Welcome to the registration site for RNA 2011, the 16th Annual Meeting of the RNA Society.

This year’s meeting is being organized jointly with the 13th Annual Meeting of the RNA Society of Japan, and it looks to be another exciting conference. The kickoff on Tuesday night will feature three plenary speakers: Jennifer Doudna (University of California, Berkeley, CA), Muthiah Manoharan (Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge, MA), and Mikiko Siomi (Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo). Over the following days there will be 12 sessions and 4 workshops. The program includes special events such as the Junior Scientist Social, the Mentor-Mentee Lunch, and the Career and Development Lunch. Additionally, there will be an RNA Journal Reception, at which, the editor-in-chief of the RNA Journal, Tim Nilsen, and the staff from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press will be present to answer your publishing questions.

The Kyoto International Conference Center is the host site for RNA 2011. This modern hotel is beautifully set within a wooded area above Kyoto city and is the site where the Kyoto Protocol was signed. The site is easy to get to on a direct subway line from downtown Kyoto.

Kyoto is a dynamic and historic city. It is world-renowned for its hospitality and its bustling streets next to peaceful temples. Kyoto is an easy city to navigate with lots of sightseeing options (110 museums and galleries, 2000 temples and shrines), and it is a safe city with an abundance of Japanese and international restaurants and diverse accommodation possibilities. Kyoto is easily reached by plane via Osaka or Tokyo followed by fast trains.

The conference, the venue, and the city all offer great reasons to join us at RNA 2011. We hope to see you there.

Eric Westhof and Yoshi Nakamura
on behalf of the organizers