Events

 

 

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28-31 October 2025

29th International Working Group of Ostrinia and Other Maize Pests (IWGO) Conference

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

 

The next and 29th International Working Group of Ostrinia and Other Maize Pests (IWGO) Conference of the International Organization of Biological Control (IOBC) will take place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, between 28th and 31st of October 2025.

We like to inform you that we will partner with the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) who will co-host the IWGO event at their MARDI Auditorium on the MARDI campus in Putrajaya, away from the hustle of Kuala Lumpur city. Despite the high interest in fall armyworm, we would like to point out that the scientific programme will not only focus on fall armyworm control options and that other topics will be discussed too, such as the success and challenges of non-chemical control approaches of different maize pests and the genomics of maize pest insects. A field trip will be organized in collaboration with MARDI and offered for optional registration on Friday 31st of October 2025. In the next step, we will contact you to collect ideas for scientific session and to identify teams of co-session organizers following the format of earlier IWGO conferences.

As announced earlier, long-time Co-convenors Prof Zhenying Wang (17 years of dedicated service) and Dr Tom Sappington (12 years of dedicated service) step away from their roles in IWGO due to their retirement plans. Dr Feng Zhang of CABI in Beijing, China, and Dr Dominic Reisig of North Carolina State University, USA, have graciously agreed to take on the Co-Convenorships.

Please contact Ulli Kuhlmann (u.kuhlmann@cabi.org), Dominic Reisig (ddreisig@ncsu.edu) and Feng Zhang (f.zhang@cabi.org) if you would like to propose an interesting scientific session topic or if you like to be updated about the upcoming conference in Malaysia.

More information: https://www.iwgo.org/news

 

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08-13 March 2026

XVII International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds (ISBCW 2026)

Rotorua, Aotearoa New Zealand

 

The International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds (ISBCW) is the most important event for weed biocontrol scientists from all over the world. Approximately every four years, this gathering provides an opportunity for participants to exchange advances, renew ties of friendship, develop new collaborations, and discuss the way forward.

Since its inception in 1969, the symposium has become an essential meeting point for all those involved in weed biocontrol activities.

Join us for the next symposium and be part of this vibrant exchange of ideas, innovations, and developments.

Website: https://isbcw-rotorua.com

 

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From 27-31 October 2025 postponed to October 2026

16th Workshop of the IOBC-MRQA Working Group: Innovations in rearing high-quality invertebrates

Tucson, AZ, USA

 

 

Joint meeting of the IOBC Global Working Group on Mass Rearing & Quality Assurance (MRQA) and the Association of Natural Biocontrol Producers (ANBP)

The organizing committee has decided to postpone the meeting for one year to October 2026.
Many of our members and invited speakers expressed their uncertainty to secure funding and/or approval to travel to the meeting. We hope that in a year's time, these issues will have stabilized, and we will have a much better chance of having the required number of attendees to make this meeting a success.
We still plan to hold the meeting in Tucson, Arizona, and will keep working over the coming year to organize a great meeting.
We hope to see you all at the meeting, just a little bit later than expected!

The workshop objective is to explore opportunities for advancing the rearing of high quality entomophagous and phytophagous insects and mites, entomopathogenic nematodes, and other invertebrates for plant and animal pest management, human and animal food, and a variety of other uses. The program will consist of symposia on current "Hot topics," invited and submitted presentations and posters on mass rearing and quality assurance. Presentations will serve as a basis for discussion and exchange, with the final aim of improving collaboration among scientists and practitioners.

General topics for the sessions include:

1. Mass rearing and evaluating biological control agents for crop pests
2. Mass rearing for SIT and other autocidal pest control
3. Methods for assessing the quality of biological control products
4. Mass rearing insects for food and feed
5. Open session on rearing invertebrates

Download: First Announcement (pdf)

More information on IOBC-MRQA: https://www.mrqa.eu