In addition to the announcement, here is your homework (hey, there is no free lunch!). For more productive/fruitful meeting, please bring your seed of discussion on:
- What CSI means to you, your research, and your center.
- What’s the limitations on your CSI-related research.
- How CSI can be most useful/helpful for your research.
And, here are some addendum from the announcement (for travelers, especially):
- Please note that there will be NO pick-up at the airport. Please use taxi to get to the hotel (to be reimbursed). If you're not familiar with the Nairobi Airport scene, you'll have a lot of offers as soon as you step out of the baggage claim area (i.e., supply >> demand). Just be careful to use licensed taxis only (You should be able to tell it by looking at their vehicles). Among them, you can have fun exercising your price negotiation skill there (guideline price is about 1,200 Ksh), or you could just walk in to a taxi company booth around the airport to request one.
- It seems that we might have lots of rain next week (check latest weather forecast at http://www.weather.com/weather/print/KEXX0009). Sure we’ll spend most of time in meeting rooms, but still – don’t forget to pack a handy umbrella!
- At the hotel, you won’t be asked to provide your credit card at check-in. We provided your names and check-in and check-out dates to prearrange bills. Please take a moment to check your travel information is correct at the site (http://sites.google.com/a/cgiar-csi.org/nairobi-meeting-2008/Home/Participants).
- Tip: To deter potential credit card frauds, put a small opaque sticker on CVV numbers on the back of your credit card (or remove it – if you can memorize). Right after my Nairobi trip last year, someone from Russia used my credit card number to order $3000 worth of cigars online (and it wasn’t just me!).
See you all real soon!
Best regards,
Jawoo and Stan | 