From September 23 to 27, 2024, CUSP researchers joined more than 800 scientists from around the world for MICRO 2024 in Lanzarote, Spain. The five-day scientific conference featured hundreds of platform presentations, poster presentations, and a novel walking talk format that brought small groups together to discuss and share the latest science in quiet corners around the old town of Arrecife. CUSP scientists presented the latest scientific findings and ongoing efforts from across the five projects. Covering the full span of plastic pollution research from monitoring and toxicology to social science and policymaking, the conference provided a valuable platform to exchange insights and learn from each other’s experiences.
With so many participants engaged across three parallel tracks, there were a wide range of topics discussed and updates shared. While the conference has not produced an official set of conclusions or takeaways, our consortium member Justin Boucher noticed a novel and recurring message shared during plenary sessions: The global scientific community has carried out extensive and important research over the past decades to detect, monitor, and model MNPs in many types of natural environments and matrices all over the world. Although this detection and monitoring is still seen by experts as important and needed, equally if not more important now is also to develop concrete technologies and actions to address existing plastic pollution and prevent more pollution in the future. The available science has already shown us the global scale of the problem that MNPs are, and now we need to invest expertise and time specifically into developing feasible ways to effectively address it.
The conference series was developed to recognize the growing number of researchers and policymakers concerned about the challenge of plastic pollution from macro to nano, with a core focus on microplastics. The bi-annual event helps to (i) facilitate open access to the breadth of emerging & ongoing research in the field, (ii) identify current research frontiers and new challenges, and (iii) stimulate collaboration within the continuously expanding research community.
The full program from the conference as well as all of the presentation abstracts are all publicly available to explore and download from the conference’s site. Information about the possible next edition of the conference will be announced in the coming months.
Sadly, the closing of such an inspiring conference also brought somber news. Juan Baztán, a good colleague to many and a leading organizer of the MICRO conferences, passed away in an accident during the event. Collectively, Juan’s passion for the work, unrestrained expressions of love and respect for his colleagues, and drive for environmental justice and scientific excellence were the exceptional qualities that made him stand out within the field. Our condolences and thoughts are with his family and with his many other friends and colleagues. You can read more about Juan’s legacy in El Mundo.
Reference
MICRO 2024 Conference (September, 2024).
