Congress venue confirmed

The venues for Congress 2008 programme events have been confirmed following a site visit by WACC’s General Secretary and members of staff responsible for organizing the global communicators event. The conference is scheduled to be held in Cape Town, South Africa, from October 6 to 10, 2008.

The opening ceremony and daily plenary sessions, as well as morning prayers and Bible study, will be held at the Atlantic Conference Centre in the Cape Town neigbourhood of Sea Point.The conference centre, located 50 m. from the Ritz Hotel where delegates will be housed, has a 750-seat auditorium featuring the latest in audio and video projection technology.

Afternoon workshop sessions will be divided between meeting rooms at the Atlantic Conference Centre and the Ritz Hotel’s conference centre.Simultaneous translation in English, French and Spanish will be provided during all plenary sessions and selected workshop sessions.

On Wednesday, October 8, delegates will travel to the nearby working class township of Gugulethu.Members of the Gugulethu Presbyterian Church will host a morning of information sharing and discussion, witnessing to their experience of apartheid and to what is being done by the parish in response to challenges and opportunities in today’s South Africa. In the afternoon, Congress delegates will tour Robben Island, the prison where Nelson Mandela was held.

Congress 2008 is expected to attract 350 communicators from around the world and is the fourth event of its kind to be organized by WACC.It is the first time the global gathering has been held on the African continent. The theme for the conference is Communication is Peace: Building viable communities.