ISME20, the 20th International Symposium on Microbial Ecology, is a major international scientific congress running 16–21 August 2026 at the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) in Auckland, organised by the International Society for Microbial Ecology and expected to draw roughly 1,500–2,500 delegates from 50+ countries.
The 20th International Symposium on Microbial Ecology (ISME20) is a flagship international scientific congress in microbial ecology, held in Auckland, New Zealand on 16–21 August 2026. It is the biennial global gathering of the microbial-ecology research community and, per the organiser, typically draws 1,500–2,500 delegates from over 50 countries across a six-day programme of keynotes, themed sessions, short talks, posters and roundtables.
ISME20 is organised by the International Society for Microbial Ecology (ISME), headquartered in Wageningen, the Netherlands, which publishes the ISME Journal and runs the biennial ISME symposium series. New Zealand delivery and registration are handled by ISME's local partner AttendNZ. The organiser has announced Jeroen Raes (KU Leuven, Belgium) as Opening Keynote speaker, delivered as a tribute to the late Peer Bork.
The symposium is open to everyone with an interest in microbial ecology — academic and early-career researchers and industry scientists. The full programme, published as a PDF on 22 July 2026, spans keynote addresses, parallel thematic sessions, poster sessions, social and networking events and roundtables, with an accompanying ISME20 mobile app. Online registration ran through 31 July 2026 (NZ time), with onsite registration available during the event.
ISME20 is hosted at the newly completed New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) at 101 Hobson Street, Auckland Central — a purpose-built convention facility in the Auckland CBD, adjacent to the Sky Tower and surrounded by cafés, restaurants and hotels. As reported by the organiser, Auckland Airport lies roughly 20–21 km south of the city (about a 45-minute drive), and SkyDrive express shuttles run between the airport and Hobson Street near the venue. Accommodation is offered through registration partner AttendNZ. Auckland is New Zealand's busiest international gateway.
Securing a congress of ISME20's scale — a 1,500–2,500-delegate international scientific symposium — is a significant business-events win for New Zealand and a marquee event for the new NZICC, delivering multi-day international delegate spend and profiling Auckland as a host city for large global scientific congresses.
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