Forest interactions

We have now reached our registration capacity, and have a waiting list to attend.

If you have submitted an abstract, please contact the Events and Promotions Manager to add your name to the waiting list. Priority for available places will be given to accepted abstracts.

If you have not submitted an abstract, please add your name to the waiting list.

Registration rates:

• Regular: 450 CHF

• Student: 350 CHF

Registration includes:

• Access to all sessions, including poster sessions

• Lunch, dinner and refreshment breaks as per the schedule at the Swiss Alpine Centre

• A place at the symposium dinner (details to be confirmed)

Registration does not include accommodation or the optional field trip.

Travel grants and fee waivers

PhD students and early career researchers with fewer than 5 years' experience since completing their PhD may request a travel grant and/or fee waiver when submitting an abstract. We expect the process to be competitive. Please see the Abstracts and travel grants section for further details.

Waiting list

Places at this symposium are limited. Should we reach capacity for the symposium, delegates interested in attending should register for the waiting list. Should a place become available you will be contacted with details on how to register and pay the symposium registration fee.

Payment options

Our preferred payment method is to for delegates to pay by card when registering, or opt to generate an invoice link to allow a third party, such as your finance team, or administrator, to pay by card.

If you are unable to pay by card you can generate an offline payment invoice to pay by a bank transfer. You should provide the name and email address of the person responsible for paying the invoice.

Invoices must be paid within 30 days, or the delegate place may be cancelled and offered to the waiting list. The exception is where a delegate has applied for a fee waiver, in which case the payment term will be extended until two weeks after notification of the outcome of their application for a fee waiver.

Cancellation policy

If a delegate is no longer able to attend, they should inform Christine Phillips, Events and Promotions Manager, immediately. The delegate can opt to transfer their registration to another delegate, or request a refund. Refunds of registration fees will be provided where the delegate place is able to be re-sold. If a delegate has paid via an offline payment invoice/bank transfer a 20 CHF admin fee will be deducted from any refund. Please note that cancellations received with less than 14 days' notice are unlikely to be able to be resold.

Where a delegate is presenting a poster and is unable to attend they can request that a co-author present the poster on their behalf. The delegate place can be transferred to the co-author.

Should circumstances beyond our control force the cancellation of the symposium, the New Phytologist Foundation is unable to accept liability for any additional costs incurred, including travel costs, and delegates are strongly encouraged to take out appropriate travel insurance to cover them in the event of cancellation.

Abstract submission

Delegates are encouraged to submit an abstract to be considered for an oral or poster presentation.  

We have limited poster exhibition/programme space, and expect the process to be competitive. Preference will be given to new unpublished, or recently published work. 

Each presenting author is limited to one abstract submission, but there is no limit on how many times someone can be listed as co-author. Should an abstract be selected for inclusion the presenting author will need to register to attend before their inclusion in the programme is confirmed.

Abstract submission deadline: 20 May 2026 - now closed

All abstract submissions have been informed of the outcome of their abstract.

Abstract and travel grant decisions will be confirmed in early July 2026.

Abstract guidelines

• All abstract sections should be provided in English.

• The main text should provide concise details of the background and objective(s) of the investigation, methods used, results and conclusion.

• Abstract text should be no more than 200 words.

Abstract submissions are done on the Oxford Abstracts submission portal. If you do not already have an account, you will need to create a free account.

For details of using the submission portal please visit Oxford Abstracts' guidance for submitters page. You can also contact the Events and Promotions Manager, Christine Phillips for assistance.

Travel grants 

We have a limited number of travel grants and fee waivers available. You must submit an abstract by 20 May 2026 to be considered. 

Travel grants and/or fee waivers are available to PhD candidates and early career researchers with fewer than 5 years' experience post-PhD. This can be extended to researchers with more than 5 years experience where they are based in a country that is classed as low- or middle-income by the World Bank, and would be unable to attend without a travel grant.  Travel grant amounts will vary, as they are based on the travel costs for each recipient.

Travel grants and fee waivers will be awarded based on the scientific merit of the abstract submitted. The financial need of the applicant will also be taken into account. 

To apply for a travel grant and/or fee waiver, in addition to your abstract you should submit:

• A brief (no more than 200 word) statement indicating your reasons for wishing to attend and how you hope the meeting will enhance your career/research.

• A CV, which includes academic details, publication history, presentations given, awards and any other information to support your application.

• A supporting letter from a scientist who has agreed to act as a reference for your application. This can also be emailed directly to np-symposia@lancaster.ac.uk by 20 May 2026.  (If you are only applying for a fee waiver you do not need to provide a supporting letter)

If you have any questions, please contact the Events and Promotions Manager, Christine Phillips

If you plan to attend the symposium regardless of whether you are awarded a travel grant and/or fee waiver, you should not to wait until the outcome of your travel grant application to register, as there are limited places at this event. To defer your registration fee payment, you can select the option to pay by invoice, and the invoice payment can be delayed until after the travel grant applications are reviewed.

Should your application be successful, any registration fee paid will be refunded, or the amount of your registration fee can be added to your travel grant reimbursement.

Claiming a travel grant or travel contribution

When a travel grant, sometimes referred to as a travel contribution, has been awarded, the payment of the travel grant will not be issued until after the event.

The New Phytologist Foundation will have set a specific amount for the travel grant. No receipts are required to claim the travel grant. This allows the travel grant recipient to arrange their travel to best suit their needs.

Where possible, we encourage travel grant recipients to combine their travel to the event with other activities to make better use of the carbon footprint of attending the meeting.

The payment of a travel grant can be to the recipient's institution, or to their personal bank account, and will be made by a bank transfer. Travel grant recipients will receive a link to a secure form to provide their bank details to arrange the payment of the travel grant. Institutions may send an invoice for the amount of the travel grant to The New Phytologist Foundation. Please contact np-finance@lancaster.ac.uk with any questions about invoices.

If paying for their travel in advance will cause the attendee to experience a significant financial burden, or if the attendee will have difficulty in receiving a bank transfer from the UK, please contact the Events and Promotions Manager to discuss alternative options.

If the delegate is unable to attend the event, generally the travel grant will not be paid. Delegates are encouraged to take out travel insurance to cover them should they be unable to attend. Any request for a travel grant to be paid following non-attendance will need to be approved by the Executive Editor. We will request confirmation of travel expenses with receipts in these circumstances, as well as proof that the travel costs could not be refunded.

Awarded grants

Travel grants and/or fee waivers were awarded to 22 researchers:

*awarded a fee waiver

We are delighted to confirm the following invited speakers will speak across six themed sessions. View the full programme

Session 1: Tree – tree interactions

Session 2: Tree health and disease

Session 3: Tree – microbe interactions

Session 4: Forest – climate interactions

Session 5: Forest – human interactions

Session 6: Future forests

The symposium will take place at the Swiss Alpine Centre

Address: Route de Belvédère 35, 1854 Leysin, Switzerland

Travel

Getting to Leysin

Leysin is accessible by public transport from a number of Swiss cities.  

By Train

The nearest station is Leysin-Feydey on the R70 regional train line from Aigle to Leysin. Please note that the R70 is a small cog railway, without step free access.

Trains take approximately 30 min from Aigle to Leysin-Feydey and depart regularly throughout the day.  From Leysin-Feydey it is a 5 min walk to the Swiss Alpine Centre.

Aigle is on several Intercity train routes, and travel times are approximately:

• Lausanne train station – Aigle – Leysin: 1 hour – 1 hour 30 min

• Geneva Airport – Aigle – Leysin: 2 hours – 2 hours 30 min

• Geneva train station – Aigle – Leysin: 2 hours – 2 hours 30 min

• Bern train station – Aigle – Leysin: 2 hours 20 min – 3 hours

• Basel train station – Aigle – Leysin: 3 hours 30 min – 4 hours

• Zurich Airport – Aigle – Leysin: 3 hours 45 min – 4 hours 15 min

Further information about trains in Switzerland can be found at https://www.sbb.ch/en
Tip from the organisers: Train route searches may not always suggest the best route for long distance train journeys. For example, if you are traveling from Paris you may want to search for trains to Lausanne, and for trains from Germany you may want to search for trains to Basel and then book internal Swiss trains to Leysin.

By Air

Geneva is the closest airport to Leysin.  From the airport it takes 2 hours – 2 hours 30 min to reach Leysin by train, or 1 hour 40 min – 2 hours by car.

Zurich airport may have a larger number of international flights. From the airport it takes about 3 hours 30 min – 4 hours to reach Leysin by train or 3 – 4 hours by car.

Getting around Leysin

Leysin is built on the side of a mountain. Walking options around town can include stairs and unpaved trails.

During the day there is free shuttle bus around town. The nearest bus stop to the Swiss Alpine Centre is "Leysin Village Camps"

Download a PDF of the bus route and timetable

If arriving at Leysin Feydey train station on the R70, it is a short walk down a path with stairs/handrail to the Swiss Alpine Centre. If you have anything larger than a small suitcase, you may want to take the longer route via the road.

Local taxi's are available through Taxi Leysin phone number +41 78 875 71 02, prices are generally around 12-15 CHF for any journey within the village. Please note that local taxi's generally stop service at 10pm.

For any delegates staying at the Hotel Le Grand Chalet, there are shorter walking options than the main road through a woodland path. If taking this route at night, please ensure you have a flashlight, as there are no streetlights on parts of the path.

If you are bringing a car with you to Leysin, please let us know. There is some parking at the Swiss Alpine Centre.

During the symposium, coffee breaks, lunch and dinner are included in registration for all attendees.

Meals/breaks served at the Swiss Alpine Centre are:

• Tuesday - lunch, afternoon coffee break and dinner

• Wednesday - morning coffee break, lunch, afternoon coffee break and Dinner

• Thursday - morning coffee break, lunch, afternoon coffee break

• Friday - morning coffee break, lunch (with a pack lunch option for field trip participants)

Delegates who are staying at the Swiss Alpine Center will also have a continental breakfast available

Outside of these times, meals are not available at the Swiss Alpine Centre so delegates staying Monday night and Friday night should make alternative arrangements for dinner on Monday and Friday nights.

Meals are cafeteria style, generally with one option for all delegates, with a specific alternative for known dietary requirements. Please ensure that you have let us know if you are vegetarian/vegan/gluten free/dairy free, as well as any allergies when registering.

The Swiss Alpine Centre will have a bar available (times to be confirmed), where delegates can purchase wine, beer, soft drinks and snacks.

Guests of delegates can be accommodated for lunches and dinners with advance notice, additional costs will be applicable. Please discuss guest attendance with the Events and Promotions Manager.

Symposium Dinner - Thursday 15 October

On Thursday we will host a Symposium dinner at the local restaurant La Fromagerie

Address: Restaurant la Fromagerie, Village Street 4, 1854 Leysin

There will be a mixed salad to start, followed by a main course to be chosen from the options below, and will finish with dessert of sorbet (vegan), or meringue w/creme served with tea or coffee.

Local wine will be served with dinner, along with soft drinks, additional drinks will be available to purchase

Delegates should choose their main course from the following options:

• Cheese Fondue (served with bread) (Gluten free option and/or alcohol free options available)

• Chicken w/mushrooms, vegetables and rösti (potato)

• Vegan rösti with sauteed vegetables

Delegates with any dietary requirements or food allergies should ensure these have been included on their registration form.

Registered delegates will receive an email to confirm their choice of main course, and they should respond by Friday 18 September.

Due to the size of the restaurant, guests may not be able to be accommodated but please contact the Events and Promotions Manager to discuss if you have a guest that would be interested in joining the symposium dinner. Additional costs will apply for any guest attending dinner.

Please note that the Fondue will be served family style with one fondue pot between approximately four delegates.

The restaurant hosts a small museum on local history, which delegates can visit during dinner.

Transport to La Fromagerie

The restaurant is about a 15 minute walk downhill from the Swiss Alpine Centre. We encourage delegates to walk down to reach the restaurant, but we will have a two shuttle buses departing from the Swiss Alpine Centre to La Fromagerie (timing to be confirmed in the programme).

Following dinner two shuttle buses will be arranged to transport delegates back up to the Swiss Alpine Centre, the shuttle bus will also stop near the Hotel Le Grand Chalet at the top of town.

On-site accommodation

Update on accommodation - we are fully booked at the Swiss Alpine Centre.

There are a limited number of dormitory style rooms at the Swiss Alpine Centre.

These rooms are a mixture of en-suite rooms and rooms with an attached shower and shared toilet facilities. Rooms will have either two single beds, or two bunk beds, and include linens and towels and a continental breakfast.

On-site accommodation will be prioritised for early career researchers and students who have had their abstract accepted.

You can confirm your interest in an on-site room when submitting your abstract/ registering.

Following abstract results, delegates with accepted abstracts will be contacted with the option to book accommodation. Any rooms not booked after three weeks will be released to any other delegates.

Delegates that are awarded a travel grant have 3 nights of accommodation included.

Nights available:

Delegates can request to book three, four or five nights of accommodation. Rooms are available from Monday 12 October, and the last check-out day is Saturday 17 October. Delegates must book a minimum of the three nights' accommodation during the symposium.

Accommodation charges:

• per night single occupancy - 90 CHF

• per night double occupancy (per person) - 60 CHF

Off-site accommodation

Leysin has several hotels and guest houses within walking distance. Below are the four closest hotels.

Hotel Central Residence and Spa - 250 m (3 – 5 min walk)
Address: Route du Belvédère 20, CH-1854 Leysin, Switzerland

Alpine Classic Hotel - 500 m (10 min walk)
Address: Route de la Cité 4, Case postale 221, 1854 Leysin, Switzerland

Hotel Le Grand Chalet - 650 m (12 min walk)
Address: Hotel Le Grand Chalet, Source Path 2, CH - 1854 Leysin, Switzerland

We have held a number of room for Symposium delegates at this hotel. To book for the three nights of the Symposium, please book on the hotel's website using this link. If you want to extend your booking to include additional nights, please call or email the hotel at hotel@grand-chalet.ch or by phone at +41 24 493 01 01, quoting group reference: 1310_1610_keytravel.com.

There are only 27 rooms available at Hotel le Grand Chalet, and we'd advise you to book early to secure a room. They have free cancellation until 10 October.

Hotel La Tour d'Ai - 650 m (12 min walk)
Address: Les Ormonts 14, 1854 Leysin, Switzerland

Warning about scam accommodation emails

Scam accommodation emails

The New Phytologist Foundation is aware that third-party companies are targeting New Phytologist Symposium speakers and attendees with a fraudulent travel and hotel booking scheme.

Other organisations have also reported this scam, which targets conferences where the list of speakers/poster presenters is publicly available.

Please be aware that the New Phytologist Foundation does not work with any third-party accommodation partners to book accommodation or travel for delegates or speakers. We have not provided your details to any third-party, or authorised any third-party to contact you.

Any communication about the symposium will be done directly with delegates and speakers and the Events and Promotions Manager (Christine Phillips) or other Central Office staff, using np-events@lancaster.ac.uk, or np-finance@lancaster.ac.uk, or using our registration platform Oxford Abstracts, which will still have a reply email of np-events@lancaster.ac.uk. 

Please be aware that any third-party contacting delegates about New Phytologist Symposia accommodation or travel is a scam designed to obtain your credit card information and/or make inflated charges to your credit card. Please exercise extreme caution if contacted by any third-party. We recommend that you do NOT give out your credit card number, personal information, or any details about your hotel reservation. We are aware that speakers and attendees that have given their credit card information have incurred substantial credit card charges (cancellation fees, service fees, etc).

If you receive a phone call or email from a company offering a hotel and travel booking service please forward the information to  np-events@lancaster.ac.uk.

You can also report the email to your IT department as fraud and/or a phishing email. This may help to prevent further people being targeted at your institution.

If you are based in the UK, you can report scams and phishing emails to the UK National Cyber Security Centre.

If you are based in the EU, you can report fraud to the European Anti-Fraud Office.

If you are based in the USA, you can report Cyber-Enabled Frauds and Scams to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Centre.

Field trip to Pfynwald Research Platform (VPDrought Experiment)

Date: Friday 16 October

Times: following the close of the symposium to approx. 17:00.

The VPDrought experiment is hosted at the Pfynwald research platform, a long-term, fully instrumented forest research site in a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) forest in the Valais, Switzerland. Established in 2003 and integrated into national and European research infrastructures, this platform has provided continuous, high-resolution ecological and environmental data for over two decades.

Since early summer 2024, the VPDrought experiment—the first in the world to manipulate both atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and soil moisture in a mature natural forest—has been operational here. Its objective is to disentangle the effects of atmospheric “air dryness” (VPD) and soil drought on tree physiology and ecosystem functioning across scales, from cellular processes to whole-tree and ecosystem responses.

The experimental setup combines canopy humidification (to modulate VPD) and controlled throughfall exclusion (to manipulate soil moisture), complementing an existing long-term irrigation experiment. The site’s rich suite of measurements, covering more than 120 parameters across temporal and spatial scales, provides a unique empirical platform for advancing our understanding of forest responses to climate change and improving predictive ecological models.

Spaces on the field trip are limited to 80 delegates and must be pre-booked. A contribution of 30CHF towards transportation costs will be collected when booking. If the cost is a barrier to any delegate attending, please get in touch.

Registered delegates should contact np-events@lancaster.ac.uk to book a place.

The organising committee would like to thank Giovanni Bortolami (EPFL), Arthur Gessler (WSL & ETHZ), Jonas Gisler (WSL), and Marcus Schaub (WSL) for leading the field trip.

Onward travel from the field trip

After the field trip, attendees will have the option of being dropped off at Leuk station at around 17:15, Aigle station at around 18:30 or to return to the Swiss Alpine Centre/Leysin.

Invited speakers should refer to their invited speaker information document sent to them by the Events and Promotions Manager for additional details.

Key deadlines:

• 28 July 2026 – Speakers to check the draft abstract book/programme

• 31 July 2026 – target to publish draft programme, abstract book to follow

• 5 October 2026 - Deadline to send a PDF of your poster to be printed in Switzerland, cost 30 CHF - see below for more details

• 8 October 2026 – Speaker PowerPoint slides due.

Timings for talks

Invited speakers have been allocated 20-25 minutes for their talk and 5-10 minutes for Q&A (30 minutes total)

Selected speakers have been allocated 10 minutes for their talk and 5 minutes for Q&A (15 minutes total)

The chairs will strictly keep to time, so please assist them in keeping your talk within the allocated time.

Abstracts and programme

A draft programme with speaker abstracts has been provided via email to speakers, please check this for any errors by 28 July. (a draft abstract book of poster abstract will be circulated shortly)

The draft programme has now been published, and a draft abstract book.  Abstracts may be edited to match the style guidelines of New Phytologist.

If you have not provided a photo when submitting your abstract, you can send us a photo to include in the abstract book. 

If you spot any errors, please get in touch as soon as possible to provide corrections. 

Presentation slides

To ensure things run smoothly we will be presenting all slides from a dedicated computer. You will have a remote to advance your slides.

Please note that the screens at the venue aren’t particularly large, therefore we encourage you to design your slides in large fonts that will be clearly visible at the rear of the room. 

We suggest that for a 10 minute presentation, you should have around 10 slides, and for a 20-25 minute presentation you should have around 20-30 slides. 

Please send your slides by Thursday 8 October

Please provide your slides as PowerPoint files in a 16:9 slide aspect ratio. If you cannot provide PowerPoint files, please let us know by 1 October so we can provide assistance in converting your slides. If you plan to use speaker notes within PowerPoint, we encourage you to bring a print-out as a back-up in case these do not display properly. If you have prepared your slides on a Mac, please advise us, as there can sometimes be formatting discrepancies in graphs and large images.

You can use this slide template, and add your own slides. We will populate the title slide for you.

Speakers will be sent a link to a OneDrive folder to upload your slides approximately 1 month before the symposium.

Making last-minute changes to your presentation

All presentation slides will be loaded into a central slide deck, presented from a dedicated laptop for each session, to ensure things run smoothly. This means that making last-minute changes to your slides will be difficult. For any essential changes, we can make emergency last-minute corrections up to the day before.

These changes should be given in person to Christine at the venue, ideally on a memory stick.  Christine will also have a USB external hard drive to transfer files. Please note that while there is Wi-Fi at the venue, it may be slow to load large presentation files sent via cloud sharing platforms.

AV information

Speakers will have a fixed microphone on a podium to use for their presentation.  Please ensure you use the microphone to ensure that delegates can hear your talk. 

Poster Information

Delegates should bring their printed poster with them. Posters will be displayed from the first day of the Symposium and will remain up for the duration of the Symposium. There will be several dedicated poster sessions and each poster presenters will be allocated to one of the sessions.  Sessions and poster numbers will be confirmed in due course. Please note that you do not need to include your poster number on your printed poster.

Want advice on creating a good poster? Watch a webinar with New Phytologist Editors on communicating your research.

Poster guidelines

• Posters should be portrait, no larger than A0 (84cm by 119cm), or 3ft by 4ft (92cm by 122cm).

• Good posters should present complex information in a clear and concise way. Posters that present information well will have graphics with large, clear fonts and images, and attractive backgrounds.

• The text and figures should be readable from a distance of at least one metre. The text presented should be precise and structured with a logical flow to the information.

• Posters should concentrate on focused problems, innovative solutions, rigorous methodologies, and should be significant contributions to the meeting.

One tip to make bringing your poster with you easier is that you can ask for your poster to be printed on fabric, which will allow for it to be folded into your luggage. We will have an iron available onsite.

If you are unable to bring your printed poster with you, you can have it printed locally. We have made arrangements with EPLF to have them print posters. The cost is 30 CHF, and you must send a print ready PDF of your A0 poster to np-events@lancaser.ac.uk by Monday 5 October. If your file is particularly large, please send it via a document sharing link, such as one drive or we transfer. If you need assistance, please get in touch.

Poster competition

Prizes will be awarded for the best posters. All registered delegates can vote for the best poster, with a prize of 200 CHF for the top poster and 100 CHF for a runner up.

Travel contributions

The New Phytologist Foundation will provide a travel contribution/grant to invited speakers. Some selected speakers and poster presenters have also been awarded travel grants to assist in their attendance. The amount of your grant was confirmed in your invitation letter. Travel grant awardees should book their own travel or have their institution book it for them. We do not require receipts, and you are welcome to combine your trip to Switzerland with other travel plans to make the best use of your travel carbon footprint.

Following your attendance at the symposium, we will send you a secure online form to provide your bank details to be reimbursed. If your institution paid for your travel, they may invoice us for the amount of your travel grant. Please get in touch to request our invoice details. We aim to pay travel grants as soon as possible after the symposium, but payments may take 4 – 6 weeks to process following receipt of the recipient's bank details. If you require alternative travel contribution arrangements, please get in touch to discuss.

Below we set out some frequent questions that participants have. If your question is not listed below, please contact the Events and Promotions Manager.

This will be updated with further information in due course.