The IRS General Assembly took place during the World Aerobiology Congress presenting an extensive agenda to its members. The World Aerobiology was held at the Radisson Blu Hotel Lietuva in Vilnius, Lithuania, from July 1-5, 2024.

The IRS meeting was chaired by its President Prof László Makra.

The IRS assembly’s agenda included the approval of the minutes from the previous General Assembly, reports on IRS activities, a comprehensive membership overview, and the financial report for 2022, 2023, and 2024 presented by Roberto Albertini. Additionally, Franziska Zemmer delivered the IRS Auditor’s report.

Both reports confirmed no financial problems with a positive financial balance on the IRS Bank account.

The IRS continues to thrive, holding biennial conferences that either stand-alone or are in conjunction with other international symposia. The most recent conference was in 2022 in Budapest, attracting 51 participants from 17 countries across three continents, featuring 32 lectures and 11 posters.

Ragweed section, initiated by IRS also was carried out within the World Aerobiology Congress. It gathered 6 outstanding works devoted to ragweed ecology and health impact including those caused by pollen migration.

To present their research for the World Aerobiology Ragweed Section 3 young IRS members received grants from the IRS.

They were Alessia Coluccia from Italy, Aydan Acar Șahin from Turkey and Mostafa Mohieldin Mahgoub Ibrahim from Italy.

The committee members for 2022-2024 were noticed. They are Heinz Müller-Schärer (Switzerland), Arnaud Monty (Belgium), Gilles Oliver (France), Roberto Albertini (Italy), Uwe Starfinger (Germany), Olivier Pechamat (France), Victoria Rodinkova (Ukraine), Boris Fumanal (France) and László Makra (Hungary)

List of honorary presidents of the IRS whose names were presented too, includes Chantal Déchamp, Maira Bonini, Michel Thibaudon, and Tamás Kőmíves. All honorary presidents of IRS are its honorary members now.

Prof. Makra announced that membership fees for the period of 2022-2024 are structured as follows:

For Not Retired: € 50

Retired (≥ 65 years old): € 30

Students: € 30

Institutions: € 200.

12 member fees for the period 2023-2024 were collected so far.

The election results for new committee members was discussed, with the number of IRS members at the date of the election being 32, and 9 members present at the conference.

The participants of the General Assembly include:

Maira Bonini, Roberto Albertini, Gilles Oliver, Victoria Rodinkova, László Makra, Olga Sozinova, Alessia Coluccia, Aydan Acar Şahin, Mostafa Mohieldin Mahgoub Ibrahim.

No new committee members were elected at this time, and the election is postponed to a later meeting.

The establishment of a new IRS Board will be postponed too until the new committee members are elected.

Future activities of the society were discussed including the ongoing continuation of “Ambrosia Talks” – interesting online sessions devoted to the various issues of ragweed control and health impact.

This meeting promises to be an enriching experience, advancing the field of aerobiology and fostering international collaboration.

Victoria Rodinkova