As 2017 draws to a close, I’d like to take the opportunity to wish all our members a very Happy Christmas and festive season.
It’s been a year of significant highlights for many of our member societies, with IITPSA marketing its 60th Anniversary, ICS and INRIA celebrating their 50th Birthdays while the ACM marked the 50th Anniversary of its Turing Awards.
On the technology front, AI and Big Data have been the focus of significant attention and development efforts and that will only increase next year as these technologies continue to advance in new and often unexpected directions.
As we look forward to 2018, keep one eye focused on Poznan, Poland, where preparations are continuing for the World Computer Congress (WCC 2018) in September next year. WCC is IFIP’s flagship conference and will bring together 17 specialist companion workshops and conferences under the WCC banner, as well as a cybersecurity Capture the Flag contest, so mark your calendar and plan to take part in this exciting multi-faceted event.
We will be engaging with various UN bodies to take part in WSIS, AI for Good and CTAD events throughout the first half of the year, each of which offer significant opportunities for IFIP to influence and contribute to discussions and initiatives to use technology to solve real-world problems.
We’re also working behind the scenes to enhance our website presence, so stay tuned for some significant changes at ifip.org
Thank you for your interest in IFIP, and if you have played an active role in any IFIP events or activities throughout the year then I trust that was a meaningful and rewarding experience.
2018 will offer new and unique opportunities for us to explore and collaborate on new frontiers in the application of technology for the benefit of society. I invite you to join us in this adventure.
