This meeting is but one arm of the TTS strategy to engage with younger members of the Society. We have been very proactive in making our International Congress attractive and relevant for our younger members. Registration fees for fellows in training or those undertaking a higher degree are only $150 USD, which is very competitive for a meeting of this nature. Our program committee has put together an innovative and forward-looking program. There are Young Investigator Scientific Awards and International Transplantation Science Mentee - Mentor Awards. We have established a Young Member Committee, chaired by Dr. Elmi Muller, which has organized special networking events at the Congress to allow younger members to meet and share experiences and ideas as well as develop international links with other trainees in transplantation.

Planning for our meeting is continuing at a pace. Abstract submissions have just closed and the large number of abstracts has gone out to reviewers. It is anticipated that submitters will get notification of the outcome by April 15. Early bird registration deadline is May 16. I am looking forward to meeting many of you at our Congress in Hong Kong and I recommend you read how the program is progressing in other articles in this edition of the Tribune.

As well as organizing our congress, the TTS Council has been busy with many other initiatives. We continue to collaborate with the WHO in the Notify project to provide a resource for health authorities, organ donor agencies and transplant professionals to assist them with managing risk of disease transmission from donation of Medical Products of Human Origin (MPHO) including organ transplants. In November last year, I attended a meeting of the Notify steering committee in Bologna, Italy, with the objective of seeing how the Notify Library could be better disseminated through all jurisdictions and be more accessible to users. This is one of several initiatives which have been done in partnership with other societies to improve the safety of MPHO and ensure that donors are treated safely and ethically. Many of these joint initiatives have been undertaken in partnership with the WHO. Hence it was pleasing to be informed by the WHO Executive Board that they have agreed to continue to include The Transplantation Society in official relations with the World Health Organization. As a result, we look forward to working with Dr. José Nuñez Peña of the WHO on our joint initiatives over the next triennium.

Finally, and on a happier note, I would like to congratulate Francis Delmonico on his recent appointment to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. This is a prestigious appointment that was made as a result of his scientific contributions without reference to his ethnicity or religion. Rather, it is deserved recognition of his lifelong contribution to the defense and propagation of ethical organ donation. In part, it is a testament to his uncompromising stand in defense of the ethical approach to transplantation. On behalf of all of us I would like to congratulate Frank on this remarkable achievement and I urge you all to read the more detailed article of his appointment in this issue of the Tribune.

The Transplantation Society is very proud to know that Francis Delmonico has been appointed by Pope Francis to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in February 2016. The Academy was formed by Pope Pius XI in 1936. The aim of the Pontifical Academy is the promotion of mathematical, physical and natural sciences. Selection for the Academy is based on the candidate’s “original scientific studies and moral personality without consideration of the candidate’s ethnic or religious background”. The Academy organizes meetings to promote the progress of science and the solution of scientific-technical problems that are important to mankind. In 2006, the Academy published the report of one of these meetings on the validity of the concept of brain death; entitled “Why the concept of brain death is a valid concept of death”. The Academy contains some of the most eminent scientists from around the globe. Since 1936, there have been 49 Nobel laureates who have been appointed to the Academy. Current eminent members include Werner Arber, David Baltimore, Francis Collins, Suzanne Cory, Stephen Hawking, Erna Moller, Yuan Tseh Lee, Takashi Gojobori, Stanislas Dehaene, and Ryōji Noyori. Previous Academy members who were involved in the transplant field include Alexis Carel, Joseph Murray and Erna Moller. Francis Delmonico is the immediate Past President of TTS and has been elected to the Academy in recognition of his outstanding contribution to transplantation. He has made a lifelong contribution to promotion of ethical organ donation and prevention of organ trafficking. He is the Chief Medical Officer of the New England Organ Bank. On behalf of TTS, I would like to congratulate Frank on this outstanding achievement, which is fitting recognition of his lifelong work in the field.

Our Program Committee has been hard at work putting together an engaging and informative lineup of session topics and speakers. In addition to TTS President, Philip J. O’Connell, our plenary speakers will include Christophe Legendre (Impact of Complement Binding and Non-binding Antibodies on Rejection), Marina Berenguer (Magnitude of Hepatitis C in Solid Organ Transplantation), and Felix Meissner (Proteomics: Eavesdropping on Communicating Immune Cells).

Not only are our longstanding members and followers offering their usual sizeable contributions to this event, we are also noticing a growing interest from students and young leaders in the field. An unprecedented number of Asian specialists have also come onboard to share their specific expertise on living donation. New perspectives, priceless knowledge, fresh ideas, and groundbreaking experience will all play a vital role in making this edition of the International Congress a must on your summer to-do list.

The Headquarters team has also been working closely with its local partners in Hong Kong and is very excited about everything this wonderful destination has to offer. Whether you are looking to marvel at a world famous skyline, indulge in new and exciting culinary experiences, or shop to your heart’s content, Hong Kong is sure to have just the thing to make your stay as enjoyable as it will be educational. With a destination that is easy to reach, having affordable accommodation, and an overall family-friendly atmosphere, there is no excuse not to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to discover this diverse metropolis.

We are also proud to offer extremely low registration rates for students, fellows, trainees and allied health professionals, as well as a very beneficial early bird registration for all. Make sure to take advantage of these discounted rates by registering by May 16, 2016!

For those who want to show their support for the worldwide educational initiative that is the TTS Congress and take on a true leadership role in medical education, transplantation science and global ethical practices, the Organizing Committee is offering a multitude of diversified and customizable sponsorship opportunities to guarantee that your particular goals are met. There is no better time or place to communicate your brand to the rapidly rising transplant community in Asia – Hong Kong being by far one of the most strategic markets for entering new territories and broadening your reach, not to mention showing a true dedication to the progression of the industry. We are committed to building fruitful partnerships and working closely with all of those willing to contribute to this endeavor we all hold near and dear to our hearts. Stay tuned and informed about our progress through our monthly congress newsletter.

The Declaration of Istanbul Custodian Group’s (DICG) Board of Councillors has come to its annual transition-point. A third group of Councillors has completed its second three-year term and new members have now joined for a new term.

Six new Councillors have just been elected to serve from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2018. This includes Somchai Eiam-Ong (Thailand) and John Gill (Canada), proposed by the International Society of Nephrology (ISN); Nancy Ascher (USA) and Haibo Wang (China), proposed by TTS; and Mirela Bušić (Croatia) and Riadh Fadhil (Qatar), proposed by the Nominating Committee.

At the end of 2015, six members left the Board including Alex Capron, Jeremy Chapman, Gabriel Danovitch (outgoing DICG Co-Chair), Vivek Jha, Adeera Levin and Faissal Shaheen. We look forward to their continuing involvement in the DICG as far as proposing people who are working to further the principles of the Declaration as potential DICG members, and their participation whenever the general membership of the DICG gathers.

In 2008, the ISN and TTS worked on preparing content for the Istanbul Declaration on Organ Trafficking and Transplant Tourism. Their efforts culminated in the Declaration being finalized at the International Summit in Istanbul, Turkey.

After a series of meetings, the TTS and ISN created a Declaration of Istanbul Custodian Group (DICG) to shepherd activities of the community including interactions with public and professional groups, governments and patients. A set of working groups was created to foster and track activities worldwide, so that demonstrable progress in the fight against transplant tourism and organ trafficking can be made.

Read more about the Declaration of Istanbul and the Custodian Group by visiting the website at www.declarationofistanbul.org

TTS is pleased to announce the latest list of transplant centers that have been accepted into the ISN-TTS Sister Transplant Center Program. These centers will take part in this program in 2016 following a call for applications in September 2015.

The ISN-TTS Sister Transplant Center Program is a joint partnership set up between TTS and The International Society of Nephrology (ISN) to create new kidney transplant centers and develop existing kidney transplant programs in emerging countries.

This initiative encourages transplant centers to work together to increase opportunities for kidney transplant patients in developing countries. An experienced transplant center in the developed world lends its support to an emerging transplant center to facilitate vital multidisciplinary training and encourage both centers to exchange their knowledge and expertise. The results are beneficial to both sides. Supporting centers get involved in global health, spread ethical and competent transplantation to regions of the world with limited or no current access to transplantation. Emerging centers connect with a multidisciplinary team of international experts in transplantation from a world-leading center.

For further information please visit the ISN-TTS website at: www.tts.org/affiliations/initiatives/isn-tts-sister-transplant-center-program.

Continuing on from a successful 2015 program, the Education Committee Core Curriculum webinars are in full swing for 2016. Late last year, Dr. Kim Solez gave a fantastic overview of renal transplant pathology and how it is likely to evolve over time; and Dr. Jeremy Chapman discussed the problem of cancers in renal transplant recipients. This calendar year began in February with Drs. Dominique Martin and Francis Delmonico discussing the principles of organ transplantation, with particular focus on the ethical issues involved in the selection of recipients; and was followed in March with a engaging presentation by Dr. Daniel Abramowicz on the processes of recipient assessment and evaluation. All webinar recordings are posted on the TTS website under the ‘Education’ tabbed section, and we remind our members that Enduring ACCME credits for this series can be claimed for up to two months after each presentation.

Another Trainee Track series of webinars is under development, and scheduled to begin in the spring of 2016. The potential topics that would be addressed in the series are tailored to the needs of transplant trainees around the world and would be modified on the basis of on-going feedback.

The Education Committee also wishes to draw the attention of the members to the rich content under the “Education Library”. The library has materials from multiple sources - including webinars and presentations from past congresses - and users have the ability to filter content using the online search engine available at the link. The Library is being continuously refined with new material added monthly.

The TTS Education Committee is also pleased to endorse a comprehensive course in kidney transplantation prepared by experts at the University of Leiden, the Netherlands. Hosted on the Coursera platform, this is a self-paced course that starts from the basics of transplant, immunology and goes on to discuss immunosuppression management, transplant complications etc. There is the possibility of taking an exam with each module. To learn more about the course corriculum and to sign up, please visit the course page on the TTS website at www.tts.org/education/courses
/126-education/1994-clinical-kidney-transplantation-course.

Finally, as part of the TTS Congress taking place in August, Drs. Vivek Jha and Marcelo Cantarovich are co-chairing the clinical section of the 2016 Postgraduate Education program. The program includes clinical, basic science, organ donation and a pediatric concurrent session. The full program will be announced shortly and will include special features on grant writing skills.

The Ethics Committee would like to thank all those who participated in its recent research projects. Analysis of data collected from the 2015 survey investigating psychosocial evaluation of living organ donors is now complete, and a summary report of the results will be published on the TTS website in the coming months. A journal publication is also under preparation.

The working group investigating professional experiences of ethical issues in donation and transplantation is currently analyzing the data from the survey conducted earlier this year. A number of people have written to the Committee expressing interest in its activities; we hope to provide more opportunities for TTS members to be involved in the work of the committee in the future, and believe the results of this most recent survey will help to ensure our future activities address the priority concerns of TTS membership.

In November, a number of Committee members working on current research projects were privileged to participate in a meeting in Doha organized by Professor Riadh Fadhil at the Qatar Organ Donation Center, hosted by the Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC). Together with Dr. José Nuñez Peña from the World Health Organization, and colleagues from HMC, Committee members contributed to a fascinating ethics symposium for HMC professionals and participated in a one day workshop focused on the Committee’s research projects.

A number of ethical topics will be covered in the program of the upcoming Congress in Hong Kong, and we hope to see many TTS members at these sessions. Please take the opportunity during the Congress to connect with members of the Ethics Committee and discuss any ideas you may have for our future activities. In the meantime, please write to us if you wish to get in touch.

The Transplantation Science Committee of TTS is partnering with Asian Society of Transplantation (CAST) for a Regional Transplantation Science Symposium in Tokyo, April 8th-9th. Chaired by Professors Shiro Takahara and Haruhito, this meeting will feature updates on the topics of T-/B-cell immunity, microbiota, senescence, T-cell exhaustion, and novel regenerative medicine approaches, combined with an update on clinical transplantation.

The Transplantation Science Committee is also partnering with FOCIS in 2016. FOCIS (Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies) is a state-of-the-art meeting highlighting translational immunology, and brings leading clinicians and researchers together to focus on molecular pathways and implications on human disease. The 2016 meeting will be at the Seaport Hotel & World Trade Center in Boston from June 22nd- 25th. The Transplantation Science Committee will be sponsoring a session featuring ‘Immunologic Crossroads in Transplantation’, a set of point-counterpoint presentations on major current issues in transplantation featuring Tolerance vs Immunosuppression Minimization and Xenotransplantation vs Tissue Engineering/Stem cells for organ replacement. Continuing a long-tradition, the Transplantation Science Committee will also co-sponsor an additional symposium with the American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics (ASHI) titled ‘Eating into Transplantation Tolerance’.

The highlight of the year will be the 50th Anniversary celebration and TTS International Congress being held in Hong Kong. To celebrate 50 years of TTS, the Transplantation Science Committee has developed a broad program covering a diverse range of topics including cutting edge science covering areas of genomics, cellular immunobiology, innate immunity and B cells in transplantation to the latest in experimental tolerance and immunosuppression.

We will once again offer very affordable housing and registration fees ($150 for trainee) in order to attract young clinicians and researchers. Social events at the Hong Kong meeting will be plentiful and the Transplantation Science Committee will be organizing a network event that will celebrate all recipients and supporting societies of Mentee - Mentor awards, and the recipients of Young Investigator awards. Please join us for this event.

Finally, thinking beyond 2016, we are delighted to team up with Megan Levings and Lori West from Edmonton, Canada to organize the 15th Transplantation Science Symposium to take place May 24-26, 2017 in Victoria, BC, Canada. Stay tuned!

The Transplantation Society now has a Young Members Committee, and we are motivated to improve the opportunities for our younger members to develop, train and network within the Society.

We are organizing an exciting programme for the 26th International Congress in Hong Kong and we are hoping to see as many of our young members there as possible.

We will be hosting a networking event and also launch a Mentee - Mentor programme during this event. Furthermore, look out for our exciting breakfast session in which we will discuss issues and problems specifically related to the younger generation. Please provide the appropriate demographic information for young members when you register for the Congress in order to receive the updates of these events.

Your opinion counts! Please answer the 7 questions contained in the following survery to receive regular updates, specifically for the younger generation TTS members: www.surveymonkey.com/r/TTSYoungmembers.

The Women in Transplantation initiative completed a very successful year of events in 2015, which culminated with our final networking event at the Joint Congress of IPITA-IXA-CTS in Melbourne, Australia. The panel of speakers highlighted young women researchers and clinicians and discussed the challenges they foresee the next generation of women in medicine will experience and how they will overcome those challenges. The recording of this presentation is now available on the WIT website. In 2015, the WIT initiative featured a new format for our networking events that includes a panel of three or four women from diverse backgrounds sharing experiences on a range of topics, such as the generation gap and challenges of translational research, as well as our first WIT presentation in Spanish. The recordings of all our WIT sessions are now available in the WIT Educational Resource Library.

For 2016, we are pleased to announce a new initiative of WIT: the Developing Leaders Workshop, supported by Novartis. The first workshop is slated to take place in advance of the American Transplant Congress on Saturday, June 11, in Boston, MA, USA. This series of workshops will focus on providing transplant professionals with the information and tools necessary to excel in areas of their career outside traditional research and scientific themes. WIT has enlisted expert speakers to foster and enhance participants’ leadership development and provide extended networking opportunities for women transplant professionals. For more information on the workshop or to register, please visit the workshop on the WIT website here.

The IPITA-IXA-CTS Joint Congress took place in Melbourne from November 15-19, 2015 and was a great success both in terms of a record attendance of 629 delegates and of its scientific quality. Plenary sessions gave ample opportunity for cross-fertilization in the fields of interest of all three societies, addressing the topics of clinical trials update, regenerative medicine and innate immunity. Efforts at involving other categories of professionals involved in transplantation for juvenile diabetes were enhanced. A workshop designed for allied health-care professionals (AHP) took place and will be the basis for building a strong international AHP Committee in IPITA. Our efforts to involve younger physicians, surgeons and scientists was brought to a greater level thanks to the active involvement of the new Young Investigator Committee of IPITA, who organized a debate session with the title “Beta-Cell Replacement: What will we be oing in 2025?“ The attractive format of alternating the views of young investigators with those of established speakers was enthusiastically received and resulted in a lively and room-packed session. The traditional IPITA awards were presented to Drs. Guido Pozza and Konrad Federlin (Paul Lacy Award Lecture), and Dr. Hans Sollinger (Richard Lillehei Award Lecture), in consideration of their tremendous contributions to the fields of islet and pancreas transplantation. The Derek Gray Travel Fellowship Award was presented to Dr. Raphaël Meier.

The venue for the 16th IPITA Congress was selected by a vote from our membership and revealed in the closing session of the Congress. We are looking forward to traveling to Oxford in June 20-23, 2017 for the next IPITA Congress co-hosted by Profs. Paul Johnson and Peter Friend and held in the newly constructed University of Oxford Mathematics Institute.

Prior to the Congress, the IPITA Council held a productive biennial retreat in nearby Flinders to take on a variety of issues critical to the health and future success of the Association. New Councilors Takashi Kenmochi, Lorenzo Piemonti and Mike Rickels were welcomed, and departing Councilors and officers Paul Johnson, Mitch Gotoh and Peter Stock were gratefully thanked for their contribution to IPITA. Development of the newly established Allied Health-Care Professionals and Young Investigators Committees was placed high on the agenda. In the wake of the highly successful Key Opinion Leaders meeting on future research objectives in the fields of beta-cell replacement therapies held in Oxford in the May of 2014, it was decided to repeat this type of focused workshop experience. Two events are planned for the fall/winter 2016. The first event will be a KOL meeting on stem cell-derived beta cells, in view of increasing progress and advances that are likely to result in radical changes of practice in therapies for type 1 diabetes. The second will be a consensus meeting aiming at defining criteria for function and success or failure of pancreas and islet grafts.

We hope that these new initiatives will generate enthusiasm in our membership and will show that IPITA is pursuing its growth as a dynamic and innovative Association. We value our members’ opinions and invite you to share your comments, ideas and suggestions by emailing to sections@tts.org.

The Executive Committee and Council of the International Pediatric Transplant Association (IPTA) is pleased to provide an update of our Association's activities.

The next IPTA Fellows Meeting on Pediatric Transplantation will take place in New York City, USA, from April 8 -9, 2016. This Fellows Meeting is held every two years, traditionally in off years of the main IPTA Congress. The symposium is designed for and limited to clinical fellows and residents, surgical fellows, research fellows, and other trainees who are planning a career in pediatric transplantation medicine, surgery, or research.

The scientific program has been compiled by the IPTA Education Committee and Executive Committee, and meeting participants will have the opportunity to learn about the field of pediatric solid organ transplantation from experts in both basic science and clinical care while working within small interactive groups. The meeting also offers important insights into career development through access to expert faculty. Maximum attendance for this program is twenty-five participants and attendees have been selected based on the score of their abstract submission. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the IPTA Fellows Meeting by grants from TTS and Novartis.

The IPTA Publications Committee has proposed a new type of article for our journal Pediatric Transplantation called IPTA Practice Recommendations. These recommendations use similar levels of evidence as the more elaborate practice guidelines, such as the KDIGO guidelines, but because of the smaller evidence-base in the pediatric transplant literature, the process does not include the same extensive literature review. The policy and procedure for the review and approval of IPTA practice recommendations is as follows:

1. Each publication of Practice Recommendations drafted by the IPTA Publication Committee receives IPTA endorsement by an Ad Hoc Committee of experts with a short turnaround time of seven working days. This Ad Hoc Committee consists of 2–4 people from the IPTA Council (non-authors) and is appointed by the IPTA Executive.
2. The manuscript, which has been revised according to the suggestions of the Ad Hoc Committee, is submitted to the journal Pediatric Transplantation, where it undergoes the regular peer review process.
3. The manuscript, which has been revised according to the suggestions of the reviewers of Pediatric Transplantation, is reviewed and approved by the IPTA Council.
4. The manuscript is then posted on the IPTA website as a draft and an email will be circulated to the IPTA membership and with a ten-day period outlined for public commentary and feedback to be sent to the main author.

The first practice recommendations will deal with the monitoring and management of renal dysfunction after pediatric non-renal transplantation because there is increasing evidence that renal dysfunction is a major confounder for the survival of non-renal pediatric solid organ transplant recipients. This first IPTA Practice Recommendation will soon be published in an upcoming volume of the journal Pediatric Transplantation.

The Council of the ISODP spent most of 2015 focused on the Organ Donation Congress held in Seoul, South Korea. The Congress was very successful, well-attended and had the highest quality scientific program as a result of the expertise of our Congress Chair, Jongwon Ha, Scientific Program Committee Chair, Günter Kirste, and the ISODP President, Kimberly Young.

During the Congress, the Council met and reviewed and revised our strategic plan and agreed to continue to focus on three key initiatives:

1. increasing donation worldwide;
2. improving professional practice for donation; and,
3. enabling information sharing.

These priorities drive the ongoing activities offered to our members, such as our webinars and regional Coordinator workshops. The Council will also work on revitalizing our Society’s website to feature additional education materials and resources to further enhance our strategic priorities. The first update to the website has been completed; the recordings of the Seoul Congress are now available to be viewed by TTS and ISODP members.

The ISODP will continue to offer our TTS-Astellas regional Coordinator workshop again in 2016; the Council is currently in the process of finalizing the date and location of this workshop and looks forward to the opportunity to improve local organ donation in a new region following our highly successful 2015 workshop that was held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The Society is also pleased to formally announce the date and location of our 14th International Congress, to be hosted in Geneva, Switzerland from September 5-9, 2017. TTS and ISODP members can look forward to an exciting and engaging meeting that will be organized in partnership with Philippe Morel and Leo Bühler from the University Hospital Geneva, and Franz Immer from Swiss Transplant.

Our Society was founded by pioneers in composite tissue allotransplantation: visionaries who recognized the future possibilities of the field and grouped people together to support each other and share in a common purpose. Continuing with the development that the field has attained in the last decade, we now have a new name: International Society of Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation (ISVCA). Although the name has changed, all aspects of our service and commitment remain the same. On behalf of all the members, the Council thanks the pioneers of our Society for all that they have done.

It is with great pleasure that we invite you to an International Workshop on VCA Histology on May 21, 2016 in Durham, North Carolina: "Grades and Stages of Rejection: Towards Clinical Correlation". The workshop is developed to encourage the exchange of scientific and clinical information and support the interchange of issues surrounding VCA histopathology. For more information, please visit the website here.

Following the successful 2015 Congress in Philadelphia, we would like to invite you to our 13th Congress of the ISVCA, to be held in Salzburg, Austria, October 26-27, 2017. The meeting will include plenary sessions and abstract presentations, providing an overview of current developments and new perspectives, and an opportunity for leaders in the field to share their most recent findings. We look forward to seeing you in Austria in 2017!

The Joint Congress of IPITA, IXA, and CTS, held in Melbourne, Australia in November 2015, was a great success both scientifically and socially. Joint plenaries reaffirmed the significant synergies between the 3 Sections, while the packed IXA-specific program stream highlighted several major advances in xenotransplantation, which were the subject of a press release. It was clear from numerous presentations that the rapid development of techniques for precise genetic engineering continues apace, with the promise of further prolongation of xenograft survival and the minimization of infectious risk. IXA provided a number of travel awards to allow young members to attend and present their work, and the Vanguard Committee, chaired by Chris Burlak, worked with the other Sections to hold a very well attended young investigator session, followed by a networking event. IXA also sponsored presentations by the 2015 IXA Honorary Member (Uri Galili) and the inaugural Reemtsma Lecturer (Mark Hardy), adding a historical perspective to the program.

The incoming IXA Council consists of President Peter Cowan (Australia), President-Elect Leo Bühler (Switzerland), Secretary/Treasurer Agnes Azimzadeh (USA), Immediate Past President Takaaki Kobayashi (Japan), and councilors Curie Ahn (South Korea), Wayne Hawthorne (Australia), Shuji Miyagawa (Japan), Muhammad Mohiuddin (USA), David Sachs (USA), and Eckard Wolf (Germany).

Council’s goals in 2016-17 include continuing to expand the membership and provide more opportunities and benefits to members, promoting the active involvement of younger members, and ensuring that regulatory and ethical frameworks develop in line with advances in the field. Members are warmly encouraged to contact the President or other members of Council with any new ideas and suggestions.

The XIV International Small Bowel Transplant Symposium (ISBTS) 2015 provided a forum for the presentation of cutting edge research and education in all aspects of intestinal failure (both the transplant and non-transplant medical and surgical management) for more than two decades. The pioneers active in this field recognized the need for a formal organizational structure in addition to the educational mission fulfilled by the ISBTS meetings and this led to development of the Intestinal Transplant Association (ITA) in 2003. Subsequently, the ITA has assumed responsibility for planning and organizing this every-other-year educational meeting and the management of the International Intestinal Transplant Registry that encompasses data on more than 90% of all intestinal transplants performed worldwide.

The ISBTS was held in South America for the first time in June 2015, and with a record number of attendees (over 600) along with several other notable firsts. The Council of the ITA held the first strategic planning retreat, and during the meeting the Association honored several living legends in the field of intestinal failure and transplantation, including Stanley Dudrick, Thomas Starzl and Masayuki Okumura. In addition and in recognition of the broad educational and research focus of the Association and its members, the Council proposed to change the name of our Association. At the conclusion of our biennial business meeting, the membership voted to more appropriately represent all of the aspects of intestinal failure management that is encompassed by our organization by approving the Association’s name change from ITA to the Intestinal Rehabilitation and Transplant Association (IRTA).

The new name will be used going forward including in the announcements for the XV Congress of the Intestinal Rehabilitation and Transplant Association (CIRTA 2017). The CIRTA 2017 meeting will be held in New York City from June 28 – July 1, 2017.Planning is already well underway. We look forward to seeing you there!

In October 2015, the Transplant Infectious Disease Section held a successful meeting in Cancun, Mexico reviewing “Cutting Edge Topics in Transplant Infectious Disease for the Transplant Clinician”. The well-attended conference provided simultaneous translation in Spanish and English, and included talks on multidrug resistant gram-negative infections, respiratory viruses, and cryptococcosis as well as tuberculosis, Chagas, Dengue, Chikungunya, and leishmaniasis. International experts discussed HIV+ to HIV+ organ transplantation, as well as organ donor-derived infections. Practical clinical recommendations on pre-transplant evaluation, antimicrobial prophylaxis, and the management of common syndromes including fever, CMV infection, pneumonia, and CNS infection were discussed. The meeting concluded with the popular clinical case presentations, during which conference speakers shared their most challenging and unforgettable transplant infection cases with the group. The meeting was followed by dinner poolside under the stars as attendees from around the globe had the opportunity to network and plan for future clinical and research collaboration. For those who were not able to attend TID 2015, the presentations can be viewed on the Section website.

TID continues to be active with a respiratory viruses webinar presented by Dr. Michael Ison and an upcoming Zika virus webinar to be presented by Clarisse Machado, TID Section President-Elect. We encourage you to share challenging clinical transplant infection cases at tidchat@tts.org. Even if you don’t have clinical questions to ask, sign up to receive TIDChat discussions and take the opportunity to review clinical management recommendations contributed by experts from all over the world. TID welcomes Section members from all subspecialties in transplant medicine. Membership includes an electronic subscription to Transplant Infectious Disease as well as participation in Section educational activities.

We invite you to join us in Hong Kong, on August 18, 2016 for the 10th International Transplant Infectious Disease Conference, to be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center (HKCEC) just prior to the start of TTS 2016. The Conference will include talks by selected international speakers focusing on clinical challenges in transplant infectious diseases, and will conclude with a series of memorable case presentations. Please plan on arriving early in Hong Kong so you don’t miss this opportunity to attend TID 2016.