The International Association of Bryologists (IAB), American Bryological and Lichenological Society (ABLS), Canadian Botanical Association (CBA-ABC) and Société québécoise de bryologie (SQB) organizied the online conference ‘Bryophytes, lichens, and northern ecosystems in a changing world’ (BL2021), which was hosted by the Université Laval, Québec, Canada.
The scientific program committee (Nicole Fenton and Julia Bechteler [co-chairs] and Mélanie Jean and Amelia Merced) composed an exciting four-day conference, comprising four plenary speakers, 119 oral and 42 poster presentations by plant and lichen biologists and ecologists from 31 countries. Talks are distributed across ten symposia focused on major advances along specific research axes, such as Sphagnum or hornwort biology, bryophyte phylogenomics, bryophytes and climate change, ecosystem restoration, or sex determination, and general sessions centered on broader topics, such as lichen biology, bryophyte ecology or plant anatomy.
These were an enriching four days that joined together colleagues across different fields from parts of the globe, who exchanged their contributions to advance our understanding of plants, lichenized fungi, and northern ecosystem biology.
The organizing committee is thankful to the Université Laval for its critical support enabling this international event.
Reference: The bryological Times Special issue Vol. 152 (2021)
From 6 to 9 June, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the IAB organized a virtual meeting for the first time.
