Meeting of the IGBP National Committees at the 4th IGBP Congress

One of the elements of the IGBP congress was the two-day meeting of the national committees (NCs) in the Stellenbosch Botanical Garden. This meeting aimed to improve the regional networks by recognizing important regional differences but by learning from exchanging information and experiences with, for example, training, integrative projects, data sharing and linking science, policy and other stakeholders. The meeting provided an excellent opportunity to discuss and enhance the (future) role and structure of the NCs and improve the link with IGBP, the other global environmental change programmes and ESSP. The meeting encompassed regional break-out sessions, and there was agreement on the usefulness of continuing to work on the regional level.