Welcome by Yanakiev Angel Krumov,
President of the Chamber of Graduated Surveyors, Bulgaria

Dear colleagues and friends,

It is an honor and great pleasure for me and the Chamber of Graduated Surveyors to welcome and invite you to the 2015 FIG Working Week in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The Chamber of Graduated Surveyors is in the starting phase of the organization of the event. 2015 FIG Working Week is supported by the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, the Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre Agency, the Union of Surveyors and Land Managers in Bulgaria (a member of FIG) and the Association of Topographical Companies. The event will be held in the National Palace of Culture (NPC), Sofia. A variety of hotels around NPC have been selected to accommodate the delegates. Sofia Hilton is the main conference hotel.

Bulgaria is located at strategic crossroads and its capital Sofia has a very rich and ancient history. Sofia is one of the oldest European capitals. Its history can be traced back to Neolithic times. Traces of several Neolithic settlements have been found on its territory dating from 5000 BC. Sofia (Serdika – the ancient name of the city and late called Sredets and now Sofia – that means city of the God's wisdom) is a cultural center since the time of the Thracians, the Roman Empire, The East Roman Empire – Byzantium and the Bulgarian kingdoms.

The theme of 2015 FIG Working Week is “From the wisdom of ages to the challenges of modern world”. My colleagues and I think that it is suitable because Bulgaria is a very ancient country, with rich story and heritage of the ages. We must learn the lessons of the history and we must strive to make the world better, more colmradely and more friendly, parallel with development and advance of modern technology.

The logo we selected represents the national theater Ivan Vazov. This was the first theater in Bulgaria and the national culture institution. The building is one of the symbols of the city and the country and it is more than 100 years old. The National theater has been named after Ivan Vazov a famous Bulgarian poet and writer, the patriarch of the Bulgarian literature. His works has kept the Bulgarian spirit alive through the ages. This is a building that influences each Bulgarian citizen. The background of the building is the Vitosha mountain– another symbol of the city.

We would like to cordially thank the management and the members of FIG for your votes and for the opportunity given to us to host this event. I would like to cordially to invite all friends, colleagues and members of FIG to the 2015 FIG Working Week. Come and feel the spirit and the culture of the city.

Welcome by Chryssy Potsiou,
Incoming President International Federation of Surveyors, FIG

Dear colleagues,

I cordially invite you to participate in our 2015 FIG Working Week in Sofia, Bulgaria. This is the first Working Week, and the 37th General Assembly under the newly elected FIG Council and Commission Chairs. It will be jointly organized by FIG and the Chamber of Graduated Surveyors of Bulgaria and it will be supported by all relevant local major sectors, such as the academia, the government and the private practitioners. 
At this event we expect around 800 participants from all over the world. The National Palace of Culture is an excellent venue and our Bulgarian colleagues are experienced professionals and great hosts. They already had the leadership of FIG many years ago and have successfully organized several memorable international events, the FIG Congress in 1983 and FIG Commission workshops.

The FIG Working Week 2015 in Sofia is an important event as the implementation of the new FIG Work Plan will be presented and broadly introduced at all levels of the FIG structure. I wish all our participants to be aware of this four-year plan and of its specific goals, and I encourage all to contribute to the achievement of those goals in terms of international professional cooperation for the advancement of experience, knowledge, research, education, good governance and capacity building in our profession. This event will be an excellent opportunity for our participants to identify a concrete role in the implementation of this work plan through an active contribution to the FIG Commission activities. In this regard, I have special expectations for the role of young surveyors.

The selected theme of the conference is “From the wisdom of ages to the challenges of modern world”. Through the centuries, the past and the recent history, a great deal of experience has been accumulated in the field of land and resources management in this region. It will be of significant interest for all of us to share this experience and the lessons learnt and through our collective expertise and the new technological developments to identify solutions for a better future.
I encourage all who have an interest in surveying to participate actively as I am sure that this Working Week will prove to be highly successful and rewarding for all. With great enthusiasm I look forward to welcoming you in Sofia in May, 2015