Notes From the Director's Desk 

At a glance, here's everything you need to know about CRYO2017!

Submissions
The 54th Annual Meeting of the Society for Cryobiology, CRYO2017 in the city of Hefei, Anhui Province, China on July 21 - 23, 2016 at the super 5-star business Fengda International Hotel is really taking shape with over 184 confirmed oral and poster presentations. This total includes 63 student abstracts and features 719 authors from 19 different countries. These include submissions from China, the USA, the UK, Canada, and as far afield as Iran, Russia, Australia, Bangladesh, Peru, and many others. The abstracts are currently being streamed into a fantastic scientific program typical of this premier event in the field of cryobiology, and the final program will be available soon. 

Registration
If you haven't already done so, take some time now to register for the meeting by completing the registration 'to do' on your Ex Ordo dashboard.

Meet and Greet Service
All foreign delegates will be met and escorted to Fengda International Hotel by a graduate student at University of Science and Technology (USTC). The student will meet you in person at Hefei International Airport or Hefei Station. They will contact you by email directly to find out your travel plans and arrival time. 

Hotel and Hotel Bookings
The venue for this year's conference is the self-contained Fengda International Hotel. This is an international super 5-star business hotel that has hosted many international events and meetings. Make your hotel reservation and select from 5 different rooms or suites, all in the $50 USD to $85 USD range!

AGM/Business Meeting
The Society's annual business meeting will be held 5:30-6:30pm July 23 at Fengda International Hotel. 

Visas for China
It should be noted that almost all attendees will require a visa for entrance into China to attend the meeting. Our SfC meeting website has a template visa invitation letter that you should use with simple to follow instructions. Almost all of you, like me, will apply for an F visa defined as “Foreigners who intend to go to China for exchanges, visits, study tours and other non-business activities.” After completing the application process, I took it to the Chinese Embassy along with the required photo and had my visa in 6 business days.

Livestream 
In a FIRST for the SfC we are planning to live stream some of the conference using Facebook live to allow members who are unable to attend in person a glimpse into the meeting. Check our Facebook page during the conference for live streaming times.

ICYR
The International Cryobiology Young Researchers (ICYR) has planned a great outing to the Anhui Museum on the afternoon of July 23. Anhui Museum is devoted to the history of Anhui Province and covers 2500 years of human life and civilization in the area. After the visit to the museum the group will stop at Maan Coffee, a popular coffee chain in China, which specializes in waffles and other sweet treats! Many thanks to Fazil Panhwar, a student member of the SfC and part of the local organizing committee, for his work in planning this great event. 

The ICYR are also repeating last year's initiative of giving student delegates a chance to act as a student moderator at each session. This learning opportunity was so successful last year that we are repeating it in Hefei and hope to make it a permanent fixture of the annual meeting. If you are interested fill out the application form today! Applications close June 30. 

Catching up with friends and colleagues from around the world is one of the best parts of attending the meeting so be sure to join us at the president's welcome reception. Once you've settled in at the hotel and visited the registration desk, join us from 6:30pm July 20 for a drink, a bite to eat, and a catch up with old and new friends! 

On the final evening of the conference, July 23, we are holding our awards ceremony and banquet. Always a popular fixture, the awards ceremony celebrates the work of our student members and sees the presentation of the prestigious Crystal and Critser awards. The awards ceremony also recognizes the work of the Society's outgoing officers and governors and celebrates the lifetime achievements of our new CryoFellows. Following this, the banquet promises to be an evening to let your hair down with great food, wine and company! Tickets cost $50 USD and can be purchased during registration on Ex Ordo.  

After the conference finishes, our Chinese hosts are offering several tours commencing on Monday, July 24. Be sure to browse the tour offerings for full descriptions of the half-day tours of Hefei, Chaohu Lake, and Sanhe Town; the two-day tour of Mount Huangshan and Hongcun Village; and the three-day tour of Beijing. Take a few extra days of vacation to explore all China has to offer. You can register for the tours online through Ex Ordo, or in person at the registration desk of the meeting. 

Sincerely,
Ed Kordoski