Blue skies (thinking and meteorology)

As the sunlight shimmers on the River Corrib as it wends its way through the campus and students sweat out the heat in the examination halls (isn't it always thus?) the Symposium gradually draws near and so we thought we'd update you on progress.

We are absolutely delighted to announce that, not only will we be joined by the Chair of Ireland's Higher Education Authority, but also the Presidents of 2 Irish Universities (NUIG and DCU).

The detailed programme for the event will be posted on the official conference website very soon and when it's ready we'll link directly to it here. Suffice to say for the moment, that it looks action packed and with lots of scope for discussion and interchange. The conference packs are also beginning to take shape and thanks to the generosity of a couple of organisations (including the UK's Higher Education Academy) we should have plenty of useful materials to disseminate.

We would also like to invite participants to book a ticket for the Symposium Social Event, which we hope this year will be rather special and provide an excellent opportunity to continue the debate and discussion in a lively and convivial atmosphere. The description on the original booking form didn’t, we feel, do justice to what we have planned for the evening and although many people have signed up for it, there is still scope for additional tickets to be requested.

The event will take place on the university Campus, by the river (in the Corrib Room which is attached to the University Bar) on the Thursday evening from 7.00pm. Weather permitting we will be able to sit in the patio/decking area. The entertainment will be provided by a group of well-established professional musicians offering a traditional Irish music ‘session’. The food will be based on a sophisticated interpretation of the “Barbeque” concept and the menu, for example, includes lemon and garlic marinated chicken; salmon in citrus; coriander pork ribs; stuffed peppers; salads; desserts and drinks.

You can book your place at the Symposium by visiting http://www.conference.ie/Conferences/AddRegistration.asp?Conference=50