Dear colleagues,
I kindly invite you to the international conference for
environmental specimen banks organised by the German Federal Ministry
for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and the
German Federal Environment Agency. The conference is addressed to
scientists and regulators working in the field of environmental
sciences and human health.
Environmental specimen banks (ESBs) are an important investment
into a safer future. Since the early concepts in the 1960s, more and
more ESBs have started to systematically collect samples from the
environment and human populations. With these samples at hand an old
dream of mankind comes true: We can travel back in time and actually
look into the past. With evidence from there we can substantiate the
assessment of important problems faced in the present. ESBs can offer
great help in answering questions about the effectiveness of the
present chemical managements in decreasing our chemical burden and
what chemicals still need to be regulated
We see great advantages in establishing sustainable ESB networks
and connecting the millions of worldwide archived samples. Such
cooperation can facilitate exchange of expertise and provide for
consolidated answers to global problems, e.g. environmental and human
exposure to chemicals. Other, yet unknown questions related to healthy
environments may arise in future. The occurring changes of climate and
biodiversity, for example, are altering the picture of research
programmes around the planet. It is a tempting challenge to
investigate whether the ESB community can help with indicators and
time trends.
The conference will take place on November 15-16, 2010 in the
historical centre of Berlin. On the evening of the first conference
day you are cordially invited to a social dinner at the Berlin Museum
of Natural History.
I am very much looking forward to your contribution to the
interesting discussions at the conference going along with
presentations on the state of environmental specimen banking, evolving
ESB concepts and cutting edge information from chemical analysis.
Yours sincerely,
Jochen Flasbarth
President, Federal Environment Agency