Sh@ring. Sharing is central to EnviroInfo 2004¹ , which will take place at CERN² in Geneva on October 21, 22 and 23, 2004. Sharing of technologies. Sharing of data and know-how. Sharing of experiences.

For its 18th edition, the International Conference Informatics for Environmental Protection is dedicated to sharing, in accordance with the principles of sustainable development between North and South, between scientists and public administrations, between citizens and public administrations, via e-government projects, between scientists and experts in information technologies, via the transfer of know-how, between public administrations themselves, and via the coordination of their information systems. The conference will be preceded by the annual conference of the European Environment Information and Observation Network , which will be organised in Archamps (Haute-Savoie, France) on October 20 and 21 2004.

The will to encourage sharing is illustrated by the topics that will be discussed during the three days of the conference, which include environmental impacts of the information society, environment and health, sharing data for regional risk management, and sharing environmental knowledge and technologies. It is also illustrated by the participation of several representatives from emerging countries. The Sahel and Sahara Observatory will be represented by its Executive Secretary. Experts from Mongolia, Mozambique, Georgia and India have also confirmed their presence.

Sharing is illustrated by the structure of the conference itself. EnviroInfo 2004 is organised with the support of partners from public and private sectors. These include various UN Agencies, the European Environment Agency, the Rhône-Alpes region (France), the Geneva International Academic Network, and of course CERN, which is pleased to host the conference on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. Private sponsors are mostly IT firms (ESRI, Sun Microsystems, Oracle, Cognos, Thales, Solog, Orbital).

Sharing is illustrated by the people attending the conference. These include Jacqueline McGlade, Executive Director of the European Environment Agency, Robert Aymar, Director General of CERN, and Robert Cramer, President of the Geneva State Council. Some 500 participants around the world will discuss the state of the art in the field. They represent science, economics, civil society, international organisations and public administrations.

Details and registration: www.enviroinfo2004.org
Conference Chairman : Philippe Minier – enviroinfo@etat.ge.ch
Press Contact : Claire Kaplun – kapluncl@freesurf.ch

1. EnviroInfo 2004 is the 18th International Conference Informatics for Environmental Protection dedicated to the sharing of information between scientists, public administrations, private and public firms and final users of environmental informatics. Organised at the initiative of the German Informatics Society (GI), it will take place in Geneva after having been held in Germany, in Austria and in France, among other places. The 2005 edition will take place in Brno, Czech Republic.
2. CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, has its headquarters in Geneva. At present, its Member States are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. India, Israel, Japan, the Russian Federation, the United States of America, Turkey, the European Commission and UNESCO have observer status. CERN Council is the body in which the representatives of the 20 Member States of the Organization decide on scientific programmes and financial resources.