[Air-l] FW: BIC2003 Update (Saint-Petersburg, June 30 - July 02, 2003)

[Michael Gurstein]

-----Original Message-----
From: Sergei Stafeev [mailto:gard at gard.spb.org]
Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 9:53 AM
To: mgurst at vcn.bc.ca
Subject: BIC2003 Update (Saint-Petersburg, June 30 - July 02, 2003)


Dear Colleagues,

After the intensive preparatory process for the Conference "Building the
 Information Commonwealth: Informational Technologies and Prospects
of Development of the Civil Society Institutions in CIS Countries" (BIC2003)
which will take place in Saint-Petersburg on the June 30 - July 02, 2003 we
are delighted to inform you that all needed arrangements connected to the
Conference have been made and we encourage you to renew all preparations
for your participation in the Conference.

The main purpose of this conference is to achieve a critical understanding
of the
current state and prospects for using modern Information and communication
technologies (ICTs) to support the formation of  civil society institutions
within
the CIS territories.

Also the conference will be focused on the creation of a networking
structure for
non-profit and civil society organizations currently undertaking ICT
projects in the
CIS countries;  the creation of a research network in this field; and on
planning
common activities and positions within the frame of the WSIS preparatory
process.

At the updated Conference website: http://www.communities.org.ru/conference
you
can find all information you need concerning structure of the conference and
practical
matters concerning your participation.

Travel

The conference will take place in the town of Zelenogorsk, a suburb of Saint
Petersburg
(Zelenogorsk  is a famous formerly Finnish resort Terioki), 30 min. from St.
Petersburg by
bus or train. Please, visit  our website to learn how to reach Saint
Petersburg and the
Conference place (buttons <Transportation> and <Travel tips>).

The Conference' venue is located in a pine forest, 100 meters from the
Finnish gulf. Also
this has allowed us to suggest intensive after-hours program for our
attendees during St.
Petersburg+s magical "White Nights"+when the sun never sets+(for instance,
we are
going to celebrate the day of Ivan (Ivan-Kupala) with traditional Russian
and Finnish rites.

Accommodation

Two hotels are located near the place where the conference will take place:
Gelios Hotel
(3 and 1/2 Stars) and Northern Riviera boarding-house.

Click on the button <Accommodation> to learn the opportunities of
accommodation and
prices. We recommend you to reserve hotel rooms as soon as possible. Please,
note the
both hotels require prepayment when you book a room.

Russian visa

Click on the button <Russian visa> to learn about how to get Russian visa in
the most
convenience way. We recommend you to arrange the visa for tourists, because
Russian
business visa is expensive and is very time consuming.

Registration Fee

Please, take into your account  that the payment of the registration fee is
a principal
condition for most non-CIS participants and also for participants from state
institutions,
business and international organizations in CIS countries to take a part in
the Conference*.
"Early bird" rates are valid until 17 of May 2003.

There is an online system for payment of registration fees opened on the
page
"Registration". You can pay by credit card or bank remittance on our
account.
In exceptional cases you can pay the registration fee personally after your
arrival .
Please, contact organizers in this case and in case if you have any problems
or
questions as regards of fee payment. As an additional security feature, we
would
ask that as you are making your electronic remittance, that you also inform
us of
this by email to <bic2003 at mail.ru>

Please be aware that when you make your payment you should fill out a new
registration form (even if you have sent us an email telling us that you are
planning
to attend). This makes sure that all your information is correct as well as
your paper
will be included in the conference proceedings (which will be published
after the
conference). The registration form is placed on the page "Registration" as
well.

*except the cases discussed individually.


Your presentation at the BIC2003

We kindly ask our speakers whose papers were affirmed for presentation at
the
Conference to provide us the following information for logistic reasons if
you haven't
already done so:

1. The name and length of your presentation (to a maximum of 25 Minutes)
2. Any technical support you will need for your presentation.*

*Please note that a limited number of LEDs, slide and overhead projectors,
will be available.  Internet access will be available for use in the plenary
presentations.
Other requirements should be indicated directly to the conference organizers
at
<BIC2003 at mail.ru>

The detailed program of the conference will be accessible through our
website from
the 25th of May.

Looking forward to see you in St. Petersburg !

Best regards,

BIC2003  Organizing Committee

E-mail: <BIC2003 at mail.ru>

http://www.communities.org.ru/conference