Some time ago I asked our numerous members of the CPAW Executive and our international directors to share with me their vision as to what we might expect to see in our organization in the future.

The number of replies I received tended to undewhelm so I am taking the liberty of sharing some of the ideas I did receive, and to those, have added my own.

The CPAW of the Year 2,000 and beyond will most likely:

• Be comprised of as equally diverse group of individuals as we are now but, hopefully, there will be far more of them.
• Have weathered the storm of competition from other organizations whose aims are, in part, similar to ours.
• Succeed where others will fail because of our underlying objectives which focus on mutual understanding for others and peace throughout the world.
• Become a widely known and respected source of information, both practical and research-oriented.
• Serve as international convener for a biannual conference in which, through themes of relevance, will attract hundreds more to our programs and services.
• Through a member-accessible databank, serve as an electronic conduit to the human wealth represented among us, and through this method, add significant numbers to our membership ranks.


I think that, if we can limit our focus to these elements, we will have more than enough to achieve.

It is my hope that very soon we will have identified a new Webmaster as our beloved Gerard Yeo has found it necessary to discontinue his service to CPAW. We wonder if such a talent is out there, considering the tremendous job which Gerard has continued to do over the years.

We wish you well in your endeavors, Gerard and hope that you will always know you are a valued member of our CPAW family. Our deepest thank you, dear friend Gerard!

I is my hope that we will soon have photographs and brief biographical notes about each of our Executive and Directors and later, the same for every member. (I can envision, for example, hundreds upon hundreds of web site links which will bond us all together, not only in words and pictures, but in our hearts as well.

Kostas Reglis in Greece is now hard at work on a hoped for 1998 CPAW International Conference on the Island of Samos in Greece, most likely in October. I know Kon would also appreciate knowing of any potential conference sponsors who might be willing to assist with some of the financial support efforts he will need. If you or your organisation are able to help, please contact Kon at riglis@athena.math.aegean.gr

This past year and almost a half as your President has been an exciting one, filled with many challenges and with an equal number of delights.

Clearly the 1997 International Writer's Week events were a highlight, not only for the students at Wanniassa High School in Canberra, at Anzac High in Alice Springs, but outward from Australia to Taiwan, Romania, Texas, Florida, and beyond! Congratulations to each and every student and author who gave so freely and generously of their time and talent.

The December, 1996 TELED Confernece with links between Tampa, Florida and Monterrey, Mexico was an exciting event, especially made more successful though the efforts of our CPAW members who traveled to present, once more bringing the CPAW word to potential new members.

In summary, I envision a CPAW 2000 which is a robust organization known far and wide for the good things it does for others, be they seniors in a nursing home or home alone; children bedridden in a hospital; school kids in the Outback or the inner city homes of Taipei; in the Czech Republic or the Russian Steppes; on the Argentinian pampas or the centre of Sao Paulo; on the edge of the Arctic Circle or the tropics of Honduras; all of these and more, they are where our CPAW family lives and that is where we live as well, with each of them.

May 1997 be but the beginning of a wonderful march into the coming century! Won't you join us?

Kindest regards,

Dr. Richard Cornell
Hon. President
Computer Pals Across the World