This is the 1st announcement for the IAU Symposium 323 - Planetary nebulae: Multi-wavelength probes of stellar and galactic evolution to be held on October 10-14, 2016, in Beijing, China. The Symposium will encompass all aspects of the impact and importance of planetary nebulae (PNe) on stellar and galactic evolution. In particular, we expect to cover the following topics: - New challenges to surveys of PNe in the Local Group - PNe as a versatile laboratory of dust and molecular studies - From the asymptotic giant branch to the white dwarf stellar phases - The connection between binary evolution and the PN phenomena - Planets around evolved stars and their impact on PN formation - PNe in nearby galaxies: probing chemical evolution and galactic dynamics - PNe outside of the local group: Challenges to observing and interpret distant PNe