Databases and data management technology in general represent one of the main driving forces behind the rapid growth of informatics and its penetration into our every day lives. The most recent advances in the area are discussed every year within a large number of international and national conferences, symposia, and workshops around the world. After several decades of Greek researchers’ successful contributions to the field, the time is ripe for the Hellenic community to establish its own national meeting.

The 1st Hellenic Data Management Symposium (HDMS) held in Athens in July 2002 gave the first samples of a forum for exchanging and discussing research results and ideas but also for investigating ways to transfer technology from researchers to the Hellenic industry as well as the public sector. Following, the HDMS’s tradition was successfully met by the 2nd and 3rd meeting held on the 4th-5th of September 2003 and on the 28th-29th of June 2004 in Athens respectively, where lively participations increased in numbers. To develop further the forum’s perspectives the 4th HDMS is planned to take place in Athens in the 25th-26th of August 2005.