It is with a great pleasure to inform you that the 8th International Wheat Conference (IWC) will take place 1-4 June 2010 in St. Petersburg, Russia and is organized by the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the N.I. Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry. Recent IWCs held in Ankara, Turkey (1996), Budapest, Hungary (2000) and Mar del Plata, Argentina (2005) proved an interest and need for broader multi-disciplinary forum of scientists to convene to discuss issues common in the global wheat improvement community. The 8th IWC will continue in this tradition and will maintain the diversity of topical wheat presentations and discussions. I encourage you to participate in this conference and look forward to welcoming you in St. Petersburg. The conference will take place during the city's "white nights" when the sun hides only for a short while each evening and you will therefore have plenty of time and opportunities for interactions with colleagues, meeting old friends and acquiring new ones. I am looking forward to welcoming you at the 8th International Wheat Conference. 8th International Wheat Conference Program Topics Wheat genetic resources: collection, characterization, evaluation and utilization. 1.Wheat breeding for conventional traits (biotic and abiotic stresses; yield potential; end-use quality and others). 2.Wheat breeding for emerging challenges (climate change, bio-fuel, food safety and nutrition, new uses and others). 3.Wheat biotechnology and genomics. 4.Wheat-based conservation agriculture technologies.