I was given the honor of officially opening the conference, where I was able to welcome all the participants on behalf of ISB and publicly thank the ISB for its support, comment on the discipline-diversity of the participants and the challenge-potential of phenological research, closing with thankfulness for the positive contribution of conferences like this one to international cooperation and future benefits for science and society.
I also served as editor of a new book entitled “Phenology: An Integrative Environmental Science” for Kluwer Academic Publishers which was published in October. The book is 592 pages long, and has 33 chapters, including contributions from 14 commission members. Additional detail can be viewed at: .