It is with quite a sense of adventure that I introduce the first ISPRS Page in GIM International. This will complement new ISPRS Highlights, henceforth to be published as an eBulletin and sent to you electronically. Many readers of GIM International will be aware of ISPRS, and probably many will have attended ISPRS activities. Our Technical Commissions and their Working Groups organise meetings ranging from small workshops to symposia of up to a thousand attendees. In 2006 each of the eight Technical Commissions will organise a symposium covering the whole range of ISPRS activities, from close-range measurement to satellite interferometry. These symposia act as an interim report on the state of the art between the four-yearly ISPRS Congresses and provide a window on current developments. Details can be found on this page.

Network
ISPRS has a mission that goes beyond holding scientific meetings. We are represented on many international forums, including the United Nations Committee on Outer Space Affairs (COPUOS), CEOS, The International Council for Science (ICSU) and the newly formed group on Earth Observation, (GEO). Our task on these government-level bodies is to represent photogrammetry and remote sensing, to bring our expertise to the attention of government and to recommend experts to advise them. ISPRS has a very useful network of scientists, technologists and commercial operators willing to put their expertise to good use for the benefit of the global community at large.

Africa
One of the missions of ISPRS during the current quadrennium is to promote the use of remote sensing and photogrammetry in Africa. We are doing this through collaboration with our sister organisations such as FIG and IEEE, and through the mechanisms being set up by GEO. One aspect of this mission is to hold meetings of members whenever possible. We held a meeting in Pretoria at Africa GIS2005 and will be holding another in Accra, Ghana, at the FIG Regional Meeting. We will be very pleased to hear from members, and potential members, about what they would like from ISPRS and how we can serve them better. At Africa GIS we joined with IEEE and AARSE to organise a workshop to promote the Global Earth Observation System of Systems being put in place by GEO. It was the goal of the workshop to bring together those involved in the design of GEOSS and end users. The meeting attracted about fifty people and was considered very successful.

Two-way Shop
Another activity that we are keen to develop is a closer link between The Society and commercial organisations. We are very happy to welcome exhibitors to our meetings, but we would like to have a more substantial dialogue with companies, so that ISPRS can serve the manufacturers and users more effectively. We want this page in GIM International to serve as a two-way means of communication between ISPRS Council and Technical Commission presidents and the photogrammetry, remote sensing and spatial information-science community. We will use the page to inform you of activities, past and present, and of other matters of interest; we will be very happy to hear from you about issues of concern and comments on ISPRS policies and events. We look forward to a fruitful interchange.