The first conference with the name Interfaces Against Pollution took place in Wageningen, The Netherlands, in 1997. To date, 10 IAP conferences have taken place at locations across Europe and Asia.
The first IAP conference was organised within the auspices of the IUPAC Commission of Colloid and Surface Chemistry, and IUPAC's history of involvement in conferences on Colloids and Surfaces in the Environment dates back to 1992. Prior to establishment of the IAP series, IUPAC organised several conferences in this general domain:
- Colloids in the Aquatic Environment, 7-9 September 1992, London, UK. Chair: John Gregory (University College London). Proceedings published in Colloids and Surfaces A, 1993, vol. 73
- Surface and Colloid Science and its Relevance to Soil Pollution, March 1994, Madras, India
- International Forum on Environmental Catalysis, 25-27 October 1995, Tokyo, Japan. Chair Matsumoto Misono (University of Tokyo). Proceedings published in Catalysis Today, 1997, vol. 35 (1-2)
- IUPAC/ICSU workshop on Electrochemistry and Interfacial Chemistry in Environmental Clean-up and Green Chemical Processes, 6-7 April 2001, Coimbra, Portugal. Chair: Christopher Brett (University of Coimbra); Co-chairs: James F. Rusling (University of Connecticut, US), Luuk Koopal (Wageningen University, NL) & John Gregory (University College London, UK). Proceedings published in Pure and Applied Chemistry, 2001, vol. 73 (12)