JRC Summer School on Alternative Approaches for Risk assessment, Ispra

The JRC's Chemical Safety and Alternative Methods Unit, which incorporates the EU Reference Laboratory for Alternatives to Animal Testing (EURL ECVAM), is organising a JRC Summer School from the 16-19 May 2017, at the JRC Ispra site, on the topic of "Alternative Approaches for Risk Assessment". The overall aim is to provide comprehensive training on state-of-the-art alternative (non-animal) approaches to predictive toxicology and to promote their use within modern chemical risk assessment practice.

The Summer School is specifically tailored for post-graduate students (PhD/Masters) and early-career scientists working in relevant fields. It will provide valuable insights into principles and methodologies of human health and environmental risk assessment using non-animal approaches, drawing from scientific, regulatory, and industrial perspectives.

Presentations will not only outline the typical risk assessment process in widespread use today but will also explore options for modernisation through greater incorporation of new scientific tools and thinking. Topics to be covered include; exposure assessment, hazard identification and characterisation, in vitro methods and computational modelling, validation principles and practice, and analysis of uncertainty.

The programme will be varied and engaging, combining lectures from experts in the field with a range of other activities to facilitate exchange between students and lecturers and students and their peers. Each participant will be asked to contribute to a poster session to present aspects of their own studies, interests or work area, and some abstracts may be selected for oral presentation. A world café-type session, a quiz, games and visits to the EURL ECVAM laboratories and the JRC Visitors Centre are also planned to enrich the Summer School experience and to maximise learning opportunities through different means.

Programme

/jrc/en/file/document/170679Download the draft programme

Download the draft programme

Who can participate?

Masters students, PhD students, or early-career scientists (max. 4 years after master) active in fields related to toxicology, alternative methods, exposure science, or risk assessment. Maximum 100 participants.

Prerequisites for application

A letter of motivation (inc. one professional reference) plus a Poster abstract (max. 250 words).

Selection of participants will be based on the following criteria:

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  Relevance of current area of study or job
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  Clarity and relevance of the motivation letter
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  Quality of the poster abstract
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  Achieving a balance between nationalities and gender of participants where possible

Pre-registration

Pre-registration open until 21 February 2017 by email to: JRC-F3-SUMMER-SCHOOL@ec.europa.eu

Information on acceptance will be given 2-3 weeks after this deadline.

Course information

Date & time

Tuesday 16 May 12:00 to Friday 19 May 14.00

Venue

European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra (Varese), Italy

Costs

No conference fee will be charged. However participants will need to cover the costs of their travel, accommodation and daily subsistence. The JRC will provide practical assistance in finding reasonably-priced accommodation in the local area and will offer local transport (at no charge) where possible. Details to follow.