The dramatic increase in the infestation of weeds that invade from other countries is alarming. The "new comers" cross borders, affect biodiversity, and infest millions of hectares all over the world. Some of the invasive weeds are allergenic and may cause significant losses of working days. It was estimated the 35% of the European and U.S. population are sensitive to Ambrosia pollen. This special session will discuss the processes involved in plant material movement across borders, their establishment, and propose options for harmonized and sustainable management.

• Ambrosia spp.: Weed management and human allergy. T. KOMIVES, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
• The need of weed risk assessment for preventing exotic invasive plants. R. LABARADA, Former FAO Weed Officer, Italy
• Parthenium, global distribution, impacts, and management. S. W. ADKINS, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
• Invasive weeds - A global overview. J. DITOMASO, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, U.S.A.
• Invasive weeds in the Mediterranean region. T. YAACOBY, Plant Protection and Inspection Services, Ministry of Agriculture, Israel

Organizers
- Tamas Komives, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Steve W. Adkins, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

Section - Weed Science
- Organizer: Baruch Rubin, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

Sponsoring Committees
- APS/IAPPS and Weed Science

For further info please visit:
http://www.apsnet.org/meetings/annual/program/Pages/SpecialSessions.aspx

Abstract submissions were available from February 1 - March 15. March 15, 2011 was the final day to submit Special Session abstracts.

The conference was be held in Honolulu, Hawaii.

If you have questions or comments or would like to be added to the mailing list, please contact the session organizer at tkom@nki.hu or call +36-1-487-7506.