The five-day gathering will draw up to 10,000 total attendees from around the world to explore "Science and Technology for Sustainable Well-Being," which is the theme of the event, organizers said.

    Taking the center stage will be climate change that poses a growing threat to the world, in which many people continue to lack adequate food, clean water and energy.

    "Global climate change is real, humans are responsible for a substantial part of it, and it's taking us in dangerous directions," said John P. Holdren, president of the AAAS.

    Renewable energy and space exploration will be also high on the agenda.

    The meeting aims to raise awareness among researchers, politicians and the public at large about crucial scientific and social issues, and showcase the latest scientific advances.

    The conference will comprise almost 200 scientific sessions on diverse scientific papers, with focuses on the gradual melting of mountain glaciers around the world, alternative energy sources such as bio-fuels and solar energy, and on water conservation and irrigation technology to reverse desertification.

    The AAAS meeting, America's largest general science conference, offers an unsurpassed technical program for scientists, educators, policy-makers and reporters as well as free events for families and job-seekers, said organizers.

    Founded in 1848, the AAAS serves 262 affiliated societies and academies of science, representing 10 million individuals.

    It is the world's largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal, Science, which is the largest paid circulation of any peer-reviewed general science journal in the world, with an estimated total readership of 1 million.