The 20th International Conference on Arabidopsis Research (ICAR) will take place from June 30th to July 4th 2009 in Scotland at the Edinburgh International Conference Center. The PI requests funds to support attendance of young researchers and participants from minority-serving institutions. The annual ICAR brings together approximately 1,000 participants. Arabidopsis serves an outstanding model system due to the numerous and varied experimental tools in functional genomics that are available. The transfer of knowledge from Arabidopsis to other plant species, and beyond to other organisms including humans, is increasing due to the efforts of the research community and the leveraging of advances and resources. This conference provides an opportunity for the exchange of ideas among the numerous and diverse researchers of the international Arabidopsis community and beyond to the larger plant community. This year's conference will include a number of speakers whose research involves wheat, rice, maize, and barley. The conference will include a broad range of important and current topics: Genome Organization/The RNA World, Development, Cell Biology, Systems Biology, Signaling in Development, Bioenergy, Environmental Responses, Plant Defense, Plant Growth Regulators, Natural Variation, Hot Topics and Novel Tools/Resources. Important components of the conference include the presentation of current research by approximately 90 speakers (both invited and from selected abstracts) and 600 posters as well as several community organized workshops where smaller groups can explore more specific topics in greater detail.
Broader Impact A particular strength of the ICAR lies in its ability to enhance the exchange of information at the forefront of Arabidopsis research worldwide, creating new networks and collaborations. The conference program and abstracts will be publicly available on the conference website and permanently archived. The ICAR also has a long and successful history of being inclusive of young scientists as well as women and minorities. Support of this year's proposal will provide full funding for several underrepresented US minorities and/or faculty as well as partial funding of travel expenses for additional young domestic faculty, postdoctoral scholars, or graduate students. A special luncheon to acknowledge recipients of US-sponsored minority funding and to establish an informal networking venue as well as an "Emerging Scientists Luncheon" is planned. Many of the oral presentations at the sessions and workshops will be given by graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and junior faculty. This will promote the training of students and postdocs and provide important opportunities for career development. The conference program and abstracts will be publicly available on the conference website and permanently archived at TAIR (www.arabidopsis.org/news/abstracts.jsp).
