The course is designed to provide an overview of the taxonomy, (palaeo)ecology, biodiversity, geological history and applied biostratigraphy of ostracods. It is intended for young scientists and industrial staff interested in micropalaeontology, palaeoceanography, palaeoclimatology, biology and environmental applications. We will focus on methods and concepts of ostracodology including systematics, biostratigraphic applications, ecology and life history spanning their fossil record from the Paleozoic to the Holocene and covering the recent fauna as well. Case studies from marine and continental systems as well as practical training for identification, preparation, documentation and analysis will be an important part of the course. ESO also is on facebook! .
ESO11 will take place in Beijing, China, from August 12th to August 16th, 2026 to just prior to the 20th International Symposium on Ostracoda.
Download information flyer of ESO11 here.
Who should attend?
The course is primarily intended for young researchers at the PhD or MSc. stages of their careers and industrial staff who intends to work with ostracods or just started to do so. People holding a postdoctoral position are also welcome. The number of participants will be limited to 28.
The lecturers in 2026 will be:
Prof Dr Marie-Béatrice Forel, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris, France
Prof Peter Frenzel, Geosciences, University of Jena, Germany
Dr Marta Marchegiano, University of Granada, Spain
Dr Ilaria Mazzini, CNR-IGAG, Monterotondo, Italy
Prof Steffen Mischke, University of Iceland, Iceland
Dr Olga Schmitz, MPI-GEA Jena, Germany
Dr Anton Waltschew, Nuremberg; Germany
Dr He Wang, City University of Hong Kong, China
Prof Dr Dangpeng Xi, China University of Geosciences Beijing, China
Prof Dr Dayou Zhai, Yunnan University, China
Registration
To register, please send an email including your name, address, and career status to the ESO-organizers: eso@uni-jena.de. The places will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Fees (include course material, lectures & lunches)
- 180 € for students
- 330 € for Universities/Government
- 1500 € for participants from private industry/company
Please, note that the financial benefit of the course will fund future activities of SF*IRGO (learn more about us).
Payment
If your registration was successful, you will receive information about how to pay your admission fee. This will be either by bank transfer or by using PayPal. For any payment, please include as payment purpose: “ESO 2026, participation fee for NAME, and CAREER STATUS (student, PostDoc, employee in private industry)”. Please do not send money to the email address of the ESO-organizers mentioned above!
Cancellation and no show
By payment you accept our cancellation and no-show policy. We are not able to reimburse any paid fees, however, course material will be made available.
Stipends, Grants, other Support
The European School on Ostracoda is an acknowledged course by the Micropalaeontological Society (TMS), London, UK.
We wish to thank our long-time supporter Mgr. Marián Golej PhD., CEO of KREATIVIKA.
The organizers thank the local hosts, Prof. Dangpeng Xi (China University of Geosciences Beijing) and Dr Yaqiong Wang (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, CAS), for allowing ESO to use the infrastructure of the China University of Geosciences Beijing. For the first time, the European School on Ostracoda will leave Europe!
Looking forward to meeting you in Beijing!
The organizers, Prof Dr Peter Frenzel, PD Dr Renate Matzke-Karasz, Dr Olga Schmitz, Ella Quante.