The following is a guide for those interested in submitting applications to host the 27th International Liquid Crystal Conference (Summer, 2018). The deadline for submissions is 31 January 2015, but people intending to submit applications are strongly urged to contact me well in advance. I will do my best to make sure that applications are in the proper format before they are sent to the ILCS Board for a vote. ILCS Board – http://www.lcinet.kent.edu/ILCS/main/page19/page19.html.
There is no form for the application, but applications should include the following information.
Name of city, address and short description of the conference locations.
Name and address of the prospective Conference Chairman, Conference Secretary and other members of the Organising Committee. Name and address (also telephone, fax and email of a person from whom further information can be requested). Please note experience in organising conferences.
Description of the facilities for the conference, including available lecture rooms and capacities, space for posters, copying facilities, internet connections, dining facilities, connection to public transport, parking.
Description of the types of accommodation: quality, price range, location, connection by public transport with the conference site, railway, airport.
Social facilities and program.
Provisional budget: expected expenses and receipts, planned registration fee, external sponsorship. Please note that a modest loan from the ILCS is possible to help with the expenses of planning the conference.
Any further information that you think will support your application.
In addition, to both expedite the application process and ensure fairness, I request that all submitted materials be electronic, suitable for sending either as a text file or as an attachment. (In the interest of simplicity, I suggest sending PDF files.) In the past, some applications have been accompanied by general brochures about the host city. Since Board members will not be able to consult these during the decision-making process, I do not believe they are particularly useful. Alternatively, a URL containing information about the host city and/or conference facilities could be consulted by Board members.
Finally, while it is both appropriate and desirable for local convention centres to assist in preparing a conference application, it is essential that there be full support from local and/or national scientific bodies. In the past, the actual application has always been submitted through such bodies.