Dear Friends and Colleagues:

On behalf of the Local Organizing Committee, we are very proud to host the 23rd World Congress of Neurology 2017 in Kyoto. We welcome all of you from every part of the world.

Founded originally in 1902, the Japanese Society of Neurology (JSN) has evolved into a large society with 8,579 members. Initially a combined neurology and psychiatry association, the current JSN separated in 1959 and continued to flourish ever since. It was the 12th WCN meeting held at Kyoto in 1981 that greatly contributed to the development of JSN and Asian and Oceanian Association of Neurology (AOAN). Therefore, WCN 2017 which is being held at the very same venue would be a very historic meeting which will again serve as a springboard to strongly advance the Asia Initiative of WFN for the world‐wide advancement of neurology in both scientific and clinical aspects, thus "Defining the Future of Neurology".

You can participate in very active discussions and cutting‐edge lectures by the world's top scientists and neurologists including three Nobel laureates as well as hear all the advances of scientific and clinical neurology. Gene therapy and stem/ iPS cell medicine are such examples on the one hand and Brain‐Machine‐Interface, information technology and robotics in care and rehabilitation on the other. Neurology related to environmental and disaster medicine will also attract many neurologists, particularly in rapidly developing counties.

Taking pride in its more than 1,000 years of history as Japan's ancient capital, Kyoto still serves as the nation's cultural centre in terms of Zen Buddhism, tea ceremony, or flower arrangement, to name but a few. Kyoto is one of the world's leading historic cities of scenic beauty with many temples and shrines designated as World Cultural Heritage sites. You can also enjoy very modern aspects of Japan in Kyoto and other places. In Japan, you can go any place within 1 or 2 hours by train or aircraft.

The Local Organizing Committee of JSN in close collaboration with the World Federation of Neurology looks forward to welcoming you in Kyoto for WCN 2017.

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Hidehiro Mizusawa
Congress President
XXIII World Congress of Neurology (WCN2017)
President, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP), Japan