This was miCROPe 2022

Dear colleagues,

Our last miCROPe conference was in December 2019, right before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Meanwhile we all have experienced many online meetings and conferences with all their advantages and disadvantages. Many of us look forward to again having personal meetings and discussions while having a coffee in the coffee break or having a chat during a social event. Now, miCROPe is back and the next symposium will be miCROPe 2022, taking place again in Vienna, from 11-14 July 2022. This time without Christmas markets, but you will be able to enjoy Vienna in summer.

There is unbroken interest in soil and plant microbiomes and their important contribution in agro-systems. Plant microbiota are diverse and provide important functions for their host’s performance, and mediate functions like nutrient delivery, fitness, stress tolerance, and pathogen or pest control. Current understanding of plant-microbe interactions is helping to develop microbial products, new applications to improve crop production, and create alternatives to chemicals. Microbial ecology is an important asset for understanding the fate of applied microorganisms in a natural environment, and for affecting product development. Greater understanding of microbiome functioning will also lead to new routes of exploration.

The increasing awareness of and interest in plant microbiota is linked to the urgent need to find solutions for current challenges in global crop production such as climate change and global demographic development. Difficulties to be overcome include world-wide population increases, extreme weather events and highly variable weather conditions, emerging pathogens and pests, and diminishing land resources. Furthermore, the use of chemical pesticides poses a threat to human health, animal welfare, and biodiversity. Innovations based on the functioning of plant microbiota have the potential to contribute to combating these challenges.

The symposium “Microbe-assisted crop production – opportunities, challenges and needs” (miCROPe 2022) addresses basic and applied aspects of applying beneficial microorganisms in crop production. Scientific sessions will address different functions of microorganisms in crop production, ranging from biocontrol to nutrition and stress resilience. Furthermore, we will address plant mechanisms, functional understanding and most importantly also address how microbiomes can be translated in field applications.

The symposium will be held in the Apothekertrakt of the famous Schönbrunn castle, easy to reach from the Vienna city center and surrounded by a beautiful park area. We invite you to present exciting results, engage in discussions with experts from academia and industry and enjoy the historic and cultural sites of Vienna.
Looking forward to meeting you in Vienna at miCROPe 2022!

Angela Sessitsch
on behalf of the Organizing Committee

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CONFIRMED INVITED SPEAKERS

Looking forward to meeting you in Vienna at miCROPe 2022!
Your miCROPe Organizing Committee