Can Wildfires Affect Our Health? Internationally Renowned Researchers, Including the President of HUN-REN, Discuss Vital Rapports on Our Planet in Budapest

24.03.2025

Changes in Earth's systems must be studied in their interconnectedness, as human health also depends on these relationships. Leading researchers from around the world will arrive in Budapest at the end of April to deepen the dialogue between earth and environmental sciences and life sciences, and to seek answers to scientific questions and relationships that affect the Carpathian Basin as well. The two-day conference is jointly organized by Academia Europaea and HUN-REN, marking the first event since HUN-REN became a supporting member of the European scientific organization. Alongside HUN-REN, the Academia Europaea Budapest Knowledge Hub is a co-organizer.

Distinguished international and Hungarian researchers will participate in an interdisciplinary scientific conference held on April 24-25 in Budapest at the HUN-REN headquarters.
The event, conducted in English, aims to deepen the dialogue between earth and environmental sciences and life sciences, foster innovative interdisciplinary connections, and establish a common platform to promote exploratory research and innovation, as well as address pressing societal needs. The topics discussed at the conference will have both global and pan-European relevance, with experts placing particular emphasis on connections crucial to protecting the Danube Basin.

The keynote speaker of the two-day event is Sierd Cloetingh, senior advisor at the HUN-REN Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences (HUN-REN FI) and professor at Utrecht University. "This workshop is extremely timely, as we are currently working on building bridges between processes taking place at different levels within the Earth’s system and their environmental impacts on people," said the Dutch professor, adding that geothermal and renewable energies will also be discussed at the conference.

Tom Beer, director of Safe System Solutions, an Australian road safety engineering consultancy, will explore the connections between climate, wildfires, air quality, and health in a highly engaging and unconventional manner. Beer is the expert who - back in the late 1980s - predicted the recent devastating forest and bushfires in Australia. According to the Australian specialist, severe wildfires originally forecasted for 2050 have already become commonplace on the continent since 2010.

Several young Hungarian and international researchers will give presentations at the two-day conference. Among them is Márta Berkesi, researcher at HUN-REN FI, who will discuss the relationship between Earth's depths and human habitats in relation to carbon dioxide-rich fluids. Pietro Sternai, associate professor at the University of Milan, will speak about the interactions between geology and climate.

At the event, Katalin Solymosi, a plant biologist from ELTE and deputy director of the organizing Academia Europaea Budapest Knowledge Hub, will introduce the increasingly popular holistic OneHealth concept. In the third and final session of the two-day conference, neurobiologist Balázs Gulyás, president of HUN-REN, will talk about the limits of healthy aging.

The event is co-organized by the Academia Europaea Budapest Knowledge Hub, whose aim is to foster interdisciplinary scientific dialogue with regional and European focus by encouraging new connections and expert networks in the wider Danube region.
The detailed program of the April conference is available here.