Dear colleagues and friends,

On behalf of the “Groupe Polyphénols” and the organizing committee, it is my great pleasure to cordially invite you to the XXIIIrd International Conference on Polyphenols in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from August 22nd to 25th, 2006.

This 23rd edition will be an occasion to celebrate the 34th anniversary of the group founding, and a great opportunity for scientists from all over the world to exchange their views and most recent findings on phenolics. The conference organizing and scientific committees are inviting prominent scientists, and are planning for great special events, in order to make your visit an outstanding experience both at the social and intellectual levels.

As most of you may notice, this will be the second time in the history of our group to meet in North America, 18 years after the first one was organized in 1988 in St. Catherines, Ontario, Canada by Drs. R. Ibrahim and T. Fuleki.

Let me first tell you more about Winnipeg and its diversity. Winnipeg is the capital of the province of Manitoba, and is known for its multiculturalism, with a population of around 700,000 people from diverse cultural backgrounds, bringing a cosmopolitan flare to the city. The average temperature in Winnipeg is about 25 °C (77 °F) day / 12 °C (54 °F) night during the summertime. Thanks to the geographical location of Winnipeg, you will be able to enjoy up to 16h of sunlight daily during your stay, with breathtaking sunsets. There are lots of sites to visit and things to do in and around Winnipeg. Every year in August, the city hosts the Folklorama festival, which is one of the biggest multicultural events in North America. Winnipeg is accessible by air from almost everywhere in the world and many national and international air companies provide direct flights to the City’s International Airport.

The University of Manitoba, established in 1877, is one of the oldest universities in Canada. Its education and research programs are dedicated to many areas including agriculture, art, architecture, medicine, business, and science. The interest for polyphenols involves many departments on campus including the Departments of Plant Science, Chemistry, Food Science, Nutrition and Human Ecology, as well as other health and functional food-related centres such as the Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals. On a different note, the university has been seen in many Hollywood movies such as in the 2004’s “Shall we dance” directed by Peter Chelsom, where the dancing scenes were filmed in Taché Hall's east gym of our campus.

Hosting the XXIIIrd International Conference on Polyphenols will be a great opportunity for me to meet you in person and for all of us to connect with each other.

I wish you all the best with your research programs and am looking forward to seeing you in Winnipeg.