Preparations for our 66th International Council of Psychologists annual conference in St Petersburg is by now well under way and there is great enthusiasm being demonstrated by colleagues all over the world. We have attracted participants from various countries and our four rooms for the two conference days are fully booked with seminars, workshops and paper presentations. Topics are varied and inspiring. Amongst them we have three well known keynote speakers: Professor A. Rean from Russia, Prof. V. Sitnikov also from Russia and Prof. Anna Laura Comunian from Italy. Prof. Rean will be speaking about families of the risk group, focusing on strategy and the technology of work. Prof. Sitnikov will be speaking about the problems and outlook of the Russian family. Prof. Comunian will be focusing on the cross-cultural perspective of parental acceptance-rejection.

As advised in the past, our conference has been scheduled to overlap with the 3rdInternational Conference on Teaching of Psychology (ICOPE): http://www.ictp-2008.spb.ru, also in St. Petersburg (from July 12 – 16th ) and to closely precede the XXIX International Congress of Psychology in Berlin, Germany (from July 20 – 25th ): www.icp2008.org. A fourth conference, Cross-Cultural Psychology to be held in Bremen, Germany, follows the IUPsyS Berlin congress.  ICP is collaborating on a session to be presented at the ICTP conference in St. Petersburg and hopes to sponsor a symposium for the Berlin conference. As this is a unique opportunity to attend four major conferences with minimal travel we encourage you look into this.

Other conferences you might also want to look into, around same time are:
4th Biennial Psychology Learning and Teaching Conference (PLAT2008) July 1-3, 2008, Bath, United Kingdom  http://www.psychology.heacademy.ac.uk/plat2008
International Association for Research in Economic Psychology (IAREP) Annual Conference July 5-8, Paris, France  http://team.univ-paris1.fr/iarp-sabe2006

Second International Congress on Interpersonal Acceptance and Rejection, July 5-8, Crete, Greece  www.isiparweb.org

The Organizing Committee is working hard to offer exceptional social and artistic activities (e.g. the Russian Opera and Ballet, a visit to Ivan Pavlov’s Office and the Tower of Silence). Keep checking our website for updated information.
Because the visa application process may take up to three months, I encourage you attain one immediately, if you plan to attend. In order to attain your visa you need to get an invitation from hotel Azimut first. If you have not yet registered in the hotel, you need now to do this on your own. It is possible that hotel rooms are now booked, so you may need to look into other venues, hopefully nearby and the hotel Azimut might be able to advise you if they can not host you.  If you get visa through a hotel your visa will be a tourist not business one. If you are not getting visa through a hotel you may need to check with your Russian Embassy about requirements. They may require documented confirmation of both your acceptance as a participant in the conference and of your accommodations. If so, let me know and I will mail you an invitation to participate in the conference. You may also need confirmation of registration and accommodation. We continue to advise on all these issues regularly, through our website.

I am most enthusiastic that this conference will prove to be both an excellent professional meeting and a most rewarding journey in many ways. ICP is dedicated to continuing its tradition of bringing together psychologists from many countries and promoting collaboration involving a full range of psychological perspectives. The Conference will provide opportunities to learn the latest ideas and research conducted by scholars around the world.

Submission of papers, seminars, symposiums and workshops are no longer accepted.

We are looking forward to seeing old friends, meet new ones again and welcoming you in St Petersburg in 2008.

We recommend that you stay at the Azimut Hotel or Top Hotel Ambassador.  The Azimut is a 3 star hotel 840 meters from metro, 12-15 minutes to the university, with transfer. By foot it takes only 20 minutes, along the embankment. It is located in the very center of St. Petersburg, near the historical parts of the city, rivers and canals. You can also have a beautiful overview of the gold cupolas, theaters and cathedrals from the eighteenth floor of the hotel. There is a restaurant. You can see the hotel and gain more information from its website:
www.st-petersburg.net/hotels/sovietskaya.htm and make reservations through:
www.hotelclub.net/hotel.reservations/Azimut_Hotel_St_Petersburg.htm

If you have any problems through these websites, you can contact the hotel manager, Ms Suverneva Darya, directly at” dsuverneva@azimuthotels.ru  The room prices (as of 6th November 07) were: business one bed – 3000 rub ($122, E83); business 2 bed – 4000 rub ($163, E111); business deluxe one bed – 3500 ($143, E97), business deluxe 2 bed – 4500rub ($185, E125). The currency exchange at this time is approximately 1 dollar to 24.6 Rubles and 1 Euro to 35.9 Rubles.  University students will be helping delegates needing assistance to maneuver the transport system.

If the Azimut Hotel is already booked and no longer accepting reservations, you can look at the ones below or check you may also check MAPQUEST for maps:

1. The "Top Ambassador" is a more luxurious 4-star hotel. The price is about 200-230 Euro for a single to double room. It offers many amenities. Each room is equipped with air-conditioning, Internet access, direct international and inter-city telephone line, interactive and satellite TV, a mini-bar and a safe. The hotel building is a unique complex which combines an architectural monument of the 19th century and a modern building with central atrium. There are 255 comfortable rooms in the hotel, including Economy, Standard, Superior, Studio, and Suites and rooms equipped for handicap access All the rooms have a beautiful view on the historic city center, courtyard or Rimsky-Korsakov avenue. There are 2 restaurants and 2 bars in the hotel and a 24 hour fitness center.  The hotel offers airport and rail station transfers and special VIP escort service to get through customs easily.
Reservations at : http://www.ambassador.spb.ru or call the reservation department: +7 (812) 331-93-07, Fax: +7 (812) 331-93-00 or e-mail: info@ambassador-hotel.ru

2. Hotel Moscow” www.hotel-moscow.ru/russian/home.htm, a 3-star hotel,  tel: +7(812) 333-2-444 fax:+7(812) 274-2130 servis@hotel-moscow.ru.  Prices are around 130 Euro. The metro station is situated in the same building.

3. Rossiya” www.rossiya-hotel.ru, a 3-star hotel 10 min from metro. Prices around 130 Euro. Hotel is 10 min from metro.

4. Saint-Petersburg Hotel”, a 3-star hotel located in the middle of the city with magnificent panoramic vies. Prices are from 3050 to 4650 Rubles.

Prices will vary so it is advisable you keep checking your hotel of choice. To do money conversion look at Yahoo currency converter: finance.yahoo.com/currency

July 2007 is a Spring-like weather, approximately 20-25 in Celcium  (60s to low 70s Fahrenheit), rarely raining, so you don’t need to be worried about having air-conditioners.

Dr M. Consuelo Barreda-Hanson, ICP President Elect
Chair of the 2008 Conference Organizing Committee.
Email: cbarreda-hanson@iom.int or (for long attachments) cbarredahanson@yahoo.com