News about our sustainability initiatives
Our latest sustainability news is featured below and you can stay up to date by following us on X (formerly Twitter) and LinkedIn, and/or by registering for email updates.
January 2024 – Our plans for sustainable Workshops in 2024
While the threats of climate change continue to grow, The Company of Biologists are committed to making our own Workshops more sustainable. Throughout 2023 we have made efforts to track and reduce the carbon impact of our in person events. We will reinforce this strategy into 2024 and continue to explore new and innovative ideas that can help us make our events more sustainable this year and beyond.
December 2023 – Workshops in 2023: our sustainability journey
One of the event teams objectives for 2023 was to try and actively reduce the carbon footprint of our scientific Workshops which are held in the UK. The goal was to tackle this in a number of ways including looking at the sustainability of venues we used.
November 2023 – 20 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 20 events in 13 countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
November 2023 – Choosing sustainable venues: a guide
As a high part of the carbon footprint of an event comes from accommodation and catering, it is important to make conscious and well informed decisions decision about it. The sustainability of a venue can be understood by assessing the impact from multiple aspects of it.
October 2023 – Sustainable transport: one goal, more solutions working together
Travelling represents the largest carbon impact of an event. We have interviewed Dr Serena Stanga, who was awarded with our Sustainable Conferencing Grant, to find out more on how she found a solution that combined technology with alternative travelling for her symposium “In pursuit of healthy brain aging: unveiling the biology of novel age-related mechanisms leading to dementia”.
September 2023 – Sustainable menu at events: nurturing with less impact
Event catering can account for 7-17% of event carbon footprint, but putting in practice sustainable strategies can significantly decrease its environmental impact.
September 2023 – 11 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 11 events in eight countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
August 2023 – Two grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of two events in two countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
July 2023 – The Forest of Biologists – an interview with Professor Steven Kelly
The Forest of Biologists was launched on 13 March 2023. We recently caught up with Steven Kelly, Professor of Plant Sciences at the University of Oxford and former Editor-in-Chief of Biology Open, who planted the seed for this project several years ago.
May 2023 – ten grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of ten events in eight countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
March 2023 – Decolonising and Diversifying Biosciences Education: a focus on inclusivity and sustainability
A Sustainable Conferencing Grant was instrumental in allowing the organisers of this event to successfully run the symposium in a fully hybrid manner. It also allowed them to put inclusivity and sustainability at the forefront of the meeting’s organisation.
March 2023 – Our new bio-positive publishing initiative, The Forest of Biologists
We are excited to announce the launch of The Forest of Biologists, our new bio-positive publishing initiative that celebrates the contributions of authors and peer reviewers to our journals. For each published Research Article or Review article, a tree is planted in a UK forest. In addition, we are funding the restoration and preservation of ancient woodland and dedicating these trees to our peer reviewers. All trees are also represented in a virtual forest and, with each new piece of research, the forest grows.
March 2023 – 17 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 17 events in 11 countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
February 2023 – Funding sustainable travel to the British Neuroscience Association meeting
With the help of a Sustainable Conferencing Grant, the organisers of a British Neuroscience meeting in December 2022 were able to offer ‘Train over Plane’ travel grants. These grants reimbursed BNA members who chose to travel to the meeting by train, coach or carshare, rather than catching a plane.
December 2022 – Rethinking sustainability at the Cambridge Neuroscience Seminar
A Sustainable Conferencing Grant helped the organisers of the Cambridge Neuroscience Seminar in September 2022 to reduce the environmental impact of the meeting. The meeting was free of single-use plastics and attendees were particularly impressed by the chance to repurpose their poster as a tote bag.
November 2022 – 12 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 12 events in eight countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
November 2022 – The first Student Conference of Plant Biology organised “by students for students” and respecting the environment
A Sustainable Conferencing Grant helped to enable a unique bottom-to-top scientific event focusing on sustainability and environmental-friendly measures.
November 2022 – The Indian C. elegans Meeting goes green
The organisers of this event used a Sustainable Conferencing Grant to reduce the environmental impact of their event.
November 2022 – How BraYn 2022 used their Sustainable Conferencing Grant
The organisers of this event used their Sustainable Conferencing Grant to help fund access to hybrid conferencing software and various other sustainability touches.
September 2022 – Four grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 12 events in three countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
June 2022 – 12 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 12 events in nine countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
March 2022 – 13 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 13 events in nine countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
December 2021 – 22 grants awarded through our Sustainable Conferencing initiative
Sustainable Conferencing Grants have been awarded to organisers of 22 events in nine countries.
See funded events | Learn more about Sustainable Conferencing Grants
