ESOF2020 Trieste FAQs

ESOF (EuroScience Open Forum) is the largest interdisciplinary science meeting in Europe. It is dedicated to scientific research and innovation and offers a unique framework for interaction and debate for scientists, innovators, policy makers, business people and the general public.

ESOF2020 will take place 2 - 6 September 2020. 

The motto of the 2020 edition is “Science for freedom, freedom for science”, while the other concept we want to communicate is “Open knowledge, fair future”.

ESOF is an interdisciplinary forum, which seeks to showcase the full spectrum of scientific breakthroughs from a broad range of disciplines, including human sciences, as well as science in culture and poetry.

During the last editions there were between 4 000 and 5000 participants.

ESOF2020 will take place in the area of the Old Port of Trieste, where a temporary conference Village will be set up. It will include 5 buildings where the sessions of the programme will take place as well as some of the exhibitions of the Science in the city Festival. Some spacious networking areas will be set up too, such as restaurants, bars and lounge areas.

The forum sessions will be held in English. Most of the Science in the City Festival activities like the science shows and cafes will be in English and Italian, some theatre shows and exhibitions will be proposed in other languages too.

No, but the registration rates are reduced for EuroScience members. You can become a EuroScience member here or please visit our table for fees here

ESOF delegates typically include scientists, academics, early career researchers, innovators, educators, business people, journalists, and policy makers, from more than 90 countries.

Yes, there will be a big exhibition in the Halls 27 and 28, with lounge and recharge areas for electronic devices. In the hall 28 there will be also an area B2B for Business meets Science meetings, for more click here. 

Yes, there will be designated areas within the conference venue.  External areas like the cafeteria with 200 seats, a restaurant overlooking the sea with 600 seats as well as lounge areas distributed among buildings.

Registrations for ESOF2020 are already open and you may register only via our online registration platform here.

Online registration is open until June 30^th 2020.  From July 1^st 2020 the onsite registration will be available during the conference.

Absolutely. We are offering an "early-bird" registration fee for 350€ on full delegate fees, for those who register before April 17^th 2020. Starting from April 18^th 2020 the “regular” fee will be applied.

Yes, students are allowed to register at a discounted fee. Discounted fees are also available for young and post-docs, EuroScience members or non members.

As proof of status we require to upload the student card for students and the identity card for young (up to 35y.o.). 

Yes, students are allowed to register at a discounted fee. Discounted fees are also available for young and post-docs, EuroScience members or non members.

There are several possibilities. Details can be found here.

Please proceed with your registration, you will have to flag the Visa button and proceed with the payment. Afterwards you will be contacted by our PCO to complete the process. In case your Visa request would be declined, you will be entirely refunded. For more information, please contact us at registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Your conference registration includes admittance to all five days of ESOF conference, including all sessions and plenaries, the Opening Ceremony on Sunday, 5^th July 2020, Business meets Science and Technology Transfer Service workshop (only upon registration), ESOF Party and the Closing Ceremony on Thursday, 9^th July 2020.

Please note, though included in the registration fees, seats for the social programme are limited and will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis. The registration also covers complimentary conference materials (including badge and conference bag), access to the exhibition, mobile conference app and free WiFi access in designated areas.

Yes, one-day conference registration is available for ESOF2020. Please note that your registration is valid only for sessions and events on that day and badges will be actively checked throughout the conference to ensure that participants have registered properly. Each participant can only buy 1 daily registration. There is no “early-bird” discount available for one day passes, although there are discounted fees for CEE delegates and EuroScience members.

Yes, all delegates are welcome to bring family and friends to Trieste. However, if any family or friends wish to access the conference venue or attend any sessions, they will have to register at the normal rates.

Tickets only for social events are not available. In order to attend the Opening Ceremony, Welcome Reception, ESOF Party and Closing Ceremony you will need to have a full conference badge. Those holding a one-day badge can only attend the social event happening on that day.

Participants wanting to attend a single session must have at least a one-day registration; for security reasons ESOF cannot allow unregistered attendees to come to sessions or other conference events.

Please visit our website for more details of satellite events and contact directly their organisers.

Coffee, tea and food will be available to purchase separately onsite at the several food and beverage areas.

Please send the list of delegates that will be part of your group at registrationESOF2020@oic.it, you will afterwards receive an email telling you how to proceed.

By following the above process, you will also have a group discount: every 5 delegates 1 will be free. It is also possible to require one invoice for all the group registrations.

At least two exhibitor badges are included in every exhibition space contract; for extra conference badges please contact registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Sessions are open. You do not need to reserve your seat or sign up for any of the sessions. You should also make use of the conference app in order to plan your way around the event, but you do not need to pre-schedule or sign-up for any individual sessions (besides workshops) if they are included in your registration.

To participate at the Technology Transfer Service and the Business meets Science workshops, you need to flag it during the registration. For more information, please email to registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Badge will not be mailed to attendees. Badge and other conference materials can be collected upon arrival at the conference venue. Please bring your registration confirmation email and a valid photo ID to the ESOF2020 registration desk to pick up your badge and conference pack. If you didn’t receive your confirmation email, please contact us at registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Certificates will be sent after the congress to everyone who collected the badge.

If you have any special requirements due to a disability, we will do our very best to accommodate any requests so please contact the ESOF2020 registrationESOF2020@oic.it for assistance.

The name badge acts as the entrance ticket for the congress.

If a badge is lost or forgotten, an administrative fee of EUR 25,00 will be charged for the reprint of the badge.

All payments can be made by credit card. On site payments by cash will be allowed within the limits applied by the Italian law (€2.000 from 1 July 2020 to 31 December 2021).

Cheques are not allowed.

Payment is required to complete your online registration procedure. So you will be asked to pay at the moment of your registration. Please refer to the registration fees and conditions here.

You will be able to register also onsite during ESOF2020.

However, any registrations and so any payment done during the conference will be at late/on site fee.

You are paying a Value Added Tax (VAT) on the congress registration fee because, according to the EU VAT Directive, VAT must be charged in the country hosting the Congress.

· Up to and including 1st April 2020: the paid amount will be refunded with a deduction of 30% as penalty charge.

· From 2nd April to 31st May 2020 included: the paid amount will be refunded with a deduction of 70% as penalty charge.

· From 1st June 2020: no refund will be possible for cancellations.

Anyone unable to attend the congress for whatever reason after paying, and/or unable to transfer the registration fee to another person, must cancel his/her registration.

The registration fee will be refunded if the request is received prior the above cancellation deadline dates.

Name changes incur a handling fee of € 50,00 per registration. The fees will be added to the outstanding invoice.

Please contact our PCO at registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Please contact our PCO at registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Please contact our PCO at registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Please contact our PCO at registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

Though it is no longer possible to submit proposals for the main programme, there are still plenty of other opportunities to contribute to and engage with ESOF2020. It is still possible to participate in the exhibition, host a reception or coordinate a satellite event or conference, please contact us via partnerships@esof.eu for assistance.

If you are interested in organising an event to run during or alongside ESOF, please contact Cristina Favento at cristina.favento@esof.eu for more information.

Please continue to check our website for updates on our 2020 line-up of keynotes, speakers and sessions. A full conference schedule will be available on our website soon.

Yes, there will be an ESOF2020 app which will be launched soon. The app will include programme, speakers’ list, exhibitors’ map and social events details. It will also allow delegates to build their own personal timetable from the programme.

Trieste is willing to host a sustainable ESOF, so programme books will be printed only upon request. To limit waste, a printed copy of the full conference programme will be available for purchase online at a cost of 10€. You can choose to buy it during your online registration.

A limited number of copies will be available to purchase onsite on a first come first served basis.

Conference materials will include anyway a pocket conference schedule and the full programme will also be uploaded on the ESOF2020 app and on the conference website.

ESOF includes a variety of sessions: plenary, keynote, general and highlighted sessions. For more details please refer to the updates on our website here.

The sessions will last between 45 and 90 minutes. Workshops may vary, so please refer to our website here.

All sessions have been already confirmed. If you are unsure about the status of your session please contact our PCO at facultyESOF2020@oic.it.

Not automatically. All session organisers and participants’ registration fees are waived, but everyone must register via the online platform to attend the conference.

OIC (our PCO) will send you an email with the dedicated link for free registration. If you have not received it yet, please contact registrationESOF2020@oic.it.

OIC (our PCO) will provide all the information about the time and date of the sessions. You will receive a detailed email as soon as possible. If you have any doubts please contact facultyESOF2020@oic.it.

Session organisers are responsible for communicating session details with speakers, and ensuring their registration and participation in the conference. Organisers are also responsible for the general management, preparation and organisation of the session. Guidance on this will be provided by facultyESOF2020@oic.it. Organisers must also notify the local team of any changes to the session. For more information please contact us at facultyESOF2020@oic.it.

Session organisers will be issued with instructions in April 2020. These will include a presentation guide with best practice for session organisers, speakers and moderators and details of how to request any required equipment.

Organisers should email the local team directly to the Scientific Programme Team at luca.bardini@esof.eu to let us know that one of your speakers has withdrawn. If necessary, the programme team will be able to provide guidance on a replacement speaker. All replacement speakers will be accepted at the discretion of the Scientific local team.

Changes to session content are no longer permitted, but any issues can be discussed with the Scientific local team. Please email Luca Bardini at luca.bardini@esof.eu for more details.

As a session organiser, if you are withdrawing your session or transferring organisational duties to another person, you should email ESOF directly at luca.bardini@esof.eu. If you are a session speaker, you should inform your session organiser immediately to maximise the time for them to find a suitable replacement.

If you wish to be part of the Exhibition at ESOF2020 please email us at partnerships@esof.eu.

Partnership opportunities are limited, so act today. If you wish to be a partner at ESOF2020 please visit the ‘Become a Partner’ page on our website for more information or write an email to partherships@esof.eu.

Advertising opportunities are open to all. If you would like to advertise in the ESOF2020 programme please contact us at partherships@esof.eu for more information

No, registration does not include accommodation. It is responsibility of the delegate to arrange their own accommodation but hotels with special rates for ESOF Delegates will be available very soon.

Hotel accommodation webpage with all details about it will be available soon.

Through our online platform you will be able to reserve your room at the ESOF preferential rate.

No, you don’t need to book the accommodation when you register. However we would recommend you book early for the best options as Trieste will be busy as the city is a summer touristic destination.

Official deadline for hotel bookings through the online platform is June 30th 2020, however since there is a limited number of rooms available we suggest you to book as soon as possible.

Yes, you can book your own accommodation.

Through the online platform your can book a maximum of 4 rooms. For groups booking please write to: registrationesof2020@oic.it.

In case you need more nights, please write to registrationesof2020@oic.it and we will check availability and let you know.

You will receive a confirmation NOT from the hotel but from the ESOF2020 Registration Team.

Your email confirmation will include all the details of your hotel booking.

Any change or cancellation in connection with hotel accommodations must be sent in writing to O.I.C. s.r.l. by E-mail: registrationESOF2020@oic.it

Hotels will not accept any changes or cancellations directly.

Attrition policy for cancellations

(valid for individual bookings and small groups up to 5 rooms):

· Up to and including March 28th,: € 25,00 will be withheld for administrative charge

· From March 29th to April 30th: one night accommodation will be withheld as cancellation charge

· From May 1st to May 30th: the paid amount will be refunded with a deduction of 90% as cancellation charge.

· From June 1st: no refund will be made for cancellations, changes and reduction of stay duration.

· No-shows and early departure: 100% of the total amount of the room booked and not used will be withheld as penalty charge.

When booking through the online platform you have to prepay the full amount of your stay.

You can also choose to option a room and decide if you want to confirm it within 3 days (for the confirmation the full prepayment is anyway required).

Before booking your flights please refer to the following airports:

Trieste Airport (TRS) is just 30 minutes from the city centre.

Most international flights land in Venice - Marco Polo airport (VCE) well connected to Trieste, it takes about 1,5 hours to arrive to Trieste.

Even Treviso - Antonio Canova airport (TSF) is close by. Please click here to know more.