In addition, we are very fortunate to have Ben Hayes presenting the John Vercoe Memorial Lecture and Kevin Atkins delivering his Helen Turner Newton Oration for his 2019 medal. And of course, we will hear a second Helen Turner Newton Oration during the AAABG business meeting…

Most importantly, the number of papers and quality of the papers submitted to the 24^th AAABG Conference were exceptional. In addition, papers from breeders and industry representatives were deliberately sought for the second day of Conference (November 3^rd) to facilitate networking between geneticists and practitioners. Consequently, we trust that you will find the program exciting and stimulating.

As a three (3) day conference was preferred by our members, it has been quite a challenge to organise the sessions so that a maximum numbers of papers can be presented. To this end, the oral presentations will be relatively short so there is time for questions. In addition, the posters will be presented as advertisements with access to longer recordings for viewing at a later time.

It has been also a challenge to organise an on-line conference that will engage delegates and maximise interactions between the speakers and the audience. So we are grateful that the talks can be pre-recorded and accessible for 3 months after the conference. We are also grateful that so many people volunteered to host local hubs to maximise interactions and networking.

Note that currently, the program is a draft version (see below) and that the timing of specific sessions is subject to change. However, the dates and the length of program will not change so that delegates can plan accordingly. More details regarding the plenary sessions and the concurrent sessions will be released on a regular basis as well as updates of the scientific program.