nova Scotia.

In addition to the wide variety of technical presentations, the conference exhibition presents all participants with the opportunity to see the newest developments in instrument design and service capabilities. The excitement of these new directions in chemistry undoubtedly is shared by the many undergraduate and graduate students and post-doctoral fellows who are participating in the conference, many presenting papers or posters. I extend a particularly warm welcome to these future colleagues.

I wish to acknowledge the generous support from our local universities, and from our institutional and private sector sponsors. I hope that as you go through our Web site listing of sponsors you will visit the sites of these important supporters of our conference and our scientific discipline. I wish to express in particular my gratitude to the members of the Conference Organizing Committee including the dedicated staff from the CIC National Office, the Conference Program Committee chaired by my Dalhousie colleague Russell Boyd, and the symposium organizers and chairs, for mounting such an extensive and exciting technical program. Welcome to Nova Scotia, welcome to Halifax, and welcome to the 89th Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition!

Jan Kwak, FCIC

Conference Chair

Welcome from the President, Canadian Society for Chemistry

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Society for Chemistry (CSC), it gives
me great pleasure to welcome you all to the 89th Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition (CSC2006). Once again, our annual conference will be enhanced by the presence of great Canadian chemical professionals, distinguished participants from outside Canada, and a good number of younger chemists, the future of our profession.

We have the privilege of welcoming Professor Sir Harold Kroto, FRS, co-laureate of the Nobel
Prize in Chemistry in 1996, as the opening lecturer. His lecture, titled “Architecture in NanoSpace,” is certain to be inspiring. The conference promises a truly diverse program,
with organizers from nine divisions of the CSC lining up more than 80 symposia and general sessions. The growing importance of interactions between disciplines will be demonstrated by 21 of the symposia being sponsored by more than one division. This promises to be an exciting meeting.

I would also like to invite you to attend the Science Policy Forum, where a panel of chemists from existing and developing provincial professional associations will discuss awareness and
recognition of the practice of chemistry as a profession in Canada.

The CSC is proud to provide an exceptional setting like this conference for future and accomplished chemists to share their experience, concerns, and findings with scientists from Canada and around the world. Again this year, the local organizing committee has done an incredible amount of work to put together this conference, and I extend my sincerest thanks to Jan Kwak, FCIC, from Dalhousie University, chair of the organizing committee, and his team of volunteers. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors and exhibitors for their support in the organization of this event. Be sure to visit them at the Exhibition.

I wish you all a great conference!

Yves Deslandes, FCIC
President, Canadian Society for Chemistry

89th Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
info@csc2006.ca Web Site Map

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www.chemistry.ca