A Welcome from the President

Founded in 1958 to promote and further international cooperation in the mineralogical sciences, the International Mineralogical Association can point to more than 50 years of a rich and varied history. In keeping with its task of serving the international community of students and scientists working in the fields of the mineralogical sciences, IMA holds General Meetings with the explicit intent to involve colleagues from all parts of the world. After the most recent meetings in Pisa 1994, Toronto 1998, Edinburgh 2002, Kobe 2006, and Budapest 2010, this will be the very first time that a General Meeting of IMA will take place in Africa, and specifically in the Republic of South Africa. Organized by the Mineralogical Association of South Africa, the meeting will take place from 1 to 5 September, 2014, at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg. Calls for session proposals have led to a wide variety of topics and themes that promise a comprehensive and stimulating scientific program of oral and poster sessions, workshops and short courses. An extensive list of exciting field trips has also been compiled, and these alone promise to attract many participants. As a country with a large mining and mineralogical industry, as well as strong mineralogical, geological and geochemical research initiatives, South Africa is highly appropriate to host such a meeting. Speaking for IMA Council as a whole, I can say that I am extremely proud that IMA has been invited to South Africa and I am grateful to the organizers for their considerable efforts. I am looking forward to meeting you and colleagues from all over the world in Johannesburg in 2014. Our South African hosts are waiting for us!

Walter V. Maresch, President of IMA