About SEFS

SEFS is Europe's largest forum for freshwater science, which brings together scientists from numerous aquatic disciplines. Symposia are held every two years, in a different European city on each occasion. The series is coordinated by the Freshwater Biological Association (FBA) in collaboration with other limnological Associations of European countries. The FBA and these associations have the wish to create a stronger European Federation for Freshwater Sciences (EFFS), whose goals are summarised in a draft constitution which was presented at the SEFS4 held in Krakow.

Some history

According to Alan Hildrew (FBA News 23), the idea of SEFS was born around a glass of wine, about 12 years ago in Arles in Provence (France) and grew up in a little meeting arranged at the Limnological laboratory of the Dutch Academy of Sciences at Nieuwersluis. The people present there were a few, and among these Colin Reynolds and Alan Hildrew, who represented the FBA Council, and Gudrun de Boek, from Antwerp, who, quoting the words written by Alan Hildrew in FBA News 23 "…seemed fearless when faced with the prospect of organising a meeting…". Actually, Gudrun organised SEFS1, in 1999, at the University in Antwerp, RUCA; the FBA financially underwrote it and supervised the scientific programme and about 120 participants had fun (and science) at a very friendly and highly successful meeting. The success of the symposium was "measured" by a general assembly held at the end of the meeting and chaired by Colin Reynolds. The wish, expressed by the majority of people, to keep on meeting regularly pushed Sovan Lek, on behalf of the French Limnological Association, to organise a second SEFS in Toulouse. More than 300 people attended the SEFS2 in France in 2001 and this result confirmed the "European" need of freshwater scientists for a forum to meet, to discuss about and around high quality science, to introduce young researchers to the international palcoscenico and encourage and sustain their work. All these tasks to be fulfilled in a relaxed and "fun" atmosphere.

Through some discussions, mainly by e-mail, the idea of a European collaboration started among some of the participants and several national freshwater associations sent representatives to the third SEFS, which was organised by the FBA in Edinburgh in 2003 and "sustained" by the participation of more than 350 scientists from all over Europe.
In a meeting among these representatives in Edinburgh, they gave to themselves the provisional name of the European Committee of the Freshwater Biological Association (ECFBA). Actually the FBA and its staff have had quite an input to the organisation of SEFS meetings and their scientific, economic, and logistic support. Colin Reynolds was charged to chair this committee.