If you book it, they will come

Andrzej Wróbel: Why organize the symposium here in Warsaw?

Konrad Słynarski: In Warsaw there is a group of ICRS members centered around Professor Jarosław Deszczyński. The society regards these people as trustworthy and reliable and we were asked to prepare and present an offer. Then the ICRS's representatives visited Warsaw to see the facilities. They were really pleased and finally decided to organize the event here. Warsaw actually beat more attractive cities.

How many participants do you expect to attend the conference?

Some 2,000 people.

What are the advantages of organizing a conference in Warsaw?

The first thing is the cost. The city is able to organize a good conference at a lower cost. The other thing is that the standard of this conference will be exactly the same as those held in San Diego and Gent in Belgium, where the last two congresses took place. The deciding factor which eliminated Glasgow [from the competition] was the high cost. Venice was out because they don't have an airport near the city.

Are there any major problems that the organizers might have here in Warsaw?

No, not really. We have received the support of City Hall, and ICRS representatives had a meeting with the former Deputy Mayor of Warsaw, Władysław Stasiak. We are still at a stage where there are some things to complete [but] I can only say that the general director of the congress, who was here in Warsaw last week, was really satisfied.