   The FEBS Congress 2026: explore the plans
The build-up to the 50th FEBS Congress next July, hosted by the Netherlands Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (NVBMB), is gathering pace, with abstract submission and registration due to open on 1 November. In the meantime, we invite you to explore the developing scientific programme on the Congress website, including an exciting plenary speaker line-up of distinguished researchers, parallel sessions covering traditional and emerging research areas, and a wide range of abstract submission topics for participants, who will have opportunities to present short talks, speed talks and posters. We are looking forward to bringing together molecular life scientists at all career stages and from across the globe for an inspiring few days in the Netherlands!  FEBS Young Scientists' Forum The 25th FEBS Young Scientists’ Forum (‘YSF 2026’), a satellite meeting of the 50th FEBS Congress, will bring together in Wageningen around 100 talented postdocs and PhD students from FEBS countries working in the molecular and cellular life sciences. Participants will be able to meet up in a friendly international atmosphere for lectures from keynote speakers, short talks and posters from YSF attendees, sessions supporting scientific career development, and a social programme. YSF participants will then move on to also experience the larger 50th FEBS Congress in Maastricht. FEBS will financially support participation of successful YSF applicants via YSF grants, covering registration, accommodation for both events, and most travel expenses. Applications will open on 1 November and close on 10 December 2025. Full details of the eligibility criteria are on the YSF applications page   FEBS Press At FEBS Press we are conscious that the scientific community relies heavily on publishing and can therefore benefit from editors sharing the inner workings of the industry. Our editors have been very active on this front lately. Here are some of the events they were involved in. Publishing skills are often taken for granted at universities, and early career researchers tend to feel lost when confronted with writing their first manuscript. Managing Editors Julija Hmeljak and Ruzhica Bogeska recently travelled to Varese, Italy, to hold a course on Publishing Skills for the PhD students and postdocs of the Università dell’Insubria. The full-day course was a great opportunity for students to learn about manuscript writing, publishing ethics and article promotion, among other things, and the editors were delighted to spend time with these bright emerging scientists talking about their favourite topics! FEBS Letters staff recently attended the Susan Lindquist School on Proteostasis in Espoo, Finland; this fantastic EMBO-FEBS Lecture Course provided attendees with an overview of both the history of and recent advances in proteostasis, as presented by leaders in the field. The journal was pleased to support the meeting with prizes for the best posters. Managing Editor Duncan Wright also shared insights into academic publishing during one of the roundtable discussions.  Duncan Wright, Managing Editor of FEBS Letters (left), during the roundtable discussion on academic publishing at the Susan Lindquist School on Proteostasis in Espoo, Finland. The FEBS Journal team had the pleasure of attending two FEBS Advanced courses in September. Editor Yeliz Yilmaz attended the EMBO-FEBS Lecture Course "The evolving role of mitochondria in metabolism" held in Belgrade, where she had the opportunity to introduce FEBS Press Journals and talk about publishing with young scientists at the "Meet the PI" session. Additionally, the journal awarded a poster prize to a brilliant early-career researcher. Managing Editor Julija Hmeljak attended the Practical & Lecture Course "Computational approaches to understanding and engineering enzyme catalysis” in Stockholm. This course was aimed primarily at early-career attendees, and Julija had several interesting discussions on how to choose the right journal for their (first) paper. Molecular Oncology recently joined the annual European Association for Cancer (EACR) Congress in Lisbon, as its affiliated journal. Molecular Oncology editors met with the cancer research community to introduce the journal and various FEBS-specific initiatives prospective authors can be involved in. At the Molecular Oncology booth, there was particular interest in ‘The EACR-Molecular Oncology Editorial Fellowship’, aimed at early-career researchers interested in a career in scientific publishing (new call open until November 6th).  FEBS Open Bio Publishing Liaison officers recently attended the FEBS 3+ meeting in Belgrade, and the GBM Compact conference in Frankfurt, where they had the opportunity to talk to many attendees about the journal. FEBS Open Bio was pleased to continue its longstanding support to Early Career Researchers by sponsoring two poster prizes at the above meetings.   FEBS-IUBMB-ENABLE conference: Open call for host institutions in 2027 FEBS and the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB) open the call for hosting the 6th FEBS-IUBMB-ENABLE International Molecular Biosciences PhD and Postdoc Conference. The FEBS-IUBMB-ENABLE Conference is a 3-day international and interdisciplinary event for PhD students and postdocs, hosted at a different research institution each year. The event is organised by an international committee of young researchers (PhD and postdocs) from multiple European institutions, following the standards and structure of the previous FEBS-IUBMB-ENABLE conferences. You can read more about previous editions of the conference following this link. FEBS and IUBMB are looking for a new institution to host the 6th edition of the conference, in November 2027. The 2027 host institution (a university or research centre) must be located in a country with a FEBS Constituent Society. FEBS and IUBMB will fund the event up to a total of EUR 86,100 and will also provide organisational assistance. The application deadline for host institutions is 30 November 2025.  FEBS Advanced Courses 2026 As the FEBS Advanced Courses in 2025 come to an end, with just one course left this year (Molecular and cellular pathways of aging in hematopoiesis | Greece, 20–24 October 2025), we continue to get ready for the courses running in 2026 and for the next round of applications. In Round 1 of the FEBS Advanced Courses 2026 call we funded five courses, and we were delighted that two of them were new courses organised by recipients of a FEBS Excellence Award: Henri Leinonen (Adjunct Professor, University of Eastern Finland) received the FEBS Excellence Award in 2024. He is organising the FEBS Advanced Lecture Course ‘Retina in a dish: Methods & applications in life sciences’ (Finland 8–12 June 2026). The course will explore retina as an ex vivo model system not only for ophthalmology but also for neuroscience, pharmacology, and translational research. Visit the course website and read more about it on this FEBS Network post. Anastassia Vorobieva (Group Leader, VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology, Belgium) received the FEBS Excellence Award in 2021. She is organising the FEBS Practical Course ‘Generative AI for protein engineering (Belgium 19–24 April 2026)’. The course will explore state-of-the-art AI tools for research challenges in protein–protein interactions, self-assembling protein materials and molecular machines, membrane protein design, and small-molecule binders and enzymes. Visit the course website for more information. The other three courses from Round 1 are listed below:
More courses will be funded in Round 2 of the 2026 call, after the FEBS Advanced Courses Committee meet in mid-October. Applications to the 2026 call Looking for the next deadline for applications to organise an Advanced Course? It will be 1 March 2026 for courses to be delivered in 2027. Keep an eye on FEBS announcements to find out when the updated guidelines are added to the FEBS website. Support for meetings of FEBS Constituent Societies 2026 FEBS3+ Meetings: apply for funding by 30 November 2025 A record-breaking total of twelve FEBS Societies were involved in three FEBS3+ meetings this year – in Vilnius, Prague and Belgrade – each fostering collaboration of scientists in nearby countries and sharing of Society experience in meeting organization; look out for reports in an upcoming issue of FEBS News. Interested in this meeting format for your Society in 2026? Applications for a FEBS3+ grant of €20,000 are still open for 2026 Society meetings equivalent to an annual national scientific meeting but involving collaboration of three or more FEBS Societies. Find guidelines here and apply by the extended deadline of 30 November 2025. Other support for FEBS Society national meetings In the FEBS website’s Societies support section, meeting organizers can also find out about applying for financial support for a headline speaker as a ‘FEBS National Lecture’ and for a FEBS Open Bio poster prize. And don’t forget to take advantage of the FEBS website’s events calendar and FEBS Network’s Societies channel to promote your Society meetings.  FEBS Education and Training
FEBS Education and Training Conference 2026  ????Save the date! We are pleased to announce that the next FEBS Education and Training Conference (ETC) will take place on 25–29 March 2026 in the coastal town of Kuşadası, Türkiye — bringing together educators, trainers, and academic leaders across the molecular life sciences. Set against the backdrop of the Aegean Sea, ETC 2026 offers a space not only to exchange ideas but to rethink how we teach, mentor, and grow as educators. The conference will explore timely and essential themes, including:
In true ETC spirit, the program will feature a variety of formats to engage and inspire:
Whether you’re exploring new approaches or helping shape institutional change, ETC 2026 welcomes all who care deeply about education in the molecular life sciences. Please save the dates, and keep an eye on https://febsetc.org/ for updates on registration and program details. We look forward to welcoming you to Kuşadası — for learning, connection, and shared purpose.
Call for FEBS Education and Training Supported Society Events
FEBS & NBS Joint Education Workshop Over two days of talks, practical workshops, and interactive discussions, participants exchanged ideas and strategies on active learning, inclusive assessment, feedback literacy, and transferable skills, with a focus on improving how science is taught and learned.
  Among the sessions at the workshop was “Science, Slides, and Stage Fright: A Survival Guide,” led by Ali Burak Özkaya as part of the transferable skills package for young researchers. His session explored how storytelling, design, and delivery strategies can help presenters move beyond perfection toward genuine connection. In his follow-up article, “The Art of Connection: Lessons from the Bergen Workshop,” Ali Burak Özkaya reflects on the creative and human side of scientific communication, sharing key takeaways such as minimalism in slide design (less clutter, more focus), embracing imperfection as a path to authenticity, building structure and flow like acts in a play, starting with a strong hook that captures attention, and showing rather than telling through visuals and emotion.  |
