1 - The Chance of a Different Kind of Meeting Experience,  as a Change from the Norm of the Standard Format

2 - The Chance of a Different Kind of Meeting Experience, as a Source of Inspiration

3 - The Chance to Attend a Meeting of Your Own Design - You Set the Program

4 - The Chance for Early Career Scientists to Design the Programme for a Scientific Meeting

5 - The Chance to Promote Science and Scientific Research in the Developing World

6 - The Chance to Teach - To Take a Little Time Out to Educate Students in the Developing World

7 - The Chance to Foster Collaborations with Scientists in the Developing World and Work on Localized Projects

8 - The Chance to Gain First-hand Knowledge of Developing World Problems and Pressing Global Concerns

9 - The Chance to Go Somewhere That You Never Would, on a Trip Which Might Otherwise Prove Seem Impossible or Impracticable

10 - The Chance to Extend a Business Trip into a Fully-fledged Vacation
 

There's no doubt about it, conventional conferences are widespread, usually well organized and generally of a high standard, offering most basic scientific requirements.

However, Mangosteen aims to address at least one failing that is clear - most scientific gatherings are typically extremely formulaic, and offer a distinct lack of creativity when it comes to the program format. 

Furthermore, they are not always of equal value to everyone attending - some participants will get a lot out of the sessions and will gain hot ideas for future projects, while some will just sleep quietly in the back rows.

As an essential component of their work, there's no shortage of interest when it comes to scientists both needing and wanting to attend scientific meetings.  Likewise, Mangosteen believes that there should be no limit to the number of ways in which scientific information be presented or exchanged.  Our programmes therefore offer practically limitless flexibility, with the focus on tailor-made formats and a diverse range of venues and destinations.

In so doing, we also aim to avoid undue repetition and include unprecedented opportunities for personal and professional enrichment.  So, if there's a meeting or gathering that you, your institute or company regularly organize or attend, and are just getting tired of the same kind of location or venue, maybe it would benefit from a change - and why not go south? 

As a small operation with a personal approach, we cater for individuals and groups from first contact to their return home and thereafter.  If you' do like the idea, but are not immediately comfortable with the concept of visiting the developing world for business purposes, or for the first time, then you are unlikely to sign-up for a Mangosteen Meeting.  We can't afford to allow that to that happen, so please let us know your misgivings, and help us to convince you that your first instincts were good ones.  We hope that once you get the right answers and feel at ease, you will look forward to the experience and join us at a Meeting in one or other of our Host Destinations.
 

Where do you get your scientific ideas from? 
No doubt from a number of sources, including your own life experiences:

New Sights, Sounds & Situations = New Inspiration, Project Ideas & Collaborations

No matter where in he world you might be, if you see something that inspires you, troubles you  or disturbs you, you just might find it hard to forget. 

No matter what form it takes, if there's a problem that is obvious to all around you, or that you alone perceive - and that you are in a position to do something about, you just might want to find a way to do so. 

Undoubtedly, a large number of the world's impoverished nations need a great deal of external assistance in order to allow them to prosper and grow in a sustainable manner.  The developing world is nothing if not an all around source of ideas and inspiration for talented and thoughtful individuals with problem solving on their minds.  We hope that Mangosteen's programmes and involvement will serve Participants well in the judicious selection of important and meaningful research projects throughout their careers, be they focused at home or far away. 

If the local environment doesn't provide inspiration, then perhaps the people will.  Mangosteen both actively encourages the full participation of local scientists and students in its programmes and works with local suppliers throughout.
 

Many attend meetings throughout their careers, but few get the chance to set the details of the programme, or to create a Meeting that they really want to be a part of.

Not unless it's a Mangosteen Meeting that is.

We facilitate, we arrange, we organize and we put together the itinerary - but the nature of the science under discussion and the way in which it is presented is for the Technical Programme Designer  and Meeting Participants, to decide upon.  We will simply make sure that it happens in the way you want it to.

Tailor-made programs are what it's all about - you know what you are or are not getting out of the meetings you currently attend in your field.  Maybe you also know what you would like to change before committing your time to future events.  Mangosteen will be only to happy to help realize your wishes - provided only that the Meeting takes place in the developing world, and that local scientists and students are free to attend some, if not all, of the programme.
 

Who's going to trust a third year Ph.D. student or postdoc to set the tone of a scientific meeting with Participants attending from across the globe?

Mangosteen will, that's for sure.

We'd very much appreciate  your interest in acting as a Technical Programme Designer .  If you are dedicated and responsible, we are looking forward to hearing from you about your field of research and your proposal for a new Meeting or your participation in an existing one.
 

It's an understatement to say that scientists in the developing world lack resources.  Not only are they very short on equipment and finances, but they are also information poor.  In many cases the combined effect of too little of everything make it practically impossible for them to carry out the essential scientific research required to find solutions for so many of their most chronic problems.  

For those in impoverished nations, widespread travel to either gather information from meetings or to set up helpful collaborations is typically not an option.  With the comparatively high costs of air fares and severe visa restrictions a continual thorn, it's not often that the developing world’s scientific community are able to come into close contact with significant numbers of their developed world counterparts. 

And the result - large numbers of talented individuals that are unable to do much in the way of productive work, leaving them powerless to help themselves, and leaving their people dependent on the developed world for new healthcare treatments and other helpful scientific and technological developments. 

One overly simplistic reason that Mangosteen is currently focusing its efforts in the arena of the physical and biological sciences - scientists from these primary disciplines are as crucial to the health and prosperity of a nation as are its medical practitioners.  Maybe it interests you to do what you can to help aid the committed members of the developing world's scientific community.  They will always welcome your expertise and the chance to pick your brains, while we'll do everything possible to ensure you have a successful and productive trip.
 

Local students feature as an integral component of Mangosteen's programmes.  If you're at all interested in spending a few hours teaching some of them about your research or the wider field you work in, then we'd certainly like to help you do that.  

Growing up in a land in which good text books are difficult to come by and where periodicals are prohibitively expensive, many students may not be fully conversant with the research topics under discussion during our Meetings' formal scientific presentations.  But don't doubt that the developing world is full of intelligent young people that are eager to learn and are determined to do whatever they can to help themselves, given the opportunity.  Here, you can certainly be an important catalyst. 

During a short trip dedicated to a Meeting and time discussing research with scientific peers, there will only be so much free time available to give tutorials or a short-course to students.  But every hour you can spare is a valuable one.  Should you enjoy the experience and want to return to teach for a longer period at a later date, we'll make sure you get the opportunity to do so.
 

If you like the idea of gaining an introduction to the kind of projects that directly pertain to the needs and interests of developing world scientists, then you won't do much better than giving yourself the opportunity to spend time with a whole group of individuals from different institutions, all at once. 

Mangosteen's Meetings will make that first contact for you - allowing you to both hear about the current research efforts of local scientists and get a very good idea of how your interests, capabilities and objectives complement or overlap with theirs. 

Due to a lack of research resources, scientists in the developing world typically don't have the capacity to do much about solving the really big issues that make life most difficult for them.  However, through building and enhancing collaborations with experts in the developed world they will certainly be in a position to take a more active role in finding their own solutions to pressing public health and science-related concerns.  The spark in such relationships is only going to come from the developed world, and it is therefore another of our objectives to make every effort possible to match the interests on both sides of the divide in order to increase the likelihood of developing collaborative projects in the future.
 

Mangosteen offers you the opportunity to do exactly what you normally do when you want to communicate your research results with colleagues - with the added option of taking a good long look at the developing world in the process. 

You can watch as much TV as you like, you can trawl the internet continually, read every newspaper available, but there's no better way to get a feeling for what goes on in impoverished parts of the world's least developed countries than to get on a plane and take a look first-hand. 

360° panoramas are a rarity, you may get sights and sounds but technology doesn't yet allow for the sense of smell - and you most definitely cannot hold the face to face conversations that will allow you to really get an idea of how difficult the lives of people there are - or how friendly, welcoming and generous they remain, no matter what. 

If you don't go, you won't know -  for the most part, it's that simple.

And if you don't know, if you are not aware and are not affected, then it's entirely likely that you will find it all to easy to move the non-stop desperate problems of the developing world - that you can't help hearing about in the media - to the back of your mind.  At the back, forgotten - at the front, you just might feel inclined to act in some small way to effect a little change. 

Indeed, working in research science, it's all too obvious to remind you that you are a problem solver by definition -  and you certainly have the power to enact change both in the developing world and at home, if you only have the will to try to do so.  That's where it all begins.  Please just let us know if we can help.
 

Maybe you like the idea of a trip to the developing world but just don't know how to go about it.  As a first-timer, perhaps it all seems very exciting, but more than a little daunting. 

But don't let a few doubts deter you.  With Mangosteen's know-how, expert advice and recommendations, we can guarantee that you'll be fully informed, and be in a position to enjoy a safe, healthy and rewarding trip.

Lone Travellers - As a Meeting Participant you will not be alone, with sanctuary in the group should you be in need of company.  In addition, we always have native guides available should you choose to spend your free time wandering around in the rain forest, cycling in the bush or browsing the market in a nearby village or city.  You'll not get lost, and you'll never be alone -  unless you choose to be alone, or choose to get lost.  

Family Groups - What five year old wouldn't want to go see elephants and hippos in the wild?  Unfortunately, pachyderms opt not to dwell in either developing or developed world city centres, so as it stands, a family trip to see such fantastic creaturess is only really going to happen by way of a mammoth (excuse the pun) feat of organization or an expensive vacation

Perhaps it's worse than that - if such a trip requires a substantial amount of time off from work for one or other parent during a busy schedule, then the whole idea begins to fall apart and become impracticable.  Mangosteen has a way around this - if the constraints of work don't allow little Johnny and Jenny to go see the elephants, then we'll put work where the elephants are, and bring little Johnny and Jenny along too.  Absolutely.  Although it may initially sound difficult or unrealistic, there is no reason at all why toddlers and small children should not experience some of the unique delights of the developing world at a young age.   

If your family responsibilities are the only thing stopping you from attending one of our Meetings, and preventing you from taking that first step into the developing world, then we say please bring your family with you.  You'll enjoy the trip all the more for it, but will still be able to devote all the time you need to your professional activities.  It's a win-win situation, at a very low cost. 
 

Are you looking for the 'coolest conference of the year'?  Well, depending on what that means to you, you might just have found it. 

Come on, tell the truth, when it comes to scientific meetings, do you browse through the conference calendar looking for the best place to visit on your grant money or company expenses? 

Are you thinking about going to a country you've not visited before?  To a famous or classic city?  Or to the tropics and a nearby beach?  For sure, there are any number of fascinating places out there that would be great to visit for a few days - especially if your employer is paying for it.  So then it's a small price to pay, to spend a few days attending seminars and 'talking shop' at the nearby conference centre, before you get your 'freedom'.  

If the above is anywhere near the truth, you wouldn't be the first to think in this way.  And why not.  For those that enjoy travel, conference trips are undeniably one of the perks of the job.  Why not go get engrossed in some good science and a take a look at a new part of the world at the same time.

Or, are you planning for a vacation and see your next conference trip as part of it.  Either before or after the Meeting, if it's OK with the boss, and provided work pays for the flight, it's certainly a cost-effective way to take some time off.  If that's your intention, we welcome it, and Mangosteen will do what ever we can to help you plan for those extra days in the region.  Of course, if that means you bring a companion(s) with you, we will be only to happy to accommodate them, and ensure that they are cared for and entertained while you are busy carrying out your scientific duties.