|
|
|
|
Dear <<First Name>>,
As you may well be aware, the 2017 Annual Events in Sydney are fast approaching, which will also include the announcement regarding the 2018 Annual Events. We wanted to share the information with you, before this announcement in Sydney, that the decision will be made to hold the Annual Events in Malta in 2018.
This means that we will be postponing holding the Annual Events in Istanbul in 2018. It was a very difficult decision and some of you have expressed concern over this change. We wanted to take the time to explain to you what influenced this decision so that there is no misunderstanding. The main reason for this change is not because of the threat of terrorism. As many of you with whom we've discussed this have rightly noted, this threat is a global one and a societal burden that we all sadly share together.
We have taken this decision for two different reasons. The first is that we cannot ensure that individuals in such a large and diverse population of attendees would not encounter legal restrictions upon entering the country. In addition, the countries of some schools, and the schools themselves have imposed unilateral travel restrictions that would prevent faculty, staff and students from being able to attend the events. We fear that this could have lead to an unfortunate year of controversy, at a time in which we would prefer to raise the status of Turkey, and Koc University. We strongly believe in a bright future for Koc University and Turkey as fully recognized members of the political, academic and corporate world and we would like Koc University to receive a record-breaking audience that we believe we can achieve in a few years’ time, and also to be recognized as the wonderful hosts we know they are.
It is for this reason, that we have agreed with Koc University to host the CEMS Dean's Council in May 2018 in Istanbul, and we are looking forward to doing everything within our power to build visibility in the utmost positive light for our CEMS Community in Istanbul and for the years to come.
Kind regards,
Roland Siegers
CEMS Executive Director
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
