BioSpace25

biospace25 banner

Frascati (Rome), Italy

The BIOSPACE25 international conference – the first of its kind – is dedicated to the application of Satellite Remote Sensing (SRS) across the various dimensions of biodiversity. It addresses Earth Observation from the perspective of its different kinds of ecosystems.

The conference is organised by ESA, the European Commission, the Group on Earth Observation Biodiversity Observation Newtowk (GEO BON), the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS), and a number of partner organisations. The objective is to bring together an interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral community of experts in biodiversity and conservation, with the goal to offer insightful exploration of critical biodiversity challenges object of Earth Observation systems, and how SRS solutions can contribute.

Julien Radoux, from LifeWatch Belgium, is taking part in the capacity of co-organizer of this unique event. There is also the possibility to submit workshop proposals and abstracts.

Visit the event page for more details: https://biospace25.esa.int/

7th World Conference on Marine Biodiversity

world conference marine biodiversity event banner

Bruges, Belgium

The 7th edition of the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity will be held from November 17-20th 2026 (WCMB 2026) in Bruges, Belgium, hosted by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ). The conference has been endorsed as a UN Ocean Decade Event.

Taking part in the conference is a major opportunity to share research outcomes, management and policy topics, and offers a platform to discuss current and emerging biodiversity issues.

This year, the main theme will be “The marine biodiversity insights we need, for the ocean we want“.

In collaboration with the WCMB 2026 Scientific Committee, several sub-themes have been defined, which will guide the overall organisation:

  • Challenges to achieve the UN Ocean Decade goals
  • Marine biodiversity: it’s all about the base(line)s and trends
  • Building e-oceans to help us fill our knowledge gaps
  • Marine biodiversity enthusiasts and stewards for the future: who are they, where do they come from, what are their needs and what drives them?
  • Challenges, changes and opportunities in marine taxonomic research: from specimens to genes
  • Science that makes a difference: supporting knowledge-based policies
  • Taking the pulse of the ocean: measuring our current marine biodiversity knowledge through monitoring networks and programs
  • Other

Moreover, the event committee organised a call for session proposals, linked to one of the above conference sub-themes. A session may be constructed around a network, project, initiative or a specific, clearly defined scientific topic or question of broad interest within the field of marine biodiversity and in connection with the chosen sub-theme. Sessions can be constructed as presentations only, or a combination of presentations and discussions.

Practical information:

Session proposal details: https://www.wcmb2026.org/call-session
Submission deadline: 31 March 2025
Feedback on submissions: 15 May 2025
Online submission form: https://form.vliz.be/en/WCMB2026_Sessions

Information on the event and registration are available on the official page: https://www.wcmb2026.org/about

Science Summit 2024

Science Summit workshop

New York City, USA

LifeWatch ERIC and other European partners organise a workshop called Transforming Knowledge into Practice: Science, Technology and Innovation in Support of the UN SDGs.

The event will take place on Thursday, September 26, 2024, from 9:00am to 4:00pm EDT (3:00pm to 10:00pm CEST).

Online joiners can register for free and have the possibility to follow the livestream of the event, which will take place on the Rooftop of the Science Summit venue.

Click here for more information on the event agenda and registration: https://sciencesummit2024.sched.com/event/1jzig

EGI Conference 2024

Lecce, Italy

The annual EGI conference brings together international scientific communities, computing and service providers, European projects, security experts, community managers and policymakers to advance research and innovation in data-intensive processing and analytics. The event provides an open environment for in-depth discussions, new insights and networking opportunities. EGI is organising this event with the Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change (CMCC). CMCC is an Italian research centre focusing on climate and climate-related research, including climate variability, its causes and consequences. This research uses numerical models ranging from the global Earth system to regional models in the Euro-Mediterranean area.

A detailed agenda will be published soon on the EGI’s website: https://www.egi.eu/event/egi2024/

BES Annual Meeting 2024

BES 2024

Liverpool, UK

In December 2024, ecologists worldwide will gather in Liverpool for Europe’s largest conference dedicated to ecology.

The British Ecological Society Annual Meeting attracts over 1200 delegates each year in its flagship event, and provides opportunities to meet new colleagues, develop careers, learn new skills, engaging and sharing research with the global ecological community.

This welcoming conference offers each year an exciting programme of plenary sessions with internationally renowned speakers. This year, the event will feature Rob Fish, Professor of Environmental Sustainability at the Imperial College of London, Ana Carnaval, Professor in the Department of Biology of the City College of New York, Lucy Waruingi, Executive Director of the African Conservation Centre, and Nathalie Seddon, Professor of Biodiversity at the University of Oxford and Founding Director of the Nature-based Solutions Initiative.

Besides these interesting plenary sessions, the attendees will have the chance to attend a number of thematic sessions, workshops, networking events and exhibitions.

The conference is especially relevant for LifeWatch ERIC due to the rich programme of its Thematic sessions, addressing the biodiversity crisis, nature restoration policies and practices, novels tools and technologies to tackle current challenges and much more.

LifeWatch ERIC will attend the event with a booth dedicated to research communities facilities, services and resources (including ENVRI-Hub NEXT), and a set of talks dedicated to biodiversity monitoring, conservation strategies, and more. We have summarised here the details of our interventions:

  • 11 December at 17:15, Room 3A | Michele Lussu (University of Bologna): “Conservation strategy: spatial prioritization approach using Orchids.” (S11).
  • 12 December at 15:15, Room 11B | Andreja Ramšak (National Institute of Biology): “Towards automated biodiversity monitoring -a set-up of Biodiversity Observatory Automation (Thematic Topic under LifeWatch ERIC).” (S34).
  • 12 December from 17:00 to 18:30, Hall 2A | Milad Shokri (University of Salento): “Metabolic responses to climate change in invertebrates.” (poster presentation).
  • 13 December at 14:00, Room 3B | Francesco De Leo (CNR): “Toward a global relationship between net primary production and biodiversity in marine ecosystems.” (S50).

The full programme is available online. For more information, please visit the official website: https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/events/bes-annual-meeting-2024

Photo credit: @BritishEcolSoc on X

Tropical Summit 2024

tropical summit 2024

Lisbon, Portugal

The Tropical Summit 2024 aims to bring people together to address the ongoing challenges and opportunities in the tropics: a multi-stakeholder forum committed to achieving the goals of the 2030 Agenda. The lessons from the past, including unmet global agendas, highlight the importance of not treating the 2030 deadline as a distant future event but as an urgent reality that requires immediate attention.

The main objectives of the Tropical Summit are to promote the transfer of knowledge, stimulate multidisciplinary collaboration, involve stakeholders, and contribute to the co-creation of innovative projects.

The focus will be on South-South-North triangular cooperation and four thematic areas:

  1. Planetary Health: Nurturing life within the global boundaries
  2. Agricultural Development: Sustainability as a path to socioeconomic progress
  3. Territorial and Social Transitions: Building resilient spaces and societies in every dimension
  4. Human Growth: Empowerment and technology for the times ahead

LifeWatch ERIC will be present in the “Biodiversity and digitalisation” section of the Exhibition Hall. Two members of our Service Centre in Lecce will be there. Laura Caciagli and Ant Türkmen will provide presentations about our services and present the MarineSABRES project.

They will be also joined by members of PORBIOTA, representing LifeWatch Portugal.

To learn more on the Tropical Summit 2024, please visit the official website: https://www.tropicalsummit2024.com/

14th European Conference on Ecological Restoration

Tartu, Estonia

SERE2024 is an international conference organised by the European Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration, taking place in the last week of August 2024 in Tartu, Estonia. The event will bring together professionals working in ecological restoration to share knowledge and discuss the future of Europe’s nature. The conference will address the decline of biodiversity and the need to effectively restore degraded ecosystems, in line with the EU’s efforts to adopt the Nature Directive in 2024.

The conference will focus on developing approaches for long-term nature restoration. It will facilitate the exchange of ideas, knowledge and experience between researchers, practitioners and policymakers across Europe. Sessions will cover topics such as the restoration of different ecosystems and the socio-economic and political contexts of ecological restoration. A particular focus will be discussions on developing national restoration plans under new EU legislation.

For more information, please visit this website: https://sere2024.org/

Strengthening Europe – Latin America Cooperation in the Energy Transition

Online

In the EULAC EnergyTRAN Horizon Europe Project framework, the virtual thematic event on technology and energy transition, scheduled for the 26th and 27th of June 2024, aims to bolster cooperation between Europe and Latin America by exploring innovative technologies policies and practices. Organised by the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI), the event will open with introductory presentations from the EU-Solaris ERIC, the OEI, and the European Research Executive Agency (REA). It will feature panels addressing key topics such as the exchange of scientific knowledge, challenges and opportunities in the energy sector, and the environmental and social impacts of energy transition.

Experts from both regions will discuss alternative energy sources, regulatory challenges, and innovative technological solutions like green hydrogen production and solar thermal energy applications. The event will also highlight the importance of international collaboration in advancing sustainable energy research and infrastructure, culminating in a session synthesising the discussions and outlining future steps for enhanced cooperation.

For more information please visit the OEI website: https://oei.int/oficinas/secretaria-general/eventos/fortaleciendo-la-cooperacion-europa-america-latina-en-la-transicion-energetica

To register, please fill out this form:

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=RCDnxlDvVUG4M1R-c13Lgjw00Q45XEtImjIDUep7g79UMUpBQzVUWlI4VEowNVBOSUNZN0RJSE43Ri4u

Agenda

OBIS-GBIF Joint Strategy & Action Plan

Online

The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) will update the action plan annually through a joint implementation committee of staff from both networks’ nodes and the Secretariats. This committee will address technical and community components of the annual plans and make recommendations on the activities they outline.

During the meeting, partners will also explore the potential for organising combined conferences and meetings to foster closer collaboration and hosting symposia and training workshops.

OBIS and GBIF have a history of using common data-sharing tools and standards. They have recently collaborated to incorporate eDNA-based data and have published co-authored guidance on how to publish DNA-derived data on marine life.

To learn more and register for the workshop, please visit this page: https://lifewatch.be/en/news?p=show&id=9317.

ZEEKERWETEN – Science Festival at the coast

15-16 June, Oostende, Belgium

The Zeekerweter is a science festival located on the Belgian coast. At the festival, attendees can experience rising sea levels through an immersive Virtual Reality experience. Additionally, participants can explore the rich biodiversity of the sea at the beach of Oosteroever in the “sea workshop”. The festival also offers sustainable seafood and comedy centred around the sea theme.

On June 15, LifeWatch Belgium will host two sessions. One will focus on Virtual Reality, climate, and plankton, while the second will take place at Oosteroever Beach, where participants can discover what lives in the sea and on the sand.

On June 16, the Ostend Marine Station will be a fusion of science, art, and creativity.

To learn more about this event, please visit this website: https://lifewatch.be/en/events/zeekerweten-science-festival-coast.