Public Events Calendar

Addressing the challenges of biodiversity loss in a rapidly changing climate requires collaboration across scientific disciplines. In the PSC Symposium 2026, experts will present topics at the crossroads of ecosystem science, plant biology, biodiversity management and policy. Topics spanning ecosystem science include the reconstruction of past biodiversity, ecosystem modeling, and ecological interactions shaping species distributions. At the plant level, speakers will investigate the mechanisms that allow plants to survive and thrive, from epigenetic adaptation in alpine environments to defense against pathogens and the specialized functions of roots. Interdisciplinary researchers will present how to bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and conservation practice, in the light of biodiversity monitoring, adaptive forest management, and agricultural policy.

The PSC PhD Symposium is a biennial international event organized by PhD students of the Zürich-Basel Plant Science Center. Each edition brings together more than 200 researchers for a day of scientific exchange and networking, primarily from ETH Zürich, the University of Zürich, and the University of Basel. We warmly invite researchers and anyone interested in learning more about plants, biodiversity, and their future in a changing world.