Events

9th EPNOE INTERNATIONAL POLYSACCHARIDE CONFERENCE

The 9th edition of the EPNOE Conference will be held from August 25 to August 28, 2025, in Sundsvall, Sweden and is organized by the FSCN Research Centre at Mid Sweden University.

The conference is organized according to the research themes in the EPNOE Research Roadmap 2040 (https://www.epnoe.eu/research-roadmap/) which was later published in Carbohydrate Polymers (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0144861723010986). The themes include related sub-topics covering various aspects of polysaccharides – ranging from fundamental research to applications and products in different fields.

The Call for Abstracts for EPNOE 2025 is now open. Please share amongst your network: https://www.epnoe2025.org/call-for-abstracts/ and we hope to meet you there!

TAPPI Webinar: Transitioning from Micro to Nano: Unlocking the Potential of Cellulose Nanomaterials

Dr. Marc Delgado-Aguilar, Associate Professor at the University of Girona will give a lecture for TAPPI (Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry) on Wednesday, June 4th, 2025 (10 AM – 11 AM). The title of the lecture is: Transitioning from Micro to Nano: Unlocking the Potential of Cellulose Nanomaterials. Please register via the link: https://www.tappi.org/event/calendar/all-events/transitioning-from-micro-to-nano-unlocking-the-potential-of-cellulose-nanomaterials/

EPNOE MEMBERS ONLY EVENT

We are pleased to invite you to the Kick-Off Meeting for the new EPNOE Working Group Food & Nutrition on Friday, the 7th of March, 2025 from 01:00 PM until 03:00 PM.

During this online meeting, you will get the chance to introduce yourself to your peers in the international polysaccharide community and to provide suggestions for future activities (such as webinars, conferences, workshops) in the field of food and nutrition.

There are several working groups active within the EPNOE Association, we find it important that the various fields of applications for polysaccharides are explored and that no opportunity to network and to share knowledge and expertise is lost. So please join us for the WG Food & Nutrition Kick-Off Meeting.

You can register for the Kick-Off Meeting using the following form: https://shorturl.at/ewCcv. After you have registered, we will send you the link to attend the meeting via Zoom.

TB-MRS 2025: 3rd SYMPOSIUM ON POLYSACCHARIDE-BASED MATERIALS

During the B-MRS Meeting 2025, EPNOE is participating with the organization of the 3rd Symposium on Polysaccharide-based Materials.

Professor dr. Elisabete Frollini, professor dr. Pedro Fardim, dr. Carmen S.R. Freire, dr. Nicolas Le Moigne, professor dr. Karin Stana Kleinschek and professor dr. Sérgio Paulo Campana-Filho have set the scope of the 3rd Symposium on Polysaccharide-based Materials including films, composites, membranes, gels, biomedical materials, and sensors, all of which play a crucial role in advancing the circular bioeconomy.

Invited speakers a.o. are professor dr. Pedro Fardim (KU Leuven), professor dr. Pietro Matricardi (Università degli Studi di Roma) and to be confirmed professor dr. Gleb Yakubov (University of Nottingham), professor dr. Anna Roig (Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC)) and professor dr. Magnus Norgren (Mid Sweden University, FSCN Research Centre).

Please find the Call for Abstracts here:

https://www.sbpmat.org.br/23encontro/submission/

EPNOE 2025: PRE-CONFERENCE COURSE

We are organizing a pre-conference course during EPNOE 2025 on Sunday, 24th of August, 2025, aiming to connect academia and industry. “Polysaccharides in Solution and Solid Materials – Physicochemical Interactions and Analytical Methods”.

You can register for the pre-conference course here: https://www.epnoe2025.org/pre-conferencecourse/

PROGRESS IN PAPER PHYSICS SEMINAR 2025

The Fibre Science and Communication Network (FSCN Research Centre) at Mid Sweden University is organizing the Progress in Paper Physics Seminar 2025 from the 20th until the 22nd of May.

The FSCN Research Centre is an interdisciplinary research center (bio-based materials, advanced materials and processes) at Mid Sweden University. Their research is developed in close collaboration with the Swedish forest industry and other actors in the materials, chemical, transport, and energy sectors.

More information about the seminar can be found here: https://shorturl.at/Kvd1J. There is also a call for abstracts open until 2 March 2025.

PAPER & BIOREFINERY CONFERENCE AND TRADESHOW

In June 2025, you can visit the Paper & Biorefinery Conference and Tradeshow in Graz, Austria (June 4th and 5th, 2025). The conference is known for its comprehensive and multifaceted range of expert contributions.

In 2025, it is focusing in particular on the main theme “FIBER – ENERGY – WATER: Closing the loops for a better tomorrow”. Faced with scarce resources and great environmental responsibility, the conference is placing a special focus on circular economy this year. EPNOE Member TU Graz is one of the partners of the Paper & Biorefinery Conference (PBC). Please find more information on the event’s webpages: https://paper-biorefinery.com/en/

WOOD & CHEMISTRY: HEADING FOR NEW PERSPECTIVES IN OCCITANIA

Research institute Toulouse INP-ENSIACET is hosting a conference on the theme of “Wood and Chemistry: Heading for new perspectives in Occitania”. The conference is organized by Laboratoire de Chimie Agroindustrielle, CRT Catar and the Campus des Métiers et des Qualifications Forêt-Bois on 11 June 2025 from 3 PM until 5 PM CET (4 Allée Emile Monso, 31030 Toulouse).

EUROPEAN SCHOOL ON RHEOLOGY

The 20th European School on #Rheology, 8-12 September 2025 at the Department of Chemical Engineering – KU Leuven!

https://cit.kuleuven.be/smart/rheoschool

SCIENCE FOR SUSTAINABILITY

The University of Helsinki and Aalto University are organizing Science for Sustainability from 30 September 2025 until 2 October 2025. The theme for the event is Bursting the Sustainability Bubble which aims to challenge sustainability myths and break down the barriers between disciplines and industries. The goal: to find solutions that pace up the sustainability transition. Please register here: https://www.helsinki.fi/en/conferences/science-sustainability-2025/registration-now-open

APA-EPNOE-GFL International Conference on Polymers for
Advanced Technology

For more information, please refer to this webpage.

EPNOE International Polysaccharide Conferences

The EPNOE International Polysaccharide Conferences are held every two years and are jointly organized with other professional societies, including the Cellulose and Renewable Materials Division of the American Chemical Society (ACS) and the Cellulose Society of Japan. The programmes consist of multiple parallel sessions, each on specific topics, and are designed for researchers from academia and industry to present and discuss their latest results.

9th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
25-29 August 2025, Sundsvall (Sweden)

8th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
18-22 September 2023, Graz (Austria)

7th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
11-15 October 2021, Nantes (France)

6th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
21-25 October 2019, Aveiro (Portugal)

5th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
20-24 August 2017, Jena (Germany)

4th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
19-22 October 2015, Warsaw (Poland)

3rd EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
21-24 October 2013, Nice (France)

2nd EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
29 Aug – 2 Sep 2011, Wageningen (Netherlands)

1st EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference
21-24 September 2009, Turku/Abo (Finland)

Junior Scientists Meetings

The meetings are held once every two years, alternating with the international conference. They are designed to offer young researchers (MSc, PhD students and early-stage postdocs*) the opportunity to present their work via lectures and posters, and also network among themselves. Senior staff from academia and industry are welcome to attend and offer the benefit of their knowledge and experience. The meetings also serve as a platform for senior staff to identify potential recruits among the emerging talent.

6th EPNOE international Junior Scientist Meeting
4-6 September, 2024, Vienna (Austria)

5th EPNOE international Junior Scientist Meeting,
8-9 September, 2022, Aveiro (Portugal)

4th EPNOE International Junior Scientists Meeting, 3-4 February 2021, Online Meeting

3rd EPNOE International Junior Scientists Meeting, 14-15 May 2018, Maribor (Slovenia)

2nd EPNOE International Junior Scientists Meeting, 13-14 October 2016, Sophia Antipolis (France). Download Book of Abstracts.

1st EPNOE International Junior Scientists Meeting, 19-20 January 2015, Wageningen (Netherlands). Download Book of Abstracts.

Early-stage postdocs are defined as those who obtained their PhD within the previous three years.

Workshops

Workshops are small-sized events centered on individual topics, directed towards both research and industry, and are designed to allow for discussions and exchange of information.

CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials in Portugal is organizing the CICECO Workshops from the 5th of March, 2025 until the 14th of March, 2025. The Workshops focus on proposal writing for grants and funding: How to Write a Succesful Neutron Beamtime Proposal.

The CICECO Workshops will take place at the University of Aveiro, including top facilities like ISIS Neutron and Muon Source!

Registration for the CICECO Workshops can be completed via the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQDsBbI8yf7mCxCGCBHvifFKmr9pAscvduTSJfPjeykKdL0g/viewform?pli=1

Organised by the EPNOE Working Group on Analytics of Polysaccharides the workshop on Analytics of Polysaccharides took place at ETH Zürich (Switzerland), on 25-26 June, 2024.

With a focus on key topics such as rheology, molecular weight, and compositional analysis, this workshop was open to both EPNOE Members and Non-Members.

Check out the programme here.

Organised by the EPNOE Working Group on Safety & Sustainability Analysis, this EPNOE workshop took place online on Monday, 3 June, from 13:00 to 14:30 (CET). The aim was to explore one of today’s most pressing challenges with two experts in the field.

Please note: participation exclusive to EPNOE Members.

Agenda:

Marie Ollagnier – Seppic: ”How to develop safe & sustainable specialty ingredients – challenges and testimony.”
Q&A Session
Li Shen – Utrecht University: ”Safe and sustainable by design for biobased innovation.”
Q&A Session
Round Table Discussion Moderated by Laura Riva and Carlo Punta – Politecnico di Milano

The Training School on ”Technical, commercial and societal innovations on aerogels towards circular economy” took place on 29-31 May, 2024, at the University of Udine (Italy).

Organised by the ECO-AERoGELS CIG and the Food Technology groups from the University of Udine with the partnership of EPNOE, it featured a thought-provoking roundtable discussion moderated by Carmen Freire (Aveiro University/EPNOE Vice-President of Conferences and Workshops). The panel includes Anastasia Panfilova (IFF Pharma Solutions), Vincenzo De Tata (Barilla), and Carlos García-González (University of Santiago de Compostela). The titles of the presentations are available here.

The 27^th Austrian Carbohydrate Workshop (ACW 2027) 15-16 February, 2024, Graz University of Technology (Austria)

Polysaccharides In Drug Delivery – On The Road to Innovation!

27-28 October 2022, Rome

Challenges and opportunities to promote circular bio-economy

23-24 November 2021, online

Modern analytical approaches in biopolymer characterization
26-27 February 2020, BOKU Vienna (Austria)
More Information

Polysaccharides as Sweet Spot for Innovation
17-18 September 2018, KU Leuven (Belgium).
More information

Towards flame retardant biopolymers and biocomposites: current research strategies, scientific barriers and perspective applications
16-17 OCtober 2018, Centre des Matériaux d’IMT MINES Alès (France).
More information

Summer schools

VTT Summer of Changemakers

Until the 2nd of February, 2025, you can apply for the VTT Summer of Changemakers traineeship program. VTT Summer of Changemakers traineeships are paid, full-time, and typically last 3–6 months. Start dates and duration are flexible. Read about our recruitment process here.

VTT offers summer traineeships in all our three business areas: Carbon neutral solutions, Sustainable products and materials, and Digital technologies: https://www.vttresearch.com/en/summer-changemakers.

Summer Course Glycosciences

17th European Training Course on Carbohydrates

The Summer Course Glycosciences, 17th European Training Course on Carbohydrates took place from 11 to 15 June 2023, in Wageningen, The Netherlands.

Organised by VLAG Graduate School, Wageningen University and Research, University of Groningen and Leiden University Medical Center, this course combined general introductions in the field of carbohydrates and glycoproteins with in-depth sessions, giving participants the opportunity to focus on specific interests without losing the broad perspective. In addition, interactive elements were part of the programme (e.g. poster sessions, interviews with lecturers).

For more information, read here.

Other Events

PAST

Seminar on Computational Resources

Driven by the idea that in today’s landscape, molecular modeling extends far beyond the confines of academia and that computational tools wield significant influence in diverse domains, the EPNOE Working Group on Computational Resources organised a seminar for both industry and academia representatives. The EPNOE seminar on Computational Resources took place online on Thursday, 13 June, from 14:00 to 16:00 (CET).

Access exclusively granted to EPNOE Members.

Agenda:

Jeff Sanders – Schrödinger: ”Exploring Ingredient Binding and Encapsulation by Starch Using Molecular Simulation.”
Yu Ogawa – Cermav CNRS: ”Flexing cellulose at the nanoscale: A molecular dynamics study.”
Q&A Session

Bioeconomy Innovation Day: Advancing Resource Efficiency and Value Creation in Europe

The Bioeconomy Innovation Day – Advancing Resource Efficiency and Value Creation in Europe – was organised in cooperation with the Swedish research collaboration platform Treesearch, FinnCERES materials bioeconomy Flagship from Finland, and the B2BE facilitator, a matchmaker in the Flemish bioeconomy.

The event took place on 16 November, 2023, at 9:00-18:00 (CET) in Brussels, at the Marriott Hotel Grand Place.

For more information, please refer to this webpage.

XXI B-MRS Meeting

The XXI B-MRS Meeting took place at the Ruth Cardoso Cultural and Exhibition Center in Maceió-Alagoas (Brazil), from 1 to 5 October 2023. Among the symposia, the Polysaccharide-based Materials Symposium aimed to address timely topics within the Polysaccharide-based materials area.

Click here for more information.

The 8th EPNOE International Polysaccharides Conference

The 8th International Polysaccharide Conference took place from 17 to 22 September 2023, at the Graz University of Technology (Graz, Austria).

The main goal was to gather academia and industry stakeholders and encourage a conversation about polysaccharide-related R&D and applications. Through the years, this occasion has become one of the largest events in the field of polysaccharides, bringing together researchers from all over the world.

The 5th International Cellulose Conference

The International Cellulose Conference (ICC) is held by the Cellulose Society of Japan every five years since 2002.

The last one took place at the International Conference Center Hiroshima (Hiroshima, Japan), from 26 to 28 September 2023.

This face-to-face meeting was a great opportunity for scientists seeking new concepts and networking opportunities across the borders.

For more information, please visit this webpage.

XXVIII Conference of the Polish Chitin Society

The XXVIII Conference of the Polish Chitin Society “New Aspects on Chemistry and Application of Chitin and its Derivatives” was held at the Hotel Orle Centrum Konferencyjne, in Gdańsk (Poland), from 25 to 27 September, 2023.

Click here for more information.

Congresso Nazionale Societa’ Italiana Biomateriali 2023

The Societa’ Italiana Biomateriali Congress (SIB) took place on 3-6 July, in Camerino (Italy).

The event has been sponsored by EPNOE and aimed to enhance the development of innovative platforms based on biomaterials derived from innovative and sustainable resources. All the aspects of the biomaterial science are covered ranging from novel production methodologies, complex assembly, biomaterial derivatisation, pharmaceutical and clinical application.

Read the full programme here.

For more information, please read here.

EPNOE Research Roadmap 2040

Launch Event

EPNOE Research Roadmap 2040 launch event took place on 31 January 2023, from 13:30 to 17:00 (CET) at the Thermotechnisch Instituut, Kasteelpark Arenberg 41, 3001 Heverlee (Leuven, Belgium).

The venue

Agenda

13:30 – Coffee and Registration

13:50 – Welcome to KU Leuven

14:00 – Presentation of EPNOE Association

Pedro Fardim, President of EPNOE, Professor at KU Leuven

14:10 – Introduction of EPNOE Research Roadmap 2040

Karin Stana Kleinscheck, VP EPNOE Research, Professor at TU Graz, Austria

14:20- Presentation of EPNOE Research Roadmap 2040 by Chairs and Co-Chairs:

Materials and Engineering

Anna Roig, Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Spain

Magnus Norgren, Mid-Sweden University, Sweden

Food and Nutrition

Gleb Yakubov, Nottingham University, UK

Biomedical Applications

Már Másson, University of Iceland, Iceland

Basic Sciences- Chemistry, Biology and Physics

Tanja Wrodnigg, TU Graz, Austria

Olli Ikkala, Aalto University, Finland

Skills

Tiina Nypelö, Chalmers, Sweden

15:00 – Future Perspectives of Circular Bioeconomy in Europe – Round-Table Discussion

Roman Brenne, European Commission, Brussels

Harry Raaijmakers, Royal Cosun, The Netherlands

Brigitte Hasewend, European Sustainable Energy Alliance (ESEIA), Brussels

Karin Stana Kleinschek, EPNOE Association, TU Graz, Austria

Moderator: Katariina Torvinen, EPNOE Association, VTT, Finland

16:00 – Networking Reception – All Attendees

17:00 – End of the Day