ITALIAN ASTROBIOLOGY SOCIETY
Prof. Raffaele Saladino is President and Honorary Member of the Italian Society for Astrobiology (SIA, Italian Astrobiology Society) (www.astrobiologia.it). The SIA was established in March 22th, 2006 with Memorandum of Association, Repertory N. 40479 Collection and N. 7919 with the first seat at the INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte in Naples (current address INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, 50125 Florence, Italy). The main areas of interest of the Association are: astrochemistry; prebiotic chemistry, origin and evolution of genetic information; protobiology; habitability of extraterrestrial environments, development and technological applications Earth and space instrumentation. In the Scientific Council of SIA International and has as members honorary professors Antonio Lazcano (Professor of the School of Sciences at the National Autonomous University of Mexico UNAM in Mexico City), Sandra Pizzarello (professor emeritus at Arizona State University ASU, USA) and Gunter von Kiedrowski (Chair of Bioorganic Chemistry (The OC) at Ruhr University Bochum , Germany). The objectives of the Association are to promote the advancement of knowledge in the field of Astrobiology, promote and coordinate basic and applied research and encouraging collaboration between researchers from different disciplines, to promote and foster relations with other international organizations in the field of excellence and establish relations with other similar associations; promote the development of enabling technologies for terrestrial and space, and to promote new research methods in the field, in the field of Earth and Space, promote and coordinate activities of higher education, and to promote meetings and conferences; promote the dissemination of knowledge for the purpose education and dissemination, implement any necessary action to protect the interests of Astrobiology. To date SIA national and international meetings: i) The first workshop of the Italian Astrobiology Society, 29-30 May 2008 in Cortona, Arezzo ii) Second Workshop of the Italian Astrobiology Society , "The Living Universe", 28-30 May 2009, Department of Earth Sciences and Geo-environmental Bologna iii) III Workshop of the Italian Astrobiology Society, "When Darwin meets Copernicus", 26-28 May, Duino Castle Trieste IV) IV Workshop of Italian Astrobiology Society, "From Astrophysics to Astrochemistry, towards Astrobiology", 19-21 September 2012, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.
