Under our leadership, the Congress of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology – ESEB 2022 took place on 14-19 August. The ESEB Congress, which takes place regularly every two years, attracted more than 1,600 evolutionary biologists from all over the world to the Prague Congress Centre (KCP). Among the participants were scientists, students and others interested in this field.

An expert programme took place in 8 parallel sections and 4 plenary sessions. It also included an extensive poster section with more than 700 posters and a professional symposium. The main topics were the evolution of aging, behavior, the domestication of wild animals and the emergence of new species.

Prominent personalities of this year’s congress were Prof. Hanna Kokko, who became famous for her research on the evolution of sexual reproduction, the evolutionary ecology of cancer and the relationship between ecology and evolution, and Prof. Roger Butlin, who made a significant contribution to the understanding of the formation of new species. In Prague, he will be ceremoniously named an important member of society.

The congress offered a very rich social programme. On the first evening, the participants enjoyed a welcome cocktail in the premises of the congress center. On Tuesday, they were treated to a networking evening, which took place at the Faculty of Science of the Charles University, during which they could get to know other congress participants and share their impressions and experiences from the previous days. During two evenings, a discussion took place at the posters, during which the participants could taste Czech beer and traditional Czech beer snacks. The social part of the programme and the entire congress ended on Friday with a dinner in the Občanská plovárna, which included a performance by the Lovesong Orchestra and a short boat ride on the Vltava. Although it rained heavily this evening, no one seemed to mind and there was a great atmosphere throughout the evening.

Despite its size, the ESEB Congress always carries with it a family atmosphere. Therefore, congress participants are used to bringing with them companions in the form of partners and children. Professional babysitting with an animation program in 4 languages was provided for the children at all times.
A guided tour of Prague was prepared for accompanying persons.

A small exhibition with a total of seven exhibitors was part of the congress. The Czech Convention Bureau was also among the partners.

We would like to thank the European Society for Evolutionary Biology, all participants, speakers, partners and exhibitors for another great year of the ESEB Congress. Our thanks also go to Professor Lukáš Kratochvíl for more than 3 years of cooperation in the preparation of the entire congress. Last but not least, a big thank you goes to our event team bee with project managers Marcela Rajtorová and Anna Pražáková. Thank you!