The Fourth International conference on Plant Vascular Biology (PVB 2016) will be hold in Shenzhen, China, from July 19 to July 23, 2016. Shenzhen is a fast developing seaport city adjacent to Hong Kong and Guangzhou. This meeting will build upon the very successful meetings first held in Taipei, Taiwan in 2007 (organized by Ning-Sun Yang and Bill Lucas), then in the USA at Ohio State University in 2010 (organized by Biao Ding and David Hannapel) and in Helsinki, Finland in 2013 (organized by Yka Helariutta). PVB2016 will be a satellite meeting of the 19th International Botanical Congress (IBC), which will also be held in Shenzhen from July 23 to 29, 2017 (www.ibc2017.cn). Our aim is to bring together scientists working on many diverse aspects of vascular biology (including development, evolution, environmental responses, transcriptomes, proteomics & metabolomics, biotechnology and challenges from insects and pathogens). We would like to include aspects of cellular and intercellular signaling in relation to various aspects of vascular biology. As part of PVB2016, a Special Issue is planned for the Journal of Integrative Plant Biology (JIPB), under the title of “Plant Vascular Biology”. All participants are invited to contribute a review or research article to this volume (all publication costs to be covered by JIPB). The conference will be held in the Kylin Villa which is located in a beautiful forest setting. We hope that this location will engender informed and passionate discussions on plant vascular biology-related topics, the building of powerful collaborative projects, and a spirit of international cooperation. We look forward to welcoming you to PVB2016!