ACBS World Conference 11 is shaping up to be a great experience, here's why...
by Louise Hayes

Hello ACBS folks,

I thought I'd share with you some of the exciting things that will be happening here in Sydney at ACBS World Conference 11 in July 2013.

Our speakers show the breadth of knowledge in CBS - from evolution science all the way through to therapies of compassion.

First up, I must mention that we will have a plenary from Steve Hayes. Now I haven't seen Steve deliver a plenary at World Con since Reno in 2010, and I know he has been doing some pretty cool visionary CBS thinking - integrating our science across the breadth of evolutionary, biological, behavioural, and cultural domains! So I think we can expect a pretty cool plenary and some interesting panel discussions, that will no doubt show the way forward for contextual behavioural science. Steve will be doing a pre-conference workshop too. If you're anywhere in the Southern hemisphere, you do not want to miss this!! It's been almost 10 years since Steve Hayes has been in this part of the world.

We will also hear from Eva Jablonka, the author of Evolution in Four Dimensions. Eva is a world leading theorist and geneticist, especially known for her work in behavioural epigenetics. She will come and talk to us about learning and heredity, with an emphasis on behavioural and cultural epigenetics. Eva will also contribute to panel discussions, so you'll get to ask the expert questions too.

Paul Gilbert will also deliver a plenary and pre-conference workshop. Paul is the founder of Compassion-Focussed Therapy (CFT). CFT is a fellow traveller with ACT and aims to promote wellbeing through the scientific study and application of compassion. I know a lot of folks are bringing Compassion Focussed Therapy into their work, so we expect this talk to be of interest to many clinicians.

And we've only just started on our list of great speakers and workshops, including: Kelly Wilson, Robyn Walser, Dennis Tirch, Russ Harris, Darin Cairns, Paul Gilbert, Steve Hayes, Emily Sandoz, Niklas Törneke, Carmen Luciano, Bob Kohlenberg, Mavis Tsai, and Louise Hayes. Just to name a few. Once the program is done, we will be sure to post the list out to you.

Of course, even with all these fantastic speakers, we need your voice to make this a truly great experience. It's not too late to submit your presentation, the deadline is February 20, 2013 - http://contextualscience.org/wc11_call_for_submissions

And if that isn't enough, Sydney is one of the most beautiful tourists cities in the world. It has a mild climate all year round, it is surrounded by the blue mountains, the harbour, and white sandy beaches. July is also the best time to head north to visit the Great Barrier Reef (one of the 7 natural wonders of the world), wander the rain forests, or head outback to Uluru or the Kimberlys.

Our very own Emily Rodrigues has just been down here checking out Bondi and Coogee beach and visiting some of the outdoor cafes; I think she did some work on the conference while she was here too :) So if you have any questions about Sydney, please do ask Emily. Of course you know she'll put up detailed information about her trip (like Airport tips, Australian customs, transportation, etc.) in the coming months.

See you there!

Louise