Dear ICCM Members,
Now that we are all back home from the Barcelona conference, I’d like to share a few comments on the event. First of all, I believe we should all be pleased with the active participation, the spirit of shared curiousity and collaboration, and the simple pleasures of working, visiting and talking with one another. In my opinion, many other professional associations would wish to achieve these aspects. In the ICCM, this is the way we operate, and it is perhaps what is most important about our organisation.
To say that one conference has been “the best” so far, would be incorrect and impossible, particularly since we have a legacy of 13 successful events. In terms of numbers the Barcelona Conference clearly ranks well: we had a full 255 participants, while contributors from 35 countries shared their work through 48 paper presentations, 59 posters and 15 videos. Each of these overall achievements represents many communal and personal successes. The sessions dedicated to modern mosaics were received well and succeeded in our goal to expose our members to new materials, techniques and technologies.
The organization of the conference was outstanding, with all the volunteers showing the best of spirits despite the huge tasks undertaken and the difficult times currently experienced in Catalonia. Finally, we all worked hard, but we also had a lot of fun.
We renewed half the composition of our governing board, and some of our new board members are quite new to the ICCM itself. In fact, our entire International Committee benefits from a substantial share of young members, serving as eager volunteers in developing new projects and initiatives. At the same time, I would like to thank you for confirming with your vote the trust in the current governance of the Foundation. I can assure you that we will do our very best not to disappoint this trust.
These are the thoughts that are fresh in my mind as I return to my daily tasks. I’m sure that the conference will lead to much further thinking for all of us, and then to new planning, but I wanted to share these impressions with you now while the memory of Barcelona is still fresh.
As Barcelona conference enters into ICCM’s history, we will look ahead to thinking of the future: of Plovdiv 2020, and the other activities we intend to organise. Please continue to follow us on social media, and stay an active part of our strong and beautiful association.
https://it-it.facebook.com/friendsoficcm/
Looking forward to seeing you soon,
Roberto Nardi
ICCM
President