The Scientific Organizing Committee, led by Drs Stammer, Wu, Qiao and Goddard, have developed an exciting scientific programme – see clivar2016.org for latest details;  the Local Organizing Committee, chaired by Xiaopei Lin of OUC and Yafeng Yang of FIO are now feverously working on the final details to make sure the programme runs smoothly and to ensure that your stay in Qingdao as pleasant and interesting as possible.  

OSC Day 1

Remember that Day 1 (Monday 19 September) will be held at the home institution of our hosts – the Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (QNLM), that is located about 40 kilometers from the Hyatt.   Detailed information about transportation will be posted on the clivar2016.org website and included in the Conference book.  We will return at the end of the day for an icebreaker reception at the Hyatt.

Early Career Scientists Symposium

The ECSS programme is near finalization;   135 ECS from 34 countries will take part on the Sunday before and the weekend after the OSC. Our host, SOA’s First Institute of Oceanography, is preparing everything from break out rooms for the seven working groups to a delicious Chinese banquet for all participants. See clivar2016.org for more info.

Posters

Final count is 500 posters, including posters forming 13poster clusters.  As announced, places have been reserved only for poster presenters who have registered and paid their fee by 31 July or have told us why there is a delay.   See clivar2016.org for poster dimensions etc.  You will soon receive a message from Lei Han with info about your poster session.

Town Halls

Many groups have taken advantage of the option to hold a one hour session in the evenings to discuss future plans.   We even have spill over to Thursday afternoon.  Topics include ocean and climate modelling, ocean observing system, Chinese plans for satellite based observations, paleoclimate, glacier melt, Future Earth, the CLIVAR Science Plan, the Indo-Pacific teleconnection, Year of the Maritime Continent and WCRP’s future.   Free beer and sandwiches will be served between the two evening sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Getting to Qingdao

September is still high season so we advise you to reserve your plane tickets as early as possible.

If you are flying from abroad there are many options to get to Qingdao (TAO), including via Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo.   There are many connecting flights daily from each of these cities.

Visas

By now everyone who requires an official invitation for visa purposes should have requested and received one.  Contact your nearest Chinese consulate or visa agent to make sure that you do not need any additional document from a Chinese government agency.  If you do, please send a request to Lina.kang@clivar.org cc info@clivar2016.org as soon as possible and no later than 15 August to ensure that we have sufficient time to generate the documents and for your consulate to process them.

Getting from the airport to your hotel

The only practical way to get from the airport to your hotel is with a taxi.  Taxis in Qingdao are very inexpensive and there are usually plenty available in the basement between the two terminals.   Do not take taxis from outside in front of the terminals.   More info is available on the conference website.   Look for our OSC volunteers waiting to assist you just outside of the customs/arrivals area.

Hotels

There are still a few rooms left at the conference rate at the Hyatt but some room types are available only on certain days.  In the event of any problems or questions about your reservation, please contact Ms. Quinn Han (quinn.han@hyatt.com) at the Hyatt Regency Qingdao.   See clivar2016.org for details about this and other hotels in the area.

Registration

You must have a badge to access the conference venues and to get on the bus to QNLM on Monday morning.  The registration desk in the Hyatt lobby will be open from noon till 11pm on Sunday 18 September and starting at 7am on Monday 19 September.  We urge everyone who can to register on Sunday to ensure that we leave for QNLM on time on Monday.   It will be possible to register onsite, but only via online payment;   we cannot accept any cash payments.