ABOUT THE XXXII INTERNATIONAL
MEETING FOR THE STUDY OF MARINE MAMMALS

This meeting will be held from 2-6 May 2010 at Xalapa, capital city of the estate of Veracruz, Mexico. The official languages are Spanish and English.

Approximately 299 km away from Mexico city and 106 km away from the Veracruz harbor, Xalapa (“Sandy water place” or “spring of sandy water” in Nahuatl language) is located in the northern slope of the “Cofre de Perote” mountain. Some 1,427 m above the sea level, the city is favored with a tempered, sometimes-foggy weather, which contributes to the growth of thick vegetation, characteristic of all the panoramic views from the city.

Also called the “Mexican Athens”, Xalapa has a prolific cultural, intellectual and ecological life, which surrounds the local society, centered at the Universidad Veracruzana (University of Veracruz), and other research centers which shelter thousands of students from the state and the rest of the country. It is a mysterious and beautiful city, which favors a diverse and active social life, its emblematic characteristic for over a century.

On behalf of the Mexican Society for Marine Mastozoology (SOMEMMA), the Organizing Committee of the XXXII International Meeting for the Study of Marine Mammals welcomes you to Xalapa, we hope your visit is very productive in all academic, cultural and personal matters.

WELCOME!

SOMEMMA 2010

XALAPA, VERACRUZ, MÉXICO

ECO-FRIENDLY EVENT

As researchers of the environment and conscious citizens, it is our responsibility to minimize the impact of our actions to the environment. For this reason, we will develop an “eco-friendly” meeting, which ensures that all aspects of the event, including its location, food services, transportation and the provision of materials, are approached using pollution prevention measures in order to reduce its environmental impact.

Besides, an eco-friendly meeting represents an education opportunity for all the participants, organizers and suppliers, about the benefits of these types of reunions and provides a positive image for the organizers, in this case SOMEMMA. It is important to notice that this will be the First Eco-friendly meeting for SOMEMMA.

We will address as much environmental considerations as possible at every stage of SOMEMMA 2010, and include environmental factors in every decision to purchase a product or hire a service. During the meeting we will minimize the waste, water and energy consumption.

For this reason, we invite all the participants to join this cause and minimize their impact during the meeting. We will take actions such as:

Promote the use of recyclable water containers during the meeting, because there will be no bottled water, but we will have water distributors. For coffee we will have the old-fashioned washable mugs.
Once you use your badge, leave it in the recycling bins in order to use them again in the next meeting.
The Abstracts book and other conference materials will be given to you on a CD. If you’re interested in the printed version, you may say so in advance (during your registration process), and they will be printed in recycled paper.