Frequently Asked Questions: 2011 PCIA Forum
1. Where and when will the 2011 PCIA Forum be held?
3. Who is sponsoring the Forum?
4. How can I become a Forum sponsor?
5. Do I need a visa to enter Peru?
6. Are there any travel restrictions/regulations I should be aware of?
7. What will be the language of the Forum?
8. What topics will be covered?
10. How do I know if my registration was received?
11. When is the Forum Registration Deadline?
12. Do you provide financial assistance?
13. When will I find out if I have been selected to receive financial assistance?
14. Where in Lima is the event taking place?
15. How do I make hotel arrangements?
16. What is the kickoff event?
17. Will we be able to light stoves as a demonstration at the 2011 Forum?
18. Will there be a film festival again at the 2011 Forum?
19. Will there be a poster exhibition?
20. Where can I find more information about Peru?
21. I received an invitation letter in Spanish. Could you please provide an English translation?
22. There’s no Peruvian Embassy or Consulate in my country. Where can I go to get a visa?
23. How long does it take to get a response to my question emailed to the PCIA Moderator account?
24. I have not received an invitation letter to the Forum. When will I receive that?
-
Q1. Where and when will the 2011 PCIA Forum be held?
A1.
The 5th Biennial PCIA Forum will take place at the El Pueblo Conference Center in the outskirts of Lima, Peru, February 21-26th, 2011. It will gather together over 300 of the world’s leading household energy and health experts for five days of dynamic workshops, technical presentations and case studies from successful programs around the world. The Forum, which will begin on Tuesday, February 22nd; will be preceded by a one-day kickoff event in downtown Lima on Monday February 21st as part of the “Half-million Stoves for a Smokeless Peru” campaign. For more information on the kickoff event, see Question 16 below.A2. PCIA Forums rotate between Latin America (LAC), Africa and Asia; the last two Forums were in Uganda and India. The Peru venue will allow LAC Partners to access the Forum more easily, and will allow our non-LAC Partners to learn firsthand about the work that’s happening in the Western Hemisphere related to indoor air pollution, and fuel use reduction technologies.
Q3. Who is sponsoring the Forum?
A3. PCIA has collaborated with GTZ on previous Forums, and is excited to be working closely with GTZ-Peru to organize the 2011 event.
Q4. How can I become a Forum sponsor?
A4. If you’d like to help sponsor this extraordinary Forum of practitioners and researchers dedicated to improving health, livelihood, and quality of life for millions of families, please contact us at moderator@PCIAonline.org. Your contribution will help defray Forum costs and provide airfare scholarships for Partners who would otherwise be unable to attend.
Forum Sponsorship opportunities include:
PCIA Forum Co-sponsor ($50k+; includes co-branding on PCIA Forum materials, recognition in the PCIA Forum Program and verbally at the Forum welcome invocation and logo display on PCIA Forum website)
Supporting Sponsor ($20k-50k; includes recognition in the PCIA Forum Program and verbally at the Forum welcome invocation)
Contributing Sponsor ($5-20k; includes recognition in the PCIA Forum Program)
This is a unique opportunity to demonstrate your leadership in the household energy field by providing Partners the tremendous opportunity to share their experience and expertise with colleagues from other international organizations also working to improve the quality of life and livelihoods of the billions of people who burn solid fuels for their cooking and heating needs.
Q5. Do I need a visa to enter Peru?
A5. Citizens from Canada and the U.S., South American citizens, and citizens of countries that are part of the European Union, do not need a visa to visit Peru if you are traveling as a tourist with a valid passport. Citizens from most other countries are required to obtain visas.
Please note that if you are coming from a country where a visa is required, you must obtain your visa ahead of time – visas are not issued upon arrival in Peru. We strongly recommend that you start the visa process well in advance of the Forum to be sure that it is in hand and to prevent last minute scrambling.
The list of countries requiring a visa is subject to change, so please see the Peruvian Government Foreign Relations Ministry (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores) website for a list of countries that are required to obtain visas to enter Peru. This can be accessed through their webpage: www.rree.gob.pe or by clicking HERE and selecting the option “Paises que requieren Visa para ingresar al Peru.” Please note this website is in Spanish.
If you are unsure if you need a visa, or about visa requirements, you should contact the Peruvian consulate in your home country. Most often, the Peruvian embassy/consulate in your home country will be located in the capital city. Please note that for citizens of some countries, a yellow fever vaccination is required to enter Peru.
PCIA will send a letter of invitation to all registered participants, which may be helpful when applying for a visa.
For a list of common requirements for visas, please see the logistics packet: ../..//2011Forum/Logistics.
Q6. Are there any travel restrictions/regulations I should be aware of?
A6. If you plan to travel through the United States as a stopover into Lima, you will be required to obtain a U.S. Transit Visa. U.S. Transit Visas may be difficult to obtain. Therefore we encourage Partners who do not already have a valid U.S. Transit Visa to fly through Mexico or Brazil rather than through the U.S.
Q7. What will be the language of the Forum?
A7. The Forum will be held in BOTH English and Spanish. We will provide simultaneous interpretation (or separate sessions in each language) for each of the Forum sessions. Please indicate on your registration form if you require translation services between English and Spanish. Both English and Spanish versions of the Logistics packet have already been posted online at ../..//2011Forum/Logistics.
Q8. What topics will be covered?
A8. Topics for the 2011 Forum will build on those covered at previous Forums; to review the 2009 Forum agenda, please see: ../..//files/2009_PCIA_Forum_Agenda.pdf. As usual, the 2011 Forum content will be developed based on expressed interests of registrants, who are asked to provide 4 topic preferences in the registration form. The deadline for Agenda submissions was October 12. These are currently under review. This will all be used to determine the agenda content of the 2011 Forum. A draft agenda is now available here.
A9. Registration is open now online (in both English and Spanish) through the PCIA website at: ../..//2011Forum/register/ (English version) and ../..//2011Forum/register/es (Spanish version). Register today to reserve your spot in this exciting biennial event. If your internet is unreliable, you may want to save a copy of your registration before hitting ‘submit.’ Please contact moderator@pciaonline.org if you have any trouble submitting your online registration form.
Q10. How do I know if my registration was received?
A10. You will receive a confirmation email to the email address you included in your registration form, letting you know your registration was received. If you do not receive an email, please contact us at moderator@PCIAonline.org.
If you have submitted your registration form and notice an error, please do not submit a second registration. Please send changes to moderator@pciaonline.org.
Q11. When is the Forum Registration Deadline?
A11. The deadline for Forum Registration is January 17, 2011.
Q12. Do you provide financial assistance?
A12. As in previous Forums we have some funding to support travel scholarships (airfare only) for a limited number of individuals (only one person maximum per organization). These scholarships will be selected based on information you provide in your Financial Support Application as part of the online registration process. To be considered you must be a PCIA Partner, and have an updated PCIA Profile and 2009 Results Report submitted for your organization. If you are unsure if a results report has already been submitted for your organization, please contact moderator@pciaonline.org to find out. Do not submit duplicate results reports for the same organization. If you have not updated the Partner Profile for your organization, please see ../..//partner-profile-update-instructions for information on how to update your profile. Please do not create a new profile for your organization. This will not be accepted. Other selection criteria are explained on the Application form itself (included in the Registration page): ../..//2011Forum/register/.
We do not provide financial support for lodging and meals during the Forum. Because we have limited funds, and we want to give as many people as possible the opportunity to participate, we have limited our scholarships to ONLY airfare. Even with this restriction, we still expect to have to decline deserving applicants. During the days of the Forum Tuesday February 22nd – Saturday February 26th, lunches will be provided for participants. In addition, a continental breakfast is included in the price of lodging for those staying at the event site (please see the logistics packet for more information about meals and lodging).
Q13. When will I find out if I have been selected to receive financial assistance?
A13. There were two deadlines for financial support applications. Both deadlines have already passed.
Q14. Where in Lima is the event taking place?
A14. The event will be held at El Pueblo Convention Center, which is located approximately a 1 hour drive outside central Lima. For more information on the venue (including lodging and meal prices), please see the logistics packet: ../..//2011Forum/Logistics. Transportation will be provided free of cost from the airport to the venue at any time of day for participants who submit their request online at ../..//2011Forum/Transport by February 14th.
Q15. How do I make hotel arrangements?
A15. In order to get special Forum rates at El Pueblo, all rooms (single, double and triple occupancy) must be reserved through the PCIA website ../..//2011Forum/Lodging no later than January 31st. Lodging arrangements will be made by a member of the PCIA team. If you have a preference for roommate, please indicate that in your lodging request.
All Partners are responsible for paying their own accommodations. For prices and further information, please see the logistics packet: ../..//2011Forum/Logistics
Q16. What is the kickoff event?
A16. A Forum kick-off event will be held on Monday, February 21st at 9:00 AM, at the Museo de la Nación in Lima, Peru. This event will focus on the “Half Million Improved Stoves for a Smokeless Peru” campaign, presenting results to date (for certification and installation of improved stoves) and advances in the policy framework among other topics. Transportation will be provided from El Pueblo to Museo de la Nación (downtown Lima) for this event. Please indicate on your registration form if you plan on attending.
Q17. Will we be able to light stoves as a demonstration at the 2011 Forum?
A17. Yes. We have permission from the hotel to use their grounds for stove demonstration purposes.
Q18. Will there be a film festival at the 2011 Forum?
A18. Yes, as in previous Forums there will be a film festival showcasing PCIA Partner activities and results. If you would like to submit a film for consideration, you will need to send it by mail to Winrock offices ahead of time, and the Forum planning committee will select which ones will be shown at the Forum. Please indicate on your registration form if you will be submitting a film for consideration. More information on submitting films can be found here
Q19. Will there be a poster exhibition?
A19. Yes, as in previous Forums there will be a poster exhibition Tuesday afternoon from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. These will remain up for viewing throughout the Forum. PCIA will supply you with the easel to display your poster, story board and pictures. There will also be space to display printed materials. PCIA will print posters submitted electronically using the templates provided at: www.pciaonline.org/2011Forum/Posters. PCIA will be printed on ISO A0 paper.
Partners are otherwise welcome to print and bring their own posters. Please indicate on your registration form if you will be showing a poster. The deadline for submitting a poster has been extended to January 17th. More information can be found here
Q20. Where can I find more information about Peru?
A20. More country-specific information is available in the Logistics Packet: ../..//2011Forum/Logistics. This includes time zone, weather, currency, banking, safety, and other topics of interest for those attending the Forum.
Q21. I received an invitation letter in Spanish. Could you please provide an English translation?
A21. The pdf document at the bottom of this page provides the English translation for the Forum invitation letters. This is just for your information only. You will need the official, signed Spanish version when you apply for your visa for Peru. Important Reminder! You MUST get a visa before arriving in Peru. Visas will NOT be granted upon arrival in Peru. In some cases, there may not be a Peruvian consulate in your home country and you may need to travel to a nearby country to get your visa.
Q22. There’s no Peruvian Embassy or Consulate in my country. Where can I go to get a visa?
A22. If you have no Peruvian Embassy or Consulate in your country, please call the Consulate in the country nearest yours that has one as soon as possible (e.g. India for Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan) to confirm that you are able to send required documentation by mail (FedEx or DHL) to solicit your visa, along with directions for doing so. We are also looking into other options for visas for participants from countries without Consulates, and will let you know if additional options arise. The list of Peruvian consulates worldwide can be found at: http://www.rree.gob.pe/portal/misrree.nsf/b4ea6179f4dd8aa705256e190072ad04?OpenView&Start=1
Q23. How long does it take to get a response to my question emailed to the PCIA Moderator account?
A23. We are receiving a much higher volume of questions to the PCIA account than usual. Because of this, it may take longer than the usual 48 hours for a response. If you have emailed the moderator more than a week ago and have not received a response, please send a second follow up email. We will try to answer all questions as soon as possible. If your question is urgent, please note that in the subject line. Thank you!
Q24. I have not received an invitation letter to the Forum. When will I receive that?
A24. Please check your registration confirmation email. If you registered after November 17, your letter will be sent out in a third round of invitation letters in the next couple weeks. If you registered prior to November 17th and haven’t received an invitation letter, please contact moderator@pciaonline.org
A25. Please see the English translation of the text below (2nd attachment). Please note you will also need to take the official, signed, Spanish version with you to the airport, but here is the translation for your information.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| 2011Forum_invitation_letter.pdf | 142.86 KB |
| Translated-letter-visa-on-arrival-airlines.pdf | 47.72 KB |