of public health. Vallat made a strong case for hunter training in the detection, monitoring, and control of wildlife diseases. The patron of the 62nd General Assembly, was the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, H.E. Boyko Borisov, who viewed the selection Pravets as place for the 62nd General Assembly as recognition of Bulgaria's successful and well-known wildlife management in recent years. After a strong decline of big game 10 to 15 years ago, Bulgaria managed to bring back the wildlife populations to a healthy level for the benefit of future generations. The 63rd General Assembly under the motto "Hunting is Conservation" was organised in Brussels, Belgium, with the aim to foster the participation and dialogue between members and various stakeholders, including governments, international organizations, the scientific and academic communities, so as to promote sustainable hunting and sustainable policies for worldwide wildlife management, so as to create awareness of wildlife problems, motivate commitment at the highest level for their solution, and thus promote better management of sustainable hunting and wildlife conservation at local, regional, national and international levels. Karel Pinxten, Dean of European Court of Auditors, in his welcome remarks, highlighted that hunters are responsible for sustainable hunting practices, predator control, and habitat improvement, and these three areas show our commitment for sustainable hunting. As a keynote speaker, Jyrki Katainen, Vice- President of the European Commission addressed the audience during the Opening Ceremony. The Commissioner for Job, Growth, Investment, and Competitiveness, and an active hunter, highlighted that being a hunter requires "Responsibility, Sustainability and Transparency". He called upon hunters and organizations to make the most of the force they represent. "We should work together on our common conservation goals." The Opening Ceremony was followed by a panel discussion, "What if we stop hunting?", where five experts from around the world sat down and discussed the environmental, social, and economic impacts of hunting bans. Addressing an audience of over 300 participants, the session was opened by Karl-Heinz Florenz, Member of the European Parliament and the President of the Intergroup "Biodiversity, Hunting and Countryside", who suggested that hunters should convince the animal rights activists that they are actually on the same side. Representatives exchanged their points of view and shared their stories. The general outcome was that if hunting is banned, wildlife would suffer and there would be losses of entire populations. According to the panelists, this has already been happening in some areas