The beginning of a new calendar year is usually the time to think about conferences. Calls for abstracts are about to open – or in some cases even to close. I haven’t made up my mind yet about which conferences to attend, except for two for which I have an invitation (Scand-LAS and World Congress on Alternatives and Animals in the Life Sciences) which I will honour and one I know I won’t attend (ISAE – I usually attend when it’s in Europe and this year it’s in India).
Here are the ones I’m considering:
Canine Science Forum – Lisbon, Portugal 7-10 July
It would be a first time for me and it would be well justified by my increasing engagement in research with dogs. I would be an attendee only, not a presenter, but I expect that somebody else from our research team will be presenting work. Besides, it’s in Lisbon, a 3-h train ride away, and a place where I always enjoy spending some time. Other than that, I can’t really say much since I’ve never attended before.
World Congress on Alternatives and Animals in the Life Sciences – Maastricht, Netherlands 23-27 August
This is an interesting (in more than one way) conference that I’ve attended twice before (it’s held every 3 years). In my experience, it is more of a conference on Replacement alternatives to animals than Refinement alternatives, and the focus on Replacement has been heavily biased towards animal testing (toxicology etc). Whereas I obviously think it’s great that animal tests are being replaced, I don’t really have any scholarly interest in toxicology tests. But this year I have a particular reason for wanting to be present in a Replacement context: we have a project just starting on organoids and other advanced 3D models for research. This would also be a great chance for our newly hired junior researcher and project manager to get a peek into the alternatives research community. I really should discuss with my team what to present. Maastricht is a lovely city too.
EAAP – Porto, Portugal 31 August – 4 September
Again, this is a conference I’ve never attended but one which I know farm animal researchers in Europe always have on their conference agenda. Farm animal science is my background, and this would be an excellent opportunity for a much needed update, within walking distance from home! What speaks against participation is that I’m not sure what I would be able to present, and since this is a costly conference (even when not having to pay for travel or accomodation) I need to be able to fit it into a research project budget.
Will we be meeting at any of these conferences?
Animalogues 