Dear Colleagues,

We are delighted to invite you to the Fourth Biennial Sustainable Management Development Program (SMDP) Global Conference on Strengthening Public Health Management Capacity. The conference is co-sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Sustainable Management Development Program (SMDP) and the Andrija Štampar School of Public Health, home of the award-winning management capacity building program “Healthy Counties.” The conference will take place in Cavtat near Dubrovnik, Croatia, from May 25–29, 2008.

We are proud that SMDP and the Andrija Štampar School have joined forces in choosing Croatia to host the fourth biennial SMDP conference, an event that will bring together public health professionals from around the world to explore the role of management capacity building in improving public health systems and programs. It will also provide a forum for alumni from SMDP’s Management for International Public Health (MIPH) course, now in its 17th year, to network and exchange lessons learned about improving management practices in developing or resource-constrained countries.

To explore the conference theme of "Best Practices, Collaboration, and Learning Networks," the 2008 SMDP conference features:

• Lectures and plenary addresses by experts on current public health management issues.
• Opportunities for skill-building at concurrent workshops.
• Regional gatherings to encourage collaboration and learning networks.
• Case studies of management improvement projects and programs.
• Opportunities to network with peers from around the world.
• Awards for Management Capacity Building Program Excellence, Applied Management Improvement Projects, and Postgraduate Applied Management Improvement Projects.

We hope to attract your interest to participate in conference lectures, forums, and workshops, and to enjoy the unique Mediterranean surroundings of beautiful Dubrovnik region!

The wonderful city of Dubrovnik, ideally located in the heart of the Mediterranean basin that connects Eastern and Western Europe, is an excellent place to gather the best international experts. We look forward to welcoming you to this conference and we invite you to discover Dubrovnik's ancient history.