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In!September!2016!it!is!going!to!happen.!To!be!more!precise!from!13#–#16#September#2016,##the#11th# European#Conference#on#Gambling#Studies#and#Policy#Issues#will!take!place!in!the!beautifully! refurbished!InterContinental!Hotel!in!Lisbon,!Portugal.!

By!that!time!it!is!expected!to!have!over!300!participants!from!more!than!40!different!countries!! coming!from!a!wide!variety!and!diversity!of!background!to!attend!the!conference.!

The!title!of!the!conference!is:!Development#of#the#invisible#and#unknown:#Research,# Responsibilities#and#Regulation.#

As!you!may!know,!the!European!Association!for!the!Study!of!Gambling!(EASG)!aims!to!increase!the! level!of!dialogue!between!its!members!representing!various!aspects!of!gambling.!The!Association! provides!a!forum!for!the!systematic!study,!discussion!and!dissemination!on!knowledge!about!all! matters!relating!to!the!study!of!gambling!in!!and!promotes!the!comparative!study!of:!

OHistorical,economical,!mathematical,!social!and!psychological!aspects!of!gambling!

ODevelopment,!execution!and!evaluation!of!the!regulation!of!gambling!

OEthical!marketing!and!management!of!gambling!opportunities!

OUnderstanding!of!the!development!of!pathological!gambling!and!the!provision!of!prevention!and! treatment!programmes.!

The!EASG!avoids!taking!a!communal!view!about!any!specific!issue!relating!to!gambling.!

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The!close!to!200!members!of!the!EASG!are!regulators!from!a!lot!of!European!countries,!gambling! industry!representatives,!land!based,!online!operators!and!lottery!organisations.!Also!academics!and! researchers!and!prevention!and!treatment!specialists!are!a!member!of!our!association.!

Since!more!than!20!years!we!organize!a!very!successful!conference!in!different!parts!in!Europe.!

We!started!in!1994!and!we!will!have!our!11th!European!Conference!on!Gambling!Studies!and!Policy! Issues!in!Lisbon!in!2016.!

Since!about!fifteen!years!we!are!the!largest!and!most!respected!conference!in!Europe,!some!even! say!in!the!world.!

For!sure!regulators!will!com!to!Lisbon!as!gambling!and!definately!the!regulation!of!gambling!is!a!hot! topic,!not!only!in!Europe!but!all!over!the!world.!What!to!think!about!the!EU!based!guidelines!and!the! national!regulations!to!be!implemented.!Some!countries!have!a!steady!and!well!regulated!position.! Others!like!,!Sweden!and!the!!are!still!struggling,!especially!in!the!online!area.! What!should!be!allowed?!How!should!it!be!allowed?!When!is!this!all!going!to!happen?!We!promise! regulators!an!exiting!conference!with!lots!of!different!topics,!including!a!focus!on!Responsible! Gaming.!That!is!so!important!these!days.!A!top!priority!for!politicians,!but!difficult!to!find!in! regulation.!

The!industry!will!also!come!to!Lisbon.!Land!based!!industry!(including!the!European!Casino! Association)!the!slot!machine!industry!(Euromat)!,!but!also!representatives!for!the!lottery! organizations!and!not!to!forget!the!online!gambling!and!betting!operators.!

For!academics!,!researchers!the!conference!is!a!must,!meeting!point.!Top!researchers!like!Jeffrey! Derevensky,!David!Hodgins,!Bob!Ladouceur!(professor!emiritus),!Alex!Blaszcinsky,!Iver!Hand,!Rachel! Volberg!and!Mark!Griffiths!will!be!there.!But!many!more!are!to!come.!

In!the!programme!we!will!have!a!special!dedicated!session!to!the!most!controversial!topics!that!are! mentioned!by!these!Research!V.I.P.’s!.!Speed!dating.!

Last!but!not!least!we!expect!a!large!group!of!participants!that!are!involved!in!treatment,! professionally!and!those!who!have!a!focus!on!self!help!programmes,!face!to!face!and!online.!

The!basic!outline!of!the!conference!programme!together!with!all!necessary!information!to!send!in! abstracts!and!to!register!for!the!conference!is!available!on!our!website!(!www.easg.org!).!!

Two!years!ago!we!had!over!110!presentations!in!plenary!and!parallel!session.!We!expect!to!do!the! same!this!year.!!

However!it!is!not!only!!content!and!knowledge!spreading.!The!EASG!conference!is!also!know!for!the! social!aspects!and!its!famous!social!programme.!From!the!moment!you!arrive!you!are!being!taken! care!of.!A!great!welcome!reception,!a!special!dedicated!evening!providing!local!food!and!music!and!a! gala!dinner!,!for!sure!with!entertainment.!

Two!and!half!day!of!top!entertainment!and!knowledge!building!and!maybe!making!new!friends,!that! will!remain!friends!for!the!rest!of!your!life.!

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One!more!thing!for!those!who!want!to!do!more,!want!to!learn!more.!We!also!organize!two!preO conference!workshops!on!Tuesday!13!September!in!the!afternoon.!

One!topic!is!on!Match!Fixing,!never!boaring!and!very!actual!and!important!again!these!days!taking! into!account!the!professional!tennis!rumours.!And!is!this!still!tip!of!the!iceberg?!We!promise! excellent!presenters,!like!we!did!before!in!Amsterdam!last!year!and!the!moderator!of!the!workshop! Philippe!Vlaemminck!will!lead!the!discussion.!

The!other!topic!is!an!absolute!must!for!treatment!specialists!and!other!interested!parties!as!it!will!be! on!Brief!Interventions!and!Motivational!Interviewing!techniques.!It!will!be!delivered!by!David! Hodgins!who!is!considered!to!be!THE!worlds’s!expert!in!this!area.!

And,!besides!a!lot!of!other!specials,!we!will!host!an!IMGL!Masterclass.!

In!short!what!should!stop!you!from!getting!to!Lisbon,!Portugal!in!September?!And!if!you!come,! maybe!you!should!think!of!adding!a!couple!of!extra!days!to!your!travel!scheme.!There!are!so!many! beautiful!things!to!see!and!do.!

Let’s!meet!!

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Pieter!Remmers,!Secretary!General!and!Conference!Organiser!

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www.facebook.com/easgorg! www.twitter.com/easg_news!

www.linkedin.com/company/europeanOassociationOforOtheOstudyOofOgamblingOeasgO!!

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