1. Scientific organization
Conference chair
Michel Cloitre (Chairman) - ESPCI ParisTech, Paris
Lionel Choplin (Co-Chairman) - ENSIC, Nancy
Jean-François Tassin (Co-Chairman) - Université du Maine, Le Mans
Organization committee
Guylaine Ducouret (President) - ESPCI ParisTech, Paris
Lazhar Benyahia - Université du Maine, Le Mans
Frédéric Bossard - Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble
Pascale Bridou Buffet - Fédération Française des Sciences de la Chimie, Paris
Christian Carrot - Université Jean Monnet, Saint-Etienne
Xavier Chateau - Université Paris-Est, Marne la Vallée
Francisco Chinesta - Ecole Centrale de Nantes, Nantes
Guy Della Valle - INRA, Nantes
Alain Ponton - Université Paris-Diderot, Paris
Rudy Valette - Mines ParisTech, Sophia Antipolis
Vincent Verney - Université Blaise Pascal, Clermont-Ferrand
2. Conference venue
The conference will take place at the “Cité des Congrès” of Nantes, ideally located in the centre of the city, within a five minutes walk from the high-speed train station and 20 minutes from the airport by shuttle bus.
The plenary lectures will be given in the 800-seat great auditorium. Parallel sessions will take place in adjacent rooms with a capacity of at least 120 seats. A Science Café will be held in a large natural light hall, where drinks and pastries will be available and exhibitors will showcase their scientific equipment. Every day, lunches based on high quality local products will be served in a dedicated lunch area.
The Conference Center is served by excellent transport links:
- Walking from the train station (South exit): a 5-minute walk from the high-speed train station,
- Tram from the train station (North exit): line 1 - «Duchesse Anne - Château des Ducs de Bretagne» tram stop, one stop from the TGV railway station,
- Taxi from the train station: approximate cost is 15 € (extra charge after 19:00 pm and on Sunday),
- Nantes Airport / City Centre shuttle bus: every half hour - « Cité Internationale des Congrès » stop,
- Taxi from Nantes Airport: approximate cost is about 25 € (extra charge after 19:00 pm and on Sundays),
- Busway: line 4 - « Cité Internationale des Congrès » stop,
- Bicloo self-service bikes and Marguerite self-service cars: stations at La Cité,
- 450 parking spaces are available underneath La Cité and 2,000 additional parking spaces in close walking distance. Exhibitors are allocated a temporary parking area with direct access to la Cité’s exhibition areas.
3. The city of Nantes
Nantes is the vibrant capital of a region rich in art, history and natural beauties, which is also a center of excellence in material sciences, life sciences and biotechnologies. It counts seven competitiveness clusters and several major companies (Airbus, Vivalis, Armor…) as well as many start-up companies. Nantes is also a major higher-education centre with 51 000 students and more than 2 200 scientists in 200 laboratories. Nantes is easily accessible by high speed train (last update April 1st, 2015) and/or direct flights from most parts of Europe. This ideal location in combination with an excellent public transportation system will offer the chance to scientists from all over the world to come to the 2015 AERC.
We invite you to download the following useful information:
- a map of the city showing the location of the Conference Center
- a map of Nantes tram system
4. Accompanying persons
Accompanying persons are welcome to join the Conference events. To facilitate the organization, they must register individually through the dedicated online application. The fees include admission to the Welcome Cocktail, the Conference Dinner, , and the possibility to join the thematic guided visits that are be proposed. Accompanying persons will be allowed to have lunches at the Conference for an extra charge.
Social excursions will be proposed during the conference to accompanying persons who are officially registered. They will be held in English with professional guides. A minimum number of participants will be required for each excursion:
- A Ramble through the historical city center: the medieval district of Bouffay, the superb Gothic cathedral of Saint Pierre and Saint Paul, the castle of the Dukes of Brittany, the banks of the Loire river, the famous Passage Pommeraye shopping centre.
- A Visit to the Castle of the Dukes of Brittany. This royal residence is a testimony of 500 years of History. It is now home of the Nantes history museum. Nantes has a rich and vivid cultural and architectural heritage that you will be free to explore at your pace.
- An afternoon at the Botanical garden. This unique Victorian park was established in 1726 by King Louis XV who ordered that all ship captains should bring back seeds from overseas countries.
- An adventure at The Sea World Merry-go-Round. This giant authentic 360-degree theatre features extraordinary sea creatures inspired from the imaginary world of Jules Verne.
- A stunning experience at "Les Machines de l’Ile". In the shipyard where big ships were once constructed, modern builders invent animated animals made of steel and wood: the great Elephant, the giant heron tree with a 8 m wingspan, the fabulous ant, and more...
- A visit to the Saint Pierre and Saint Paul cathedral. This Renaissance masterpiece with its twin towers and flamboyant gothic walls is located at the heart of the city.
5. Accommodation
A large number of hotels from 1 to 3 stars are available within a walking distance (see map). The following hotels have accepted to host participants of the AERC 2015 at preferential rates. Note that there is no pre-booking and that the reservations will be on a first come-first served basis:
- Hotels from the Accor group,
- Belfort Hotel,
- AppartCity.
