26th Biennial Meeting of the International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

It is a great pleasure and an honor to extend to you a warm invitation to attend the 26th ISSBD Biennial Meeting of the International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development, to be held June 21 – 25 on the Island of Rhodes, at Rodos Palace Hotel, Greece.

Why the island of Rhodes in Greece? The Island of Rhodes is not only known for its endless beaches, wonderful weather, its medieval old town, beautiful landscape but also for its long experience in organizing large International Scientific Conferences. When the gods divided the world among themselves, so an ancient Greek legend goes, Helios (the Sun god) noticed an island emerging from the sea. He was so fascinated by its beauty that he immediately asked Zeus whether he might have this island as his share. Rhodes was that island. The island seems to glide like a dolphin, over the waves in the transparent seas of the south-eastern Aegean, where West meets East.

The Congress will promote and facilitate the presentation of research on, among other topics,

• human developmental processes throughout the life-span,
• basic and applied areas,
• risks for development and resilience,
• biological determinants of development,
• methodological issues,
• topics of global concern that affect developing individuals’ lives, such as climate change, globalization, migration, catastrophic events, such as war and terrorism, new and old technologies.

The Congress will give special emphasis on the translation of developmental science to policy and on translational research. Last but not least, the Congress will actively promote contributions by scientists of different disciplines, such as neuroscience, genetics, sociology, political science, education, media.

The Congress will strive to offer plenty of networking opportunities, providing you with the opportunity to meet and interact with leading scientists and researchers, friends and colleagues as well as sponsors and exhibitors.

The social program will highlight our Greek cuisine, unique culture and arts, combined with the breathtaking natural beauty of the island. Pre- and post-congress tours will underscore the role of the Island of Rhodes as one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations.

The proposed congress site offers itself for a fertile dialogue and exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods between scholars in an environment that is well organized and characteristic for its beauty and history. We believe that the organization of the conference at this site promises to offer participants a memorable experience.

We hope you will join us for a symphony of outstanding science and take a little extra time to enjoy the spectacular and unique beauty of this island.

With best wishes,
Frosso Motti-Stefanidi 
Chair of the Conference

Dear ISSBD Colleagues and Friends,

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the 26th ISSBD meeting on the lovely island of Rhodes.

Let me begin by thanking Dr. Frosso Motti-Stefanidi and her colleagues at the University of Athens for their hard work organizing this meeting. As many of you who have organized a meeting know, it is no simple endeavor. There are numerous tasks, large and small, that make what seem like unlimited demands on your time and attention. But in the end, the best reward is a well organized and inspiring meeting, such as you have provided. Thank you, Dr. Motti-Stefanidi, for your hard work and gracious welcome.

Next, let me tell you a little bit about the meeting. As is our custom, the meeting includes preconference workshops for emerging scholars, keynote and invited speakers from all over the world, as well as high quality symposia and posters.

I am especially delighted to have the pleasure of interacting with colleagues from around the world. The joy of our ISSBD Biennial meeting is sharing our interests with others from our own and other disciplines, as well as learning from experts in our own and related fields. Very often career-long friendships and research partnerships are formed at our meetings. I hope you are fortunate enough to have such an experience.

ISSBD is proud to invest considerable efforts into welcoming early career scholars. There are special programs to aid career development among emerging scholars. If you are an early career scholar, I strongly encourage you to participate in these programs. If you are a senior scholar who mentors an early career scholar, please let your mentees know what a unique and valuable opportunity this is. Urge them to participate.

We, at ISSBD, are focused on supporting current scholars while contributing to developing the capacity of the next generation of researchers, educators and policymakers. Your attendance at the ISSBD 2020 meeting in Rhodes means that you are part of that focus and an important part of our future.

Another important ongoing commitment of ISSBD is to continue to be the international professional organization for multidisciplinary developmental science. This commitment is reflected in a membership of over 1000 researchers, educators and policy makers from 88 countries, including from 16 countries in Africa. We have the unique ability to learn from our members in other disciplines, from other countries and from other cultures. I believe this fundamentally enriches our science.

About the venue: We learned in our history books that Rhodes is famous worldwide for the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Medieval Old Town of the City of Rhodes has been declared a World Heritage Site. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe. What a wonderful place to visit and learn! On behalf of ISSBD, I am pleased to welcome you and wish for you a fun and productive meeting.

Warmest wishes
Toni Antonucci
President of ISSBD