News

The 18th Scandinavian Society for Biomaterials (ScSB2025) Meeting was proudly organized by Tampere University, with the organizing committee consisting of Minna Kellomäki, Janne T. Koivisto, and Miina Björninen from the Faculty of Medicine & Health Technology, and myself, Antonia Ressler, from the Faculty of Engineering & Natural Sciences.

Some of you may remember me from the organizing committee of yCAM 2024 in Finland. Inspired by that experience, I decided to take on the challenge of organizing another conference—and I’m so glad I did. It was an incredible journey. Working alongside such dedicated and inspiring colleagues made the process both educational and enjoyable—a perfect recipe for success.

Over the years, I’ve often reflected on what makes a collaboration truly successful, whether in research or event organization. I’ve come to believe that the key ingredients are mutual trust, respect, and loyalty. In our team, we supported one another unconditionally. When someone couldn’t complete a task on time, others stepped in without hesitation. This experience has helped me understand what to look for in future collaborators.

We have chosen the stunning Vanajanlinna Mansion—a historic venue tucked away from the distractions of everyday life. It provided the perfect setting to focus on science, engage in deep discussions, build new collaborations, and, of course, have fun. The conference took place in a beautiful glasshouse by the lake, offering a serene escape—whenever you needed a break from the talks, you could simply drift into the peaceful lakeside atmosphere. As a foreigner in Finland, I found this to be a very Finnish way of doing things—and perhaps one of the reasons why Finland is consistently ranked happiest countries in the world.

We carefully created a scientific program centered on the exciting potential of physiologically relevant biomaterials and their transformative applications in medicine and biomedical engineering. And of course, the main focus was on supporting and highlighting early-career researchers. Beyond the lectures, we also organized a variety of social events designed to encourage networking in a relaxed and engaging atmosphere. These moments of informal interaction are often where the seeds of future collaborations are planted. To add a fun twist to the event, we introduced a bingo card that participants could fill out in exchange for small prizes. In addition, we presented awards for the best oral presentation, rapid-fire talk, and poster presentation to recognize and encourage excellence among young researchers.

We hope all participants had amazing time, because we did.

Antonia Ressler, PhD

Tampere Institute of Advanced Study

Tampere University, Finland antonia.ressler@tuni.fi

https://www.linkedin.com/in/antoniaressler/