Distinguished Colleagues and Friends,
I am honoured to welcome you to the XIX International Colloquium on Soil Zoology (ICSZ) and the XVI International Colloquium of Apterygota (ICA) to be held from 26-30 August 2024 in Cape Town, South Africa, at the UCT Graduate School of Business Conference Centre.
Situated at the tip of Africa, Cape Town is one of the most picturesque cities in the world guarded over by Table Mountain, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. It is located in the Cape Floristic Region, a hotspot of endemism and diversity with over 9000 species of plants. The belowground world is equally diverse but is often overlooked.
This will be the first ICSZ/ICA on the African continent, which is an important milestone for the growth of soil biodiversity knowledge globally. Thus, we want to make the most of this opportunity to encourage training workshops, create networking opportunities, form new collaborations, and enhance knowledge transfer. This meeting allows all major contributions to the knowledge of the taxonomy, ecology, morphology, anatomy, physiology, and genomics of soil biota.
The Local Organising Committee has chosen the title and main topic “Soil biodiversity conservation under a changing climate” for the XIX ICSZ and the XVI ICA due to the urgent need to conserve soil biodiversity globally and include it in policy-making decisions, especially in developing countries.
We are delighted to meet and welcome senior scientists, young researchers, students and people from the industry to join the scientific and cultural events in our beautiful city of Cape Town. We hope to make the XIX ICSZ and the XVI ICA an enjoyable and productive event for all participants.
Dr Charlene Janion-Scheepers
University of Cape Town
Chair of the XIX ICSZ-XVI ICA Organising Committee