
Program
Program at a Glance
- This is a preliminary schedule and is subject to change
- Click the arrow before the date to open that day’s schedule
- All activities (except those marked with the asterisks**) are included in the registration for all delegates
Sunday, 12 July, 2026
7:30 – 18:00
Registration
PhD/ECR Symposium Day**
For more information and to buy tickets, go to: ECR Symposium page
9:00 – 9:30
Welcome and Introduction to our day’s Sponsor

9:30 – 11:00
Session #1: Mycorrhizal Ecology, Forest Dynamics & Post-Disturbance Recovery
11:00 – 11:30
Morning Tea
11:30 – 12:30
Session #2: Expert panel discussion – How to make it in Mycology
12:30 – 13:30
Lunch
13:30 – 15:00
Session #3: Mycorrhizal Diversity, taxonomy & Specialized Symbioses
15:00 – 15:30
Afternoon Tea
15:30 – 16:00
Session #4: Physiologia Plantarum Q&A
16:00 – 17:20
Session #5: Mycorrhizal Fungi in Agriculture, Cropping Systems & Soil Management
17:20 – 17:30
Concluding comments from the committee
Welcome Mixer**
18:00 – 22:00
Welcome Mixer** at Hemingway’s Brewery
(for more information & to buy tickets, click here)
Monday, 13 July, 2026
7:30 – 17:30
Registration Open
8:30 – 9:00
Welcome
9:00 – 10:10
Plenary: Moving Forward while Looking into the Past
hosted by Ian Dickie
- Plenary Speaker: Marc-André Selosse
- Rising Star Speaker: Nicola Day
10:10 – 10:40
Morning Tea
10:40 – 12:40
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #18: Dispersal Ecology
- Symposia #28: Climate Adaptation
- Symposia #4: Population Biology
- Symposia #13: New Approaches
12:40 – 13:40
Buffet Lunch + Poster Session
13:40 – 15:40
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #20: Carbon Cycling
- Symposia #2: Ericoid Mycorrhiza
- Symposia #32: Mycorrhizal Inoculum Production
- Symposia #11: Seasons Change
15:40 – 16:10
Afternoon Tea
16:10 – 17:30
New Phytologist Awardees, hosted by Julie Deslippe
- Beatrice Bock
- John V. Ramana
- Hela Younsi
- Ningkoan Sun
Tuesday, 14 July, 2026
7:30 – 13:40
Registration Open
8:30 – 9:30
Plenary: Mycorrhizas in Dynamic Ecosystems
hosted by Nicola Day
- Plenary Speaker: Celeste Linde
- Rising Star Speaker: Patricia Silva-Flores
9:30 – 10:10
New Phytologist Awardees, hosted by Julie Deslippe
- Maycon Cristiano Barbosa
- Amara Santiesteban-Serrano
10:10 – 10:40
Morning Tea
10:40 – 12:40
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #27A: Agriculture & Food Security
- Symposia #1: Orchid Mycorrhiza
- Symposia #17: Animals in Mycorrhizal Ecology
- Symposia #10: Another Look at Mutualism
12:40 – 13:40
Buffet Lunch + Poster Session
13:40 – 15:40
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #9A: Mycorrhizal Microbiomes
- Symposia #22: Invasion Biology
- Symposia #29: Mycorrhiza in Restoration
- Symposia #6: Southern Hemisphere Mycorrhiza
15:40 – 16:00
Afternoon Tea
16:00 – 17:00
Free Time
17:00 – 21:00
Conference Dinner
- 17:00-17:15: Buses load & leave from Cairns Convention Centre (approx 40 minute drive)
- 18:00-22:00: Entertainment & Dinner at Rainforeststation
- 22:00: Buses load for return to Cairns
For more information and a preliminary schedule, click here
Wednesday, 15 July, 2026
8:00 – 13:30
Registration Open
9:00 – 10:00
Plenary: Genomic Pathways, Regulatory Networks, and Mycorrhizal Functional Ecology
hosted by Jonathan Plett

- Plenary Speaker: Claire Veneault-Fourrey
- Rising Star Speaker: Lotus Lofgren
10:00 – 10:30
Morning Tea
10:30 – 12:30
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #27B: Agriculture & Food Security
- Symposia #19A: Biogeochemistry
- Symposia #3: Dual Mycorrhizal Associations
- Symposia #12: Cellular Dynamics
12:30 – 13:30
Lunch + Poster Session
13:30 – 15:30
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #9B: Mycorrhizal Microbiomes
- Symposia #25: Mycorrhizal Networks
- Symposia #23: Global Change
- Symposia #15: Future Innovations
15:30 – 16:00
Afternoon Tea
16:00 – 17:00
IMS Eminent & MCR Awardees
hosted by Justine Karst
- Nancy Collins Johnson
- Bala Chaudhary
17:00-18:30
Wines of the World
Trinity Terrace at the
Cairns Convention Centre

Thursday, 16 July, 2026
8:00 – 10:30
Registration Open
9:00 – 10:00
Plenary: Opportunities for Mycorrhizas in Climate Adaptation
hosted by Stephanie Watts-Fawkes

- Plenary Speaker: Olubukola Oluranti Babalola
- Rising Star Speaker: Yong Zheng
10:00 – 10:30
Morning Tea
10:30 – 12:30
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #19B: Biogeochemistry
- Symposia #5: Cooperation and Adaptation Models
- Symposia #14: Drought
- Symposia #27C: Agriculture and Food Security
12:30 – 13:30
Lunch
13:30 – 15:00
Parallel Symposia:
- Symposia #24: Fire
- Symposia #8: Systematics
- Symposia #7: Structurally Undifferentiated Mycorrhiza
- Symposia #26: Science Engagement through Practice and Food
15:00 – 15:30
Afternoon Tea
15:30 – 16:45
IMS Meeting & Awards
16:45 – 17:00
Closing Remarks
Friday, 17 July, 2026
All day
Workshops and Field Trips (see Workshop page)**