From March 17-19, 2014, Technopolis®, the Flemish science centre (Mechelen, Belgium), in cooperation with the Museum of Natural Sciences (Brussels, Belgium), will host the Science Centre World Summit 2014: Public Engagement for a Better World.

There have been Science Centre World congresses organized on every continent since 1996. Now is the time to rethink the concept and respond to the challenges of our time. Science centers are well established as a networked, professional community. They successfully organize conferences that continue to build the professional capacity of the field.

Increasingly, the daily practice of science centers relates to science learning and communication about global issues. These issues reach far beyond the hands-on exploration of scientific phenomena and create the need for a renewed approach to the relationship between science and society.

Exploring these challenges requires a new form of professional gathering that focuses much more on long-term strategic issues. Building alliances and partnerships outside the science center field is necessary and desirable to help science centers face these challenges. In the light of this paradigm shift, the International Programme Committee decided to move towards the organization of a new “World Summit” conference concept.

The SCWS2014 International Programme Committee is inviting you to take part in this important international gathering and to help building an outstanding and interesting program.

The Call for Proposals will close on 24 May, 2013. The Programme Committee encourages you to put together an excellent proposal respecting the selection criteria. Please learn more about it at astc.org/about/pdf/SCWS14CallProposals.pdf. For more information, visit the SCWS2014 website at www.scws2014.org, or send an email to scws2014@technopolis.be.

We are very much looking forward to your valuable input and thank you for sharing your knowledge.

With best regards,

Erik Jacquemyn Chair and the Members of the International Programme Committee Science Centre World Summit 2014