The World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists (WCERE) is a special five-day gathering of roughly 800 - 1,500 environmental economists from across the globe that takes place every four years. Each WCERE includes a mix of plenary lectures, parallel research sessions, awards ceremonies, social events, and numerous opportunities for meeting old friends and making new connections. The event is attended by students, academics, policy makers, and representatives of the business sector. Discussions held during the event represent a broad spectrum of environmental and resource economics. 

The event is organized by the members and partners of the World Council of Environmental and Resource Economists Associations (WCEREA), which include AERE as well as the Asian Association of Environmental and Resource Economics (AAERE), the African Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (AFAERE), and the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE) as well as the Latin American Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (LAERE), together with a Local Organizing Committee.

The WCEREA is currently soliciting proposals for the Local Organizing Committee and Venue for the 7th World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists (WCERE) to be held late June/early July 2026. Local organisers have a unique opportunity to contribute to a growing legacy of outstanding WCERE events, help shape the scientific programme and overall conference experience, showcase the best of environmental and resource economics to their location and introduce the global environmental economics community to their institution and their part of the world. The 2026 WCERE will be the first to be held since the global pandemic and will be a much-anticipated event. Candidate universities, research organizations, or groups of organizations with a professional interest in environmental and resource economics should forward their expressions of interest (including a letter of endorsement from their regional association) by November 15, 2023. If invited, full proposals are due by February 28, 2024.

IMPORTANT DATES

EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

Universities, research organizations, or groups of organizations wishing to be a candidate for the Local Organizing Committee and Venue should send their expressions of interest to the WCERE Chair at [email protected] by November 15, 2023. Potential candidates who may be interested in applying and want to learn more can also request a consultation with the WCEREA Board for more information by emailing [email protected] and indicating in the subject line “WCERE consultation”.

Expressions of interest consist of a formal letter briefly describing the team and location and agreeing that the candidate will assume all of the administrative, organizational, and financial responsibilities listed in the “Guidelines for Expressions of Interest and Proposals”.

FULL PROPOSALS

Full proposals consist of (1) a formal letter stating that the candidate will assume all of the administrative and organizational responsibilities and the financial responsibilities assigned to the LOC listed in this document; (2) a presentation of the candidate including the candidate’s relevant experience in organizing and hosting conferences; (3) a preliminary conference budget; (4) a sustainability plan that discusses how the organizers plan to promote sustainability in food service, transportation requirements, and other aspects of the conference, and (5) a presentation of the conference venue. Expressions of interest may be accompanied by any other documentation that the candidates judge useful for the evaluation process. The Selection Committee may ask candidates to present additional documents at a later date.

Full proposals should be sent by email to the WCEREA President at the address below by February 28, 2024. Any material that cannot be sent electronically should reach the WCEREA President by mail by February 28, 2024.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Proposals will be evaluated by the WCEREA Board according to the following criteria: 

  • location (including consideration of travel cost, accessibility by ground transportation and time for participants, amenities, on-site transportation, ease of obtaining entrance visas, past congresses venues, etc.);
  • ability to set a registration fee that is acceptable for participants from non-profit institutions;
  • accommodations (cost, quality, capacity); 
  • session facilities (quality of plenary rooms; quality and number of meeting rooms; AV, internet access and charging stations; exhibition and poster spaces; equipment; food and beverage service; social programme, etc.); 
  • communications plan (evaluation of the plan for a WCERE website and email, advertising the congress, registrations, papers download, etc.); 
  • administration (detail of budget, qualifications of Local Organizing Committee, and local supporting agencies); 
  • funding (grants for students, grants for participants from developing countries, other sponsorships);
  • experience in organizing academic conferences in environmental and resource economics (or related fields) and evidence that the LOC will have sufficient expertise in environmental and resource economics to contribute to the development of a high-quality conference experience (scientific content and overall experience);
  • the attention shown to environmental sustainability and diversity, equity, and inclusiveness in the organization of the event.

A final decision is expected to be made by June 2024.

Learn more about past World Congresses: