PSA HISTORY: CONGRESSES & INTER-CONGRESSES
Twenty-one Pacific Science Congresses have been held since the first meeting in Honolulu in 1920. They are the principal meetings of the Pacific Science Association and held every four years. Though each Congress is centered on a central theme, these meetings are broad and multidisciplinary in scope; symposia sessions are organized by the host organization in close cooperation with the PSA Executive Board and Organizing Committee. PSA Scientific Task Forces and outside organizations with common goals are also key facilitating partners.
Attendance is typically robust for Congress meetings – from 1000 to 2500 attendees. Congress venues are rotated throughout the Asia-Pacific region, and have been held in such locations as Bangkok, Sydney, Beijing, Tokyo, Vancouver, Khabarovsk, Seoul, and San Francisco. Two awards are given during every Congress, the Herbert E. Gregory Medal and the Shinkishi Hatai Medal. The most recent Congress was held 12-19 June 2007 in Okinawa, Japan. The next Inter-Congress will be held in Tahiti, French Polynesia in early 2009.
Thematic Inter-Congresses are held at four year intervals between Congresses. Ten Inter-Congresses have been held since the first meeting in Kuala Lumpur in 1969. Other venues have included Guam, Fiji, Bali, Taipei, Valparaiso, and Singapore. Inter-Congress meetings are typically somewhat smaller (less than 1000 attendees) and more thematically focused than Congresses.Click here for information on hosting a Congress or Inter-Congress.
PSA also co-sponsors independent meetings, such as the 7th, 9th, and 10th International Coral Reef Symposiums in, respectively, Guam (1992), Indonesia (2000), and Okinawa (2004).
Congresses of the Pacific Science Association
First Pan-Pacific Scientific Conference
2 — 20 August 1920
Honolulu, Hawaii
Chairman: Dr. Herbert E. Gregory, Director, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu
Vice-President and Secretary: Dr. Arthur L. Dean, President, University of Hawaii
Second Pan-Pacific Science Congress
13 — 22 August 1923
Melbourne, Australia
and
23 August — 3 September 1923
Sydney, Australia
President: Sir David Orme Masson, President, Australian National Research Council and Emeritus Professor, University of Melbourne
General Secretaries: R.H. Cambage, Royal Society; Dr. A.C.D. Rivett, University of Melbourne; E.C. Andrews, Mines Department; G. Lightfoot, Commonwealth Institute of Science and Technology
Third Pan-Pacific Science Congress
30 October — 11 November 1926
Tokyo, Japan
President: Dr. Joji Sakurai, President, National Research Council of Japan and Emeritus Professor Tokyo Imperial University
General Secretaries: Professors N. Yamasaki and K. Matsubara, Tokyo Imperial University
Fourth Pacific Science Congress
16 — 25 May 1929
Batavia and Bandoeng, Java, Netherlands Indies
President: Dr. O. de Vries, Director, Rubber Experiment Station of Buitenzorg and Professor of Chemistry, Medical Faculty of Batavia
First General Secretary: Dr. H.J. Lam, Buitenzorg Botanical Gardens
Second General Secretary: Dr. H.J.T. Bijlmer, Military Surgeon and Anthropologist, Batavia
Fifth Pacific Science Congress
1 — 4 June 1933
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
and
5 — 15 June 1933
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
President: Dr. H.M. Tory, President National Research Council of Canada
General Secretary: S.J. Cook, National Research Council of Canada
Sixth Pacific Science Congress
24 July — 12 August 1939
Berkeley, Stanford, and San Francisco, California, USA
President: Dr. Ross B. Harrison, Chairman, National Research Council
Secretary-General: Dr. Roy E. Clausen, Professor of Genetics, University of California
Seventh Pacific Science Congress
2 — 22 February 1949
Auckland and Christchurch, New Zealand
President: Dr. R.A. Falla, President, Royal Society of New Zealand
Secretary-General: Dr. Gilbert Archey, Director, Auckland Institute and Museum
Eighth Pacific Science Congress
16 — 28 November 1953
University of the Philippines
Quezon City, Philippines
President: Dr. Vidal A. Tan, Chairman, National Research Council of the Philippines and President, University of the Philippines
Secretary-General: Dr. Patrocinio Valenzuela, Executive Secretary, National Research Council of the Philippines
Assistant Secretary-General: Dr. Alfredo C. Santos, Assistant Executive Secretary, National Research Council of the Philippines
Ninth Pacific Science Congress
18 November — 9 December 1957
Sanitham Hall and Chulalongkorn University
Bangkok, Thailand
President: Air Marshall Muni M. Vejyant-Rangsrisht, Rector, Chulalongkorn University
Secretary-General: Dr. Charng Ratanarat, Director General, Department of Science
Tenth Pacific Science Congress
21 August — 6 September 1961
University of Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
President: Dr. Laurence H. Snyder, President, University of Hawaii
Secretary-General: Harold J. Coolidge, Executive Director, Pacific Science Board
Eleventh Pacific Science Congress
22 August — 10 September 1966
University of Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan
President: Dr. Shinichiro Tomonaga, President, Science Council of Japan
Secretary-General: Dr. Yoshio Hiyama, Professor, University of Tokyo
Twelfth Pacific Science Congress
18 August — 3 September 1971
Australian National University
Canberra, Australia
President: Sir Macfarlane Burnet, Emeritus Professor of Experimental Medicine, University of Melbourne
Secretary-General: Sir Otto Frankel, Senior Research Fellow, CSIRO
Thirteenth Pacific Science Congress
18 — 30 August 1975
University of British Columbia
Vancouver, Canada
President: Dr. Ian McTaggart Cowan, University of British Columbia
Secretary-General: Dr. W.S. Hoar, University of British Columbia
Fourteenth Pacific Science Congress
20 August — 1 September 1979
Academy of Sciences of the USSR
Khabarovsk, USSR
President: Academician A.V. Sidorenko, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow
Secretary-General: Dr. M.A. Drobyshev, Institute of Oriental Studies, Moscow
Fifteenth Pacific Science Congress
1 — 11 February 1983
University of Otago
Dunedin, New Zealand
President: Emeritus Professor J.A.R. Miles, University of Otago
Secretary-General: Professor C.F.W. Higham, Dept. of Anthropology, University of Otago
Sixteenth Pacific Science Congress
20 — 30 August 1987
Hotel Lotte
Seoul, Korea
President: Professor Tai Whan Shin, National Academy of Science of Korea
Secretary-General: Professor Choon Ho Park, Dept. of Law, University of Korea, Seoul
Seventeenth Pacific Science Congress
“Towards the Pacific Century: The Challenge of Change”
27 May — 2 June 1991
Sheraton Waikiki Hotel
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
President: Dr. W. Donald Duckworth, Director, Bishop Museum
Secretary-General: Dr. Nancy Davis Lewis, University of Hawaii
Eighteenth Pacific Science Congress
“Population, Resources and Environment: Prospects and Initiatives”
5 — 12 June 1995
Beijing, China
Chairman: Dr. Congbin Fu, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Vice-Chairman: Dr. Jingyi Liu, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Dr. Dianmo Li, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Nineteenth Pacific Science Congress
“Science for Pacific Posterity: Environments, Resources and Welfare of the Pacific Peoples”
4 — 9 July 1999
University of New South Wales
Sydney, Australia
President: National Academies Forum
Secretary-General: Dr. Bill O’Sullivan
Twentieth Pacific Science Congress
“Science & Technology for Healthy Environments”
17 — 21 March 2003
Sofitel Central Plaza Bangkok Hotel
Bangkok, Thailand
President: Dr. Wanasri Samanasena, Deputy Secretary-General, The National Research Council of Thailand
Secretary-General: Prof. Dr. Montri Chulavatnatol
Twenty-First Pacific Science Congress
“Diversity and Change: Challenges and Opportunities for Managing Natural and Social Systems in the Asia-Pacific”
12 - 16 June 2007
University of the Ryukyus
Okinawa, Japan
Twenty-Second Pacific Science Congress
2011
Date and Venue To Be Determined
Inter-Congresses of the Pacific Science Association
First Pacific Science Inter-Congress
5 — 9 May 1969
University of Malaya
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
President: Professor Chin Fung Kee, University of Malaya
Chairman, Liaison Committee: Professor A.J. Berry, University of Malaya
Second Pacific Science Inter-Congress
20 — 26 May 1973
University of Guam
Mangilao, Guam
Chairman: Dr. L.G. Eldredge, University of Guam
Third Pacific Science Inter-Congress
18 — 22 July 1977
Bali Beach Hotel
Bali, Indonesia
Chairman: Professor H. Tb. Bachtiar Rifai, Indonesian Institute of Sciences
Fourth Pacific Science Inter-Congress
1 — 5 September 1981
Hyatt Regency Hotel
Singapore
Chairman: Professor Huang Hsing Hua, National University of Singapore
Fifth Pacific Science Inter-Congress
3 — 7 February 1985
The Manila Hotel
Manila, Philippines
Honorary Chairman: Dr. Paulo C. Campos, National Research Council of Philippines
Chairman: Dr. Leland S. Valladolid, President, National Research Council of Philippines
Sixth Pacific Science Inter-Congress
7 — 10 August 1989
Federico Santa Maria University
Valparaiso, Chile
Chairman: Professor Francisco Orrego Vicuña, Institute of International Studies, University of Chile, Santiago
Seventh Pacific Science Inter-Congress
“The Pacific: Crossroads for Culture and Nature”
27 June — 3 July 1993
Okinawa, Japan
Chairperson: Dr. Keishin Sunagawa, University of the Ryukyus
Secretary-General: Dr. Eiki Senaha, University of the Ryukyus
Eighth Pacific Science Inter-Congress
“ Islands in the Pacific Century”
13 — 19 July 1997
University of the South Pacific
Suva, Fiji
Secretary-General: Dr. Mahendra Kumar, University of the South Pacific
Ninth Pacific Science Inter-Congress
“Sustainable Development in the Pacific”
15 — 19 November 1998
Academia Sinica
Taipei, China
Honorary Chairman: Dr. Yuan-Tseh Lee, President, Academia Sinica
Co-Chairmen: Dr. Shang-Fa Yang, Dr. Kuo-Shu Yang, & Dr. Chang-Hung Chou, Academia Sinica
Tenth Pacific Science Inter-Congress
“The Integration of Natural and Social Sciences in the New Pacific Millennium”
1 — 6 June 2001
Hilton Guam Resort and the University of Guam
Mangilao, Guam, USA
Secretary-General: Joyce Camacho, University of Guam
Eleventh Pacific Science Inter-Congress
First week of March 2009
Tahiti, French Polynesia