Two weeks of conferences in Edinburgh, a wealth of international delegates and, remarkably, even the Scottish weather played ball!
We’ve been working on the U.K.E.M. annual conference, the UK branch of the European Environmental Mutagen Society, for over 15 years. Every four years, however, the wider international community converges for the International Conference on Environmental Mutagens, bringing scientists and researchers from across the world together to share the latest developments in toxicology and environmental health.
So, for two weeks, this September we found ourselves in Edinburgh supporting two international conferences back-to-back.
Ahead of I.C.E.M., the 14th International Conference on Environmental Mutagens, we managed the 9th International Workshop on Genotoxicity Testing. The first and smaller of the two events was hosted at The John McIntyre Conference Centre for four days, with delegates attending from Germany, the USA, Canada, Japan, Switzerland and the UK.
A core part of the PHPS team travelled north for the first few days, supported by the in-house technicians. We provided audio visual support for speakers, managed event logistics, the conference website and online agenda. Jenni was also working on registration desk, meeting and greeting delegates, many of whom were staying in Edinburgh for both conferences.
The following week, more of the PHPS team headed north for I.C.E.M. With multiple parallel sessions and up to four rooms in use at any one time, the Edinburgh International Conference Centre was the perfect venue for the larger meeting.
This time we welcomed delegates from 28 countries, managing registration, the conference website and AV support alongside the wider conference management. We also took responsibility for the social programme, creating opportunities for delegates to experience a little of Edinburgh outside the conference rooms.
Welcome drinks and a gala dinner are fairly standard activities for us to arrange, but I.C.E.M. gave us the opportunity to go a little further. Delegates could take an optional trip to a local distillery, join a murder mystery tour or explore The Real Mary King’s Close, the preserved 17th century streets hidden beneath Edinburgh’s current city centre.
The Gala Dinner, however, was the real highlight.
Hosted at the National Museum of Scotland, delegates were greeted at the door by Roddie the Piper, who piped them into the venue for welcome drinks. They then had the opportunity to explore the museum’s galleries and discover some of its most famous treasures, including Dolly the Sheep, the first mammal cloned from an adult cell, the Lewis Chess Pieces and jewellery belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots.
After dinner, a ceilidh band provided the music before launching into a full guided ceilidh, giving many of our international guests their first experience of traditional Scottish dancing. What followed was a room full of laughter, dancing and some surprisingly enthusiastic participation from delegates who had spent much of the week discussing environmental mutagens and genotoxicity!
It was a brilliant way to finish two busy weeks of international conferences and, hopefully, an experience that our delegates will remember long after the science and presentations have faded. The team were treated to a host of international gifts from delegates too, including coin purses from Japan, a hand-made Crochet purse from Egypt (made on the plane as the delegate journeyed to Scotland!), chocolates from Russia and a series of Snacks from South America!
The next stop for the International Conference on Environmental Mutagens and International Workshop on Genotoxicity Testing is Japan in 2030.
Good luck to the team hosting in Japan. They’ve got four years to work out how they’re going to beat Edinburgh!
Konnichiwa!
