Report on the 1 st General Assembly of the World Association of Membrane
Societies (WA-MS)

Date: 12 July 2023

Location: ICOM 2023, 9th to 14th July, 2023. Makuhari Messe, Chiba, Japan.

​

          The first General Assembly was successfully completed during the 13th International Congress on Membranes and Membrane Processes (ICOM 2023) in Chiba, Japan, on 12 July, 2023. It was attended by 23 people, including representatives of all three Founding Societies of AMS, EMS and NAMS.

          The meeting included updates from the President - Prof Mikel Duke, Secretary - A/Prof Tzyy Haur Chong and Treasurer - Prof Yung Chang. Talks from WA-MS Founding Societies were provided by AMS President - Prof Rong Wang, EMS Council Member - Dr Alexey Volkov and NAMS Board Member - Prof Ranil Wickramasinghe. Updates were provided by the WA-MS Working Groups: Education, Website & Calendar and Industry Networking. The next ICOM in 2026 was presented by Prof Isabel Escobar, Prof Jamie Hestekin and Prof Ryan Lively. An important item on the agenda was the handover of the operation of WA-MS to the next host society NAMS, and to welcome the new WA-MS President - Prof Ranil Wickramasinghe, Secretary - Prof Jamie Hestekin and Treasurer - Dr Uwe Beuscher. Another key item on the agenda was the de-registration of WA-MS in Belgium to overcome local administrative challenges and operate as a non-registered entity until a more appropriate and internationally suitable company status is found, where the committee voted in favour of the action. WA-MS wishes to say a big “Thank You” to all the incoming, outgoing and staying Steering Committee delegates, and all members from the founding and country/regional societies, for their invaluable contributions to WA-MS and the international membrane community. WA-MS has made a substantial milestone in its growth thanks to your contributions.