Elliot Shubert
Chair, Scientific Committee

Throughout Europe, phycological research is active, productive and innovative. The high level of phycological research activity is obvious from the hundreds of research papers that appear annually in peer reviewed journals, as well as the research projects supported by the EU and national research funding organisations, post-graduate and post-doctoral research programmes, and European and national scientific meetings. 
The first European Phycological Congress (EPC) was in 1996, and successive EPC’s have gone from strength to strength.  EPC5 will be held in 2011 in Rhodes, Greece, and the Scientific Committee is working to make it the best ever.  The focus of EPC5 is “A European Perspective”, especially since we will be meeting within the Mediterranean.  We are planning to have plenary presentations, special symposia, contributed papers and posters, that will highlight algal research conducted in Europe.  However, all phycologists, from throughout the world, are invited to participate.  It is envisioned that the morning sessions will be devoted to plenary and symposia presentations and the afternoon sessions to contributed papers and poster presentations.  The Scientific Committee will strive to invite high quality speakers and to select symposia topics catering to all “phycological tastes”. 
We will try to accommodate as many concurrent oral presentations as possible; however, due to space and time restrictions, we may have to limit submissions for oral presentations.  There is adequate space for posters and we would encourage you to consider displaying a poster about your research in lieu of an oral presentation.
We look forward to your contribution to the research programme, which will help make EPC5 an exciting, interesting and forward-looking congress.

Christos Katsaros
Chair, Local Organizing Committee

After the 1st European Phycological Congress in Cologne on 1996, 2nd in Montecatini (1999), 3rd in Belfast (2003), and 4th in Oviedo (2007), we are pleased and honoured to host the EPC5 in Greece.
Everybody knows that Greece is famous for its History and Natural Beauty, but we phycologists know that it has 16,000 km of shoreline and a large number of islands, with many gulfs, lakes and lagoons, making it an important and interesting ecosystem for both freshwater and marine algal communities.
Greek Seas, as a part of the Mediterranean, are inhabited by species of different biogeographic affinities and functional performances due to short-term diversification following the geological and paleoclimatic conditions that prevailed during the last 5 million years and due to recent environmental and climatic changes.
Therefore, we believe that the “European Perspective” is a major target for EPC5.
The Local Organizing Committee, with the full support of the HEL.P.S., along with the FEPS Council and the Scientific Committee, work in close cooperation to organize a successful Congress. We cordially welcome the participations of all phycologists worldwide.
The Congress venue is Rhodes, a beautiful island at the south-east part of Aegean, well-known to everybody as a tourist destination, and hence offering high quality accommodation facilities. A variety of pre-congress and mid-congress tours have been prepared, so that attendees can enjoy both the nature and culture of the island.
On behalf of the Local Organizing Committee and the Hellenic Phycological Society (HEL.P.S., www.phycology.gr) Ι sincerely invite you to participate in the 5th European Phycological Congress, and enjoy exchanges with phycologists from around the world, and I look forward to welcoming you in Rhodes.