The theme of the conference is: Bio-energy for our future - Renewable Energy from Waste. There will be a strong focus therefore on the various ways to recover the energy from waste materials, either as methane, hydrogen or directly as current in Microbial Fuel Cells. But there will also be a number of other themes, particularly in relation to anaerobic biodegradation of recalcitrant chemicals, eg. in bioremediation; nutrient recovery issues related to anaerobic processes; instrumentation, control and automation of AD processes and many more.

So plan your experimental or full-scale studies NOW to get them finished in time to write some excellent papers about the work. We would particularly encourage work from practitioners around the world to share their ideas and advances they may have made in getting optimal use of the AD technology in their industries.

We are expecting a strong participation from our colleagues worldwide, particularly also from Asia and South America where this technology is gaining a lot of interest in recent years. We will also offer some substantial registration fee discounts for IWA "low income countries" to encourage attendees from these countries to attend the conference. This will be an excellent opportunity to share and exchange knowledge and expertise between the many interested researchers, engineers, operators, managers and public sector experts from around the world.

Finally, September is a great time of year in Australia with spring well underway, Jacaranda's blooming and a number of festivities around town and the countryside. So plan maybe for a couple of weeks holidays before or after the conference to get the most out of this exciting trip "down under". We can ensure you that the Australian hospitality and environment will make you wanting to stay longer or come back for more!

We look forward to welcoming you to Brisbane in September 2007

On the Behalf of the Local Committees

Prof Jurg Keller, Chair.