Dublin wins €4.2m Quaternary Congress for 2019

The Irish Quaternary Association (IQUA) has announced the success of its bid to host the 20th Congress of the International Union for Quaternary Science (INQUA) in Dublin in 2019. The congress is worth an estimated €4.2m (US$4.68m) to the Irish economy. Dublin was selected over candidate cities Zaragoza (Spain) and Rome (Italy) during a competitive tender. The congress takes place every four years and was held this year in Nagoya, Japan, where the bids for 2019 were presented. Up to 3,000 delegates are expected to attend the congress in 2019, for a seven-day programme at The Convention Centre Dublin, with further extended excursions throughout Ireland, Northern Ireland and parts of the UK. Catherine Dalton, president of IQUA said: “The congress will showcase the Irish landscape, promote Ireland’s research reputation, facilitate the dissemination of our research activities to a wider audience and attract world-class scientists to the country. “The successful award of the 2019 INQUA Congress truly demonstrates an accomplishment far beyond what would be expected given the relatively small size of our academic community.” Welcoming the win for Dublin, Miriam Kennedy, head of Business Tourism, Fáilte Ireland, said: “Fáilte Ireland was delighted to support the bid for this conference through our Conference Ambassador programme which provides assistance to Irish members to bring their international association conferences to these shores. International conferences are a key target within our plans to grow tourism in Ireland. With the average delegate worth three times more than a holidaymaker, international conferences sustain and grow tourism businesses throughout the year – particularly outside the summer season. This conference alone is worth an estimated €4.2m to the Irish economy, so we were delighted to work with Pete Coxon from Trinity College to support the bid.” Nick Waight, CEO of The Convention Centre Dublin, added: “We are delighted to have been chosen as the venue for this prestigious scientific meeting and look forward to welcoming it to Dublin for the first time.” Ireland-based Keynote PCO worked with the Irish committee to secure the event and MD Dr Noel Mitchell said: “We’re very pleased that INQUA has awarded this prestigious congress to Ireland, and recognised the efforts of the Irish society in its proposal as hosts for a global audience”. The Quaternary Period spans the last 2.6m years of the Earth’s history. The Quaternary is an interval with dramatic and frequent changes in global climate; warm interglacials alternated with cold ice ages. Changes from one to the other have left their mark on the Irish landscape. Irish-derived words for such features like drumlins and eskers have entered the international lexicon. Quaternary paleoclimate investigations play a key role in the understanding of the possible future climate change on our planet.