5th Frontiers Retreat
Ljubljana, Slovenia

June 2025

Dear colleagues,

The fifth edition of the ESACT Frontiers Retreat is taking place 11th to 13th June, 2025 in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

These meetings are dedicated to Early Career Scientists (ECSs) working in the advancing cell technology and related fields. We aim to continue engaging the next generation of ESACT scientists and to encourage those who have not attended previous ESACT meetings to actively participate in this community.

Frontiers Retreats are not classical meetings: they are built on a range of sessions focussed on career and personal development, stimulation of alternative thinking emerging from interaction with peers across a broad range of subject areas and level of experience, and promoting active networking among all participants. They also aim to stimulate scientific discussions and help to bridge the gap between industry and academia.

The Scientific Sessions are an amazing opportunity for ECSs to present their work, with most of the oral presentation slots being reserved for the ECSs selected from the high-quality abstracts submitted. There are also two very engaging poster sessions and there are prizes for both the best oral presentation and the best poster presentation. The best oral presentation will be awarded a chance to present at the 29th ESACT meeting in 2026.

The Career and Personal Development Sessions will allow the opportunity to hear career stories and advice from a variety of experts, help you to develop transferrable skills and extend your professional network.  We will also be inviting a professional coach to run a dedicated session to the development of key skills for career progression.  Join us for the retreat and take this opportunity to build upon your skills and network!

This meeting is open to the entire community, including non-ESACT members.

So, submit your abstract and save the date: 11th – 13th June, 2025.

We look forward to meeting you in Slovenia!

Kind Regards,

ESACT Frontiers Team

Abstract Submission – OPEN

Although abstract submission is not mandatory to attend the meeting, we encourage you to submit an abstract on original work, to be delivered as either an oral or poster presentation. Please note that having an accepted abstract will be a selection criteria in the case of registration limitations and is also taken into consideration when deciding on allocation of bursaries.

Since this meeting is dedicated to early career scientists, we will also ask you to provide the following information to offer us insights into demographic:

  • Highest academic qualification
  • Current position
  • Affiliation

Note that there are no specific age restrictions to attend but we do recommend that the Retreat is most relevant for those within 8 years of their most recent qualification.

The Abstract Submission form is available below. Submissions for oral presentations will be accepted until February 28th 2025. Submissions for posters presentations will be accepted until March 31st 2025.

Successfully submitted abstracts will be acknowledged with an electronic receipt. Abstract acceptance will be notified as soon as possible, usually late April/early May.

Abstract preparation guidelines:

  • Abstracts must be submitted in English (.doc(x) files)
  • Maximum abstract length is 400 words
  • Abstracts should include relevant and detailed information about the work to be presented, divided into the following sections: i) background and novelty; ii) experimental approach; iii) results and discussion.
  • Use our file template to write your abstract and name the file with your name and category code (i.e.: Surname_Forename_CODE)
  • Click here to download our abstract file template.
    • Codes for Categories:
      • VVV tag for “Vaccines and viral vectors”
      • CLDE tag for Cell line development and engineering”
      • PDO tag for “Process development and optimization”
      • NMA tag for “New methods and analytics in cell culture”
      • SCRM tag for “Stem cells & regenerative medicine”
      • DAM tag for “Digitalization and Modeling”
    • Note: If your abstract matches with different categories, please include them all in the file name of your abstract (i.e.: Surname_Forename_CODE1_CODE2) and select the main one from the drop-down menu in the submission form.

Abstracts will be anonymised and reviewed and scored by a Scientific Committee according to their quality and will be proposed for oral or poster presentation in the different scientific sessions.

The 5th ESACT Frontiers Retreat will take place from 11th – 13th June 2025 in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Conference and accommodation will be at the same place for you to make the most of your time to enjoy the sessions, the workshops and to network with your peers.

Accomodation and Conference Venue:

City Hotel Ljubljana,

Dalmatinova 15,

1000 Ljubljana

Website: https://www.cityhotel.si/

Travel: For more information on how to reach the hotel via public transport or to arrange an airport transfer directly with the hotel please visit the City Hotel website linked below.

https://www.cityhotel.si/how-to-reach-us/

Registration fee (applies to all delegates, irrespective of abstract submission)

Early Registration – 450 Euros: September 1st 2024 to February 28th 2025
Late Registration – 500 Euros: March 1st to May 18th 2025

The registration fee includes participation in the meeting, coffee breaks, lunches, social activities, as well as, hotel accommodation and breakfast for the nights of 11th, 12th and 13th of June 2025 in shared room. A single room upgrade will add an additional fee of 150 Euros.


    Contact Information












    Registration Details




    Do you authorize ESACT e.V. to use pictures taken during the event where you appear for communication on future ESACT Frontiers event ?


    I hereby authorise ESACT e.V. to use my personal data for the organisation, implementation and communication before, during and after the ESACT Frontiers retreat. My personal data will not be passed on to other organisations or company partners.*


    Gala Dinner Preferences




    Accomodation Information


    All details regarding accommodation reservations will be announced soon.

    For the time being, please indicate below if you accept the included shared double room with the regular registration fee, and specify with whom you want to share a room. Note that upgrading to a single room will have an extra cost of 150 EUR. If the roommate field is not specified, the organization will randomly assign you a same-gender roommate.



    For any additional queries, please contact us at frontiers@esact.org

    NOTE: When submitting the registration form - you aren't redirected to any new page, the form just goes empty again - that's normal, your registration has gone through and you will receive a confirmation e-mail.


    We know meeting fees can be a limitation for ECSs and the ESACT Frontiers team have worked hard to reduce the registration fee as much as possible and include the Retreat program, hotel accommodation, and meals in the fee.

    If the cost remain prohibitive for you, please contact us. The European Society for Animal Cell Technology (ESACT) strives to encourage and facilitate the participation of ECSs in all ESACT-related meetings and events by sponsoring conference bursaries.

    Eligibility criteria

    • Abstract submission is not mandatory but highly encouraged. Applicants with an abstract submission will be prioritized for bursaries.
    • Applicants must be a Ph.D./Master’s student (proof of affiliation will be required) or an early career Post-Doctoral researcher/Industrial Scientist/Engineer within 8 years of their most recent qualification (a copy of a diploma/certificate will be required).
    • A letter of support is also required from an applicants supervisor/manager to qualify the need for a travel bursary.
    • Limited bursaries will be awarded, and the Frontiers team reserves the right to rank bursary applicants according to the scientific quality and relevance of the work to the Advancing Cell Technology field.
    • Bursary applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered. Application deadline: 14th February 2025

    Application process – OPEN

    Please email frontiers@esact.org with the following documentation:

    • Proof of affiliation or copy of qualification certificate
    • A letter from your supervisor
    • Details on the travel for which a bursary is requested (predicted transport costs, number of extra hotel nights required, if any, etc)

    Previous Frontiers Retreats

    • 1st ESACT Frontiers Retreat took place in Lyon from the 20th to 22nd October 2016

    Check out the video –> 1st ESACT Frontiers Retreat Lyon

    • 2nd ESACT Frontiers Retreat was held in Zagreb from the 17th to the 19th of October 2018.
    • 3rd ESACT Frontiers Retreat was held in Vienna from the 26th to the 29th of October 2022.
    • 4th ESACT Fronters Retreat was held in Brussels from the 18th to the 21st of October 2023.