Mr Michael Forrest is the new chairman of the IMMa committee. He took over from the inaugural chairman, Professor John Monhemius, who had led the committee since the IMMa was formed at the beginning of 2007, at the committee meeting held on March 26^th, 2009. The chair of the IMMa committee rotates periodically between the chairmen of the minerals divisions; Mr Forrest is the current chairman of the Applied Earth Sciences division. His main task will be to guide IMMa through its next stage of development, in which the minerals divisions will become more closely integrated.