The XIII International Congress of Entomology was held from the 6^th to the 12^th July, 2008 in Durban, South Africa. This is the first time that the meeting was held in Africa, a continent richly endowed with insects. To make optimal use of the wonderful occasion of having so many colleagues from around the world with us in Africa, and to offer the maximum value to our visitors, a pre-ICE2008 IUFRO Forest Entomology meeting was held.  This meeting "Recent Advances in Forest Insect Science" was held from the 1^st to the 6^th of July and included a formal lecture component and a dynamic field tour.

The IUFRO meeting addressed all major aspects of forest insect research including: Population Ecology, Integrated Management, Forest Impacts, Biological Control, Biological Diversity, Conservation Ecology, Biological Invasions, Microbial Interactions

The lecture component of the meeting was held at the ABSA conference centre in Pretoria, South Africa. This dedicated congress venue provided a warm environment in which to engage in discussions concerning leading work and ideas relating to forest insect science. The venue is only a few kilometers from the Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI) at the University of Pretoria, which hosted the meeting together with a scientific committee led by Dr Andrew (Sandy) Liebhold, the Co-ordinator of IUFRO Division 7.03 (Entomology)

The lecture component of the IUFRO Forest Entomology meeting will spanned two days (2^nd and 3^rd July) and was followed directly by the field tour. The field tour provided delegates a view of some of the unique forest plantation pest problems in South Africa. These included novel and endemic pests of Eucalyptus and Pinus in the region. It will also provided delegates with a unique opportunity to gain an overview of the forestry plantation operations in the country. And then, to be sure that delegates didn't leave Africa without seeing our large mammals and other special attractions, we spent time in the magnificent Hluhluwe game reserve.  Most delegates got to see at least three of the BIG FIVE a. This field tour will end in Durban in time for the registration at ICE2008. Delegates will thus also save the expense and trouble of finding a flight from the Johannesburg airport (the main point of entry into South Africa) to Durban.

The meeting was attended by 63 delegates from 21 countries. Five young scientists were sponsored to attend the meeting by the Korea Forest Research Institute. Everybody experienced it as a very successful meeting where fruitful scientific exchange was mixed with pleasant environments, with many strong links formed and new friends made.

It was a pleasure having you in South Africa!