We are excited to share the (preliminary) programme of the 32nd Benelux conference of ZOOlogy!
ZOOming into the world of animals
For the first time, the conference will span 3 days, which are all filled with exciting and interesting activities! Click HERE for the full (preliminary) programme.
The keynote theme of the conference is How do animals perceive the world? The conference includes three keynote presentations (45 minutes each), click HERE for their abstracts.. The keynote speakers are:
- Dr. Emily R. Burdfield-Steel (University of Amsterdam)
- Dr. Evy van Berlo (Utrecht University)
- Dr. Lucy Bates (University of Portsmouth)
The conference will start on the afternoon of Sunday December 7th, giving attendees the time to register and the opportunity to visit ARTIS Amsterdam Royal Zoo for free. For those interested in the zoo, its animals and plants and its rich history, there will be (optional) guided tours on the first day of the conference. In the evening, the conference will be kicked off under the starry skies of the ARTIS Planetarium by our first keynote speaker, Dr. Lucy Bates, who will give a talk about elephant cognition and the impacts of social disruption for elephant conservation. We will end the evening with the first poster presentation session (with drinks) and a story telling evening.
The rest of the conference will be hosted in the ARTIS Groote Museum, starting on Monday December 8th with welcoming words from KNDV Chair Prof. Dr. Karline Janmaat, ARTIS historian Wessel Broekhuis – who will take us through the history of the zoo and its role in scientific research –and KNDV board member Max Boot – who will detail the current research at ARTIS. The rest of the day will be filled with parallel sessions with oral presentation spread across three historic rooms within the museum. In the afternoon, three parallel workshop session will be held, focussing on Science Journalism, Presentation skills and public engagement, and scientific documentaries. We are very excited to announce that renowned journalist Hendrik Spiering and tv-presenter Humberto Tan will be present during the Science Journalism workshop. The workshops are followed by our second keynote speaker, Dr. Emily Burdfield-Steel, who will talk about her work on signalling across species. After the second and final poster presentation session, we will close the day with a dynamic dinner on the Pancakeboat, floating past the beautiful lights of Amsterdam.
Tuesday December 9th will start off with a look into the future of zoo research with the third and final keynote talk by Dr. Evy van Berlo, titled: “Opening a window into primates’ minds through novel digital tools”. The rest of the day will be filled with multiple parallel oral presentation sessions. We will close the day with the awarding of the oral/poster presentation- and Zoology photo prizes.
We also have multiple symposia planned for the conference, each with their own specialised topic including “Beyond the Binoculars: How Technology Advances Zoology” and “Below the surface: Taking a deeper look at life in the water”. We are very excited to announce that, among others, Dr. Francine Dolins, Prof. Dr. Mariska Kret, Dr. Valentina Truppa, Dr. Kenneth Schweller, Dr. Anne Marijke Schel and Dr. Jorg Massen will be presenting their work at the conference.
We are also excited to share that Lévy P. L. Matricon will present his research project titled: “Animals in the lens” at the conference. This research that took place in ARTIS Zoo, focussed around the question why we see ourselves in animals. You can watch his recent interview as a teaser for his upcoming presentation at ZOOlogy 2025.
Besides the Story telling Evening, there will also be a zoology photo competition, highlighting the diversity of the species that we study. These photos will be displayed during the conference in the Groote Museum! Pictures (TIFF file) can be sent to info.zoology2025@gmail.com with as a subject ‘Photo competition [your full name]’.
Contact details: info.zoology2025@gmail.com