Only about 30 min from the bustling German capital with its museums, shops, theaters and pubs, the small town of Potsdam harbors famous tourist attractions such as Frederick the Great's famous Sanssouci palace with its beautiful park area, Filmpark Babelsberg, the Biosphere, and the cozy streets of the "Dutch Quarter".

The congress will take place at the Kongresshotel Potsdam, once the construction site of Count Zeppelin's famous airships and today a modern and spacious building beautifully situated at the banks of Lake Templiner. The hotel offers accommodation for all participants as well as all scientific sessions under one roof, with ample space for relaxation, socializing and discussions during coffee breaks. There is also the restaurant / beer garden "Seekrug" right next to it. Check out these locations at 52º22'22"N, 13º00'54"E

The scientific program will include broad scope sessions covering large taxonomic groups (e.g., Nematocera, Orthorrhapha, Eremoneura, Calyptrata, acalyptrate families) as well as general topics (e.g., higher level Phylogeny, Morphology/ Anatomy/ Ultrastructure, Physiology, Biodiversity, Conservation, Evolutionary Biology, Behaviour, Diptera of Economic Importance, Diptera in Forensic Entomology, Diptera in Medical Entomology, and Fossil Diptera).

We plan to combine the congress with special public outreach activities, most important of which is the award-winning exhibition "Flies" ("Die Fliegen", " Mouches") originally created by Christophe Dufour and Jean-Paul Haenni (Neuchatel). The exhibition will be presented at the Museum of Natural History in Berlin during the congress. Our congress logo is largely based on the design of this exhibition. We also plan other activities, such as a fly related art exhibition, promoting a fly for "insect of the year", celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of the founder of European dipterology J.W. Meigen (1764 - 1845), a Diptera postal stamp, public talks, press conference, etc.

We have already secured substantial financial support from the Senckenberg Foundation (as can be seen from the logo) and will apply for additional funds from other scientific foundations and sponsors.
With ample input from the dipterological community worldwide this will become yet another wonderful congress. Keep informed as our new website takes shape and do not hesitate to contact us with ideas, wishes and suggestions.

Marion Kotrba, Netta Dorchin, Frank Menzel and Joachim Ziegler