“Airborne zoonotic transmission is an increasingly recognised One Health challenge, linking animal, environmental, and human health through ‘the air we all breathe’. This presentation will introduce key mechanisms by which pathogens can spread from animals to humans through the environment. We will dive into real-world examples, including outbreaks where airborne transmission played a critical role. Attention will be given to how human behaviour, agricultural systems, and surrounding environmental conditions modulate the risk of transmission. The session will illustrate how integrated One Health approaches can reduce the risk and impact of airborne zoonoses.”

“Peatlands are wet, land-bound ecosystems with a renowned capacity to store carbon. These wetlands not only support a unique biodiversity, they breathe. In this talk we’ll explore how interactions between plants, and the peat soil microbial community help maintain Earth within its planetary boundaries.”

“I never hear about the ozone hole anymore, isn’t it solved? This is a question I hear often. In my presentation I will explain what causes depletion of the ozone layer, how the Montreal Protocol was designed, what the world would have looked like without the protocol, what the current status of the ozone hole is and how protection of the ozone layer is also helping to fight climate change. I will discuss how various groups of people, policymakers, scientist, industry and consumers, played a role in this.”

“Soils are the basis of many ecosystem functions such as carbon and nutrient cycling, water purification, and food production. However, they are often seen only as ‘dirt’ and ignored by people and policy makers. In this talk I will discuss the ways soils are linked to human health (through air quality and food) and how they as largest terrestrial carbon sinks,  regulate carbon cycling, and in this way affect climate. I will further highlight the need of interdisciplinary connections to solve big societal issues and talk about our ongoing interdisciplinary projects to link soils to gut health and policy (Soils2Guts) and to understand and steer soil carbon storage across Dutch land uses.”

“Airway organoids provide a powerful system to investigate human respiratory biology in a controlled setting. These epithelial structures reproduce many aspects of airway organisation and function, which enables detailed study of host pathogen interactions and the consequences of inherited defects. Many studies have shown that airway organoids support infection by respiratory viruses, including SARS-CoV-2 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) among others, which allows analysis of viral entry routes, cell tropism and epithelial responses. They have also advanced the understanding of genetic airway disorders by offering functional readouts of ciliary activity, mucus handling and epithelial renewal. Together, these applications illustrate how airway organoids can bridge fundamental mechanisms and translational questions in respiratory research.”

“If we distributed the water in the atmosphere’s clouds evenly over the Earth surface, it would cover a layer thinner than a human hair. Yet clouds have for decades shaped the uncertainty margins in Earth’s climate sensitivity. This is precisely because they are not evenly distributed, but organised into intricate patterns, from single cumuli to weather systems. I therefore invite you to come look at shallow cumulus clouds: What makes these fluffy towers so hard to project, what do we currently understand about their organization, and how are we reducing uncertainties in climate sensitivity by understanding them better? Most of all, I invite you to come appreciate the beauty in one of nature’s most ephemeral displays.”