The seventeenth International Congress of the International Union for the Study of Social Insects was held in Cairns, Australia, from 13 to 18 July 2014. The Congress was attended by 576 delegates from 38 countries. The venue for the conference was the magnificent Cairns Convention Centre, which set new standards in technical excellence for an IUSSI conference. There were 37 symposia, reflecting the diverse interests of IUSSI members. Nine distinguished scientists presented plenary talks. The Hamilton award, the Union’s highest honor, was presented to Professor Mary-Jane West-Eberhard.