The challenge to understand the molecular basis of the evolutionary origin and development of the eye and visual system has intrigued scientists for centuries. The eye and visual system has long been recognized as a fascinating and uniquely informative model in which to explore how sensory structures develop. Vision is a highly specialized sensory function that demands an exquisitely organized and highly structured neural system, and it is this precision that creates an ideal experimental system to uncover principles of development and evolution. The community of scientists who study development of the eye and visual system have come to rely on the Visual System Development GRC as a 'must attend' event that provides a high level of information and a valuable forum for exchange. The aim of the Gordon Research Conference on Visual System Development is to bring together investigators studying the development, disease, and the evolution of the visual system. The meeting provides an environment that stimulates discussion and interaction across disciplines and among students, early-career investigators and leaders in the field. The goals of this biennial conference are to generate an understanding of common principles that regulate visual system development in diverse species, to share the latest and most exciting new results, and to stimulate new ideas and collaborations that impact our understanding of eye development. In addition, through this meeting there is an effort to apply our growing knowledge of eye development and maturation to the fields of regeneration and stem cell biology. Support from the NSF will help enable outstanding young scientists to attend this high-profile international meeting, to present their research findings to the international scientific community, and to interact with the leaders in the field. In particular, the funds requested from NSF will be used to facilitate participation by U.S. students and postdocs from a variety of backgrounds.
The Gordon Research Conference on Visual System Development was held at Il Ciocco Hotel & Resort, May 23-28, 2010. The Conference was well-attended with 131 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 131 attendees, 58 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 85 respondents, 36% were Minorities – 9% Hispanic, 24% Asian, and 3% African American. Approximately 41% of the participants at the 2010 meeting were women. In designing the formal speakers program, emphasis was placed on current unpublished research and discussion of the future target areas in this field. There was a conscious effort to stimulate lively discussion about the key issues in the field today. Time for formal presentations was limited in the interest of group discussions. In order that more scientists could communicate their most recent results, poster presentation time was scheduled. Attached is a copy of the formal schedule and speaker program and the poster program. In addition to these formal interactions, "free time" was scheduled to allow informal discussions. Such discussions are fostering new collaborations and joint efforts in the field. Thank you for your support of this Conference. As you know, in the interest of promoting the presentation of unpublished and frontier-breaking research, Gordon Research Conferences does not permit publication of meeting proceedings. If you wish any further details, please feel free to contact me.
