Lausanne to host 2019 World Conference of Science Journalists

The SwissTech Convention Center on the campus of Lausanne's Federal Institute of Technology will play host to the science writers' conference. Keystone

The city of Lausanne has been chosen to welcome the prestigious World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ) in July 2019. 

Around 1,000 science reporters and specialists from over 60 countries are expected to attend the eleventh edition of the biennial eventExternal link. It will be held on the campuses of the Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne (EPFLExternal link) and the University of Lausanne (UNILExternal link) on July 1-5, 2019. Lausanne fought off competition from Montreal, Madrid and Copenhagen.

The decision announced on Saturday is the result a joint application by the Swiss Association for Science Journalism (ASJS), the French Association of Science Journalists in the news media (AJSPI), and Science Writers in Italy (SWIM). 

“We are very honoured that Lausanne has been chosen to host this important event,” said Olivier Dessibourg, President of the ASJS and initiator of the bid. “We put forward the vision of a conference organized by and for science journalists to present, defend and promote quality independent journalism in the media worldwide; an aspect that certainly helped us win.” 

The conference will focus on sharing good practices and tools, and feature creative workshops, debates and tutorials. The Lausanne organisers want to build closer links between communities of science writers around the world, especially French-speaking reporters and others based in the Balkans region. 

Most recent editions of the conference were held in San Francisco (USA) in 2017 and Seoul (South Korea) in 2015. 

The Lausanne candidacy was supported by the EPFL, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and Geneva and Lausanne universities, as well as the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, Presence Switzerland, the city of Lausanne and canton Vaud. 

The European Commission, Euronews, the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) are providing support. The main sponsor is the Bertarelli Foundation. 

“This conference is a unique opportunity for Switzerland to demonstrate to journalists from around the world that behind our famous mountains and chocolate lies a centre of scientific excellence,” said Nicolas Bideau, Head of Presence Switzerland.