[agents] AAMAS-2011: Call for Hosting Bids

[Munindar P. Singh]

		   CALL FOR BIDS TO HOST AAMAS-2011
		   ================================

This is a call for bids to host the Tenth International Conference on
Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems in 2011 (AAMAS-2011).

BACKGROUND

The initial AAMAS conference (AAMAS-2002) was held in Bologna, Italy
as a joint event comprising the 6th International Conference on
Autonomous Agents (AA), the 5th International Conference on Multiagent
Systems (ICMAS), and the 9th International Workshop on Agent Theories,
Architectures, and Languages (ATAL).

Subsequent AAMAS conferences have been held in Melbourne, Australia
(July 2003), New York, USA (July 2004), Utrecht, the Netherlands (July
2005), Hakodate, Japan (May 2006), Honolulu, USA (May 2007), and
Estoril, Portugal (May 2008).  AAMAS 2009 will be held in May 2009 in
Budapest, Hungary and AAMAS 2010 will be held in May 2010 in Toronto.

AAMAS is now firmly established as the largest and most influential
conference in the area of agents and multiagent systems, routinely
attracting several hundred participants.  AAMAS brings together
researchers and practitioners in all areas of agent technology such as
software agents, multiagent systems, synthetic agents, robotic agents,
human agent interaction, and mobile agents.  The AAMAS conferences
include a variety of activities, including technical sessions,
tutorials, associated workshops, and social events.

AAMAS is the flagship conference of the non-profit International
Foundation for Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (IFAAMAS); the
Foundation's website: http://www.ifaamas.org/ provides links to each
of the conferences.  The Foundation's Board of Directors is elected by
the AAMAS research community, which is defined based on attendance at
AAMAS conferences.

IFAAMAS now invites bids for hosting AAMAS-2011.  We will consider
bids from all geographical regions; however, for the 2011 conference,
we particularly encourage bids from the Asia-Pacific region.

AAMAS-2011 will be held at dates to be determined in consultation with
the successful bidding team, preferably in the May to July timeframe.
Based on past experience and trends, we expect the attendance of
AAMAS-2011 to be between 600 and 900 people.  Plenary sessions thus
need to be scheduled in a sufficiently large hall.

In recent years, AAMAS conferences have included the following
components:
- A main conference program of three days, including
   o 3-6 parallel presentation sessions (including an industry track)
   o poster sessions interspersed with the presentation sessions
   o an opening reception with an entertainment program
   o a banquet including an entertainment program and awards ceremonies
- A pre-conference program of two or three days, including
   o several workshops
   o tutorials
   o doctoral mentoring


BIDDING PROCEDURE

All correspondence regarding bids should be directed by email to the
Chair of the IFAAMAS Conference Committee, Munindar P. Singh
<singh at ncsu.edu>.

Bids should be made by individuals or small groups, with the backing
of a host institution (typically a university or research center).
Groups or individuals who are planning to submit a bid should notify
Professor Singh of their intention as soon as possible.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE

* Bids for AAMAS-2011 must be submitted NO LATER THAN
November 13, 2008.

BID CONTENT AND PURPOSE

Bids are geared towards determination of responsibility for local
arrangements and designation of Local Arrangements Chair.  Bids will
be reviewed by the IFAAMAS conference subcommittee and board.  The
outcome of the site selection will be announced by March 1, 2009.

A bid should consist of a short statement that explains why you meet
the criteria below.  Bids should be no more than a few pages.  At this
stage, detailed financial projections are not necessary (ballpark
financial figures---such as estimated charges for rooms---are useful,
however).

Each bid should identify the proposed team of organizers, and include
full contact details.  At least one of the organizers should remain
available to respond to clarification requests, which often come up
during review.

CRITERIA FOR ASSESSING AAMAS BIDS

The following criteria will be used for evaluation.

* _Site Location_: attractiveness to conference attendees, as well as
   those accompanying the attendees (i.e., nearby attractions, tours,
   restaurants, night clubs, etc.).  Will people *want* to attend?

* _Accessibility_: location with respect to major air routes and local
   transportation (trains, buses, automobiles).  Since AAMAS attracts
   world-wide participation, it is important that the venue be
   conveniently reachable for international (and intercontinental)
   attendees.

* _Dates_: relation to possibly conflicting special or local holidays;
   to conflicting or synergistic conventions or special events at the
   same time or immediately before or after the conference.

* _Climate and Season_: particularly as these factors affect (1) the
   availability of rooms and rate structure (and provide some
   negotiating edge with the hotels); and (2) attendance by the local
   community.

* _Facilities_: quantity, quality, flexibility, availability of
   meeting rooms, meeting support services, and exhibition hall.  This
   factor is linked to the choice of accommodations, as it may be
   desirable to colocate meeting facilities and accommodations.  Please
   include preliminary information regarding any space and equipment
   rental fees that may be incurred by the conference.

* _Accommodations_: ability to accommodate the anticipated numbers of
   conference attendees, with a range of income levels.  In other
   words, accommodations should range from business or luxury hotels to
   student housing.  Please include ballpark figures for hotel room
   rates.

* _Experience_: ability of the local organizers in organizing and
   handling projects of comparable size and complexity.  The use of a
   professional conference organization company may be included as part
   of the bid, with associated estimated costs, benefits, and
   suitability.

* _Supporting Scientific Community_: the presence of regional and
   local research communities to support the conference and which will
   benefit from its occurrence.  Interest of the community in hosting
   or supporting synergistic colocated conferences.  Since the AAMAS
   area touches upon several other areas, it would be worth exploiting
   synergies by colocating with related events.

* _Backing of Host Institution_: does the organizers' institution
   support the conference?  Host institutions sometimes can provide
   free or low-cost facilities for the entire conference or for the
   pre-conference program.  They can loan equipment such as PC
   projectors and wireless access points.  They can provide access to
   their housing facilities.  The use of institutional facilities or
   equipment would typically constrain the schedule, but it might be a
   worthwhile tradeoff.

* _Supporting Local Industry_: is there local or national industry
   that may be willing to support the conference in some way?  Please
   estimate how many participants the conference would attract from the
   local industry.

* _Volunteer Labor_: availability of an active local group willing to
   help out before, during, and after the conference.

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