Earlier this month, one of the annual highlights of my conference calendar came around again: the annual ASBTE conference, this time in Adelaide.

The meeting marked the 30th anniversary of the Australasian Society for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering (#ASBTE2026). Huge credit to Ferry Melchels, Bryan R. Coad, and the entire team for delivering such a well-curated and engaging conference.

The scientific programme was excellent, and there was even time for an afternoon excursion to nearby German Village Hahndorf. I had the famous German Spaghetti-Eis(creme) there for the first time in many years :)

It was also great to see five current Australian Research Council (ARC) Fellows within our community (Jelena Rnjak-Kovacina, Jess Frith, Ferry Melchels, Khoon Lim, Peter Wich). A strong signal that biomaterials research in Australia is in a very good place!

As always, it was fantastic to reconnect with old friends, make new ones, and be part of such a vibrant and supportive community. Congratulations to Jess Frith on her appointment as the new ASBTE President! 👏

Very much looking forward to next year, with #ASBTE2027 heading to Sydney!

#ASBTE2026 #Biomaterials #TissueEngineering #Biofabrication #Bioprinting