General Information

Registration and Opening Hours

Further information regarding registration schedule & prices can be found here.

Please note that no cash payments will be accepted on site.

Opening Hours Registration (CityCube Entrance Foyer)

Opening Hours Speaker Service Centre (CubeClub)

Opening Hours Exhibition (Halls 2.2 & 4.2)

Opening Hours Exhibition Service Desk (Service Center Hall 7)

Access to the conference venue and participant badges

Participants should print and collect their name badges from the self-printing registration desks. As only registered participants will be permitted to attend the scientific sessions, the exhibition and poster areas, you are required to wear your badge when entering and while remaining in the conference venue. Exhibitors will also receive badges to allow access to the appropriate areas. Lost badges can be replaced at the registration desk. However, a handling fee of EUR 50.- will be charged.

Cancellations and Refunds

Notice of cancellation (e.g. in case of sickness, lack of funding or any other personal reasons) must be made in writing by e-mail  to the ESHG Conference organisers: conference@eshg.org

Registration fees may be refunded if written cancellation if received as follows:

– until April 10, 2024                                      75% refund
– between April 11-May 15, 2024               25% refund
– as of May 16, 2024                                        no refund

The date of the email is the basis for considering refunds. Refunds will be made after the conference.

Certificate of Attendance / CME Certificates

Participants will be able to download their certificate of attendance (as of June 1, 2024 at 08:00 CEST) and CME certificate directly from the ESHG Portal. You can access the portal with the same email and password you used to register and access the virtual conference platform. More information on how to obtain CME credits will follow soon.

Certificate of Presentation

Presentation certificates will be available for download to all abstract authors on the virtual conference platform one week after the conference. Please do not request certificates onsite, via phone or email.

Insurance

By registering to the ESHG 2024 participants agree that neither the organising committee nor the conference office assume any liability whatsoever. Participants are requested to make their own arrangements for health and travel insurance. The conference fee does not include insurance. Cancellations made after the deadline (May 16, 2024) cannot be refunded for any reasons.

Online participation

Access to the virtual conference platform

All participants (in-person and online only) will have access to the conference virtual platform. To access the platform attendees will need to use their email address and password used for their registration.

What will you find in the virtual conference platform?

In the virtual platform you will have access to:

• Real time live stream of sessions with the possibility of interaction through the session chat
• Access to all posters presented at the conference (hybrid posters and e-Posters)
• Presenter profiles
• Sponsor and Exhibitor information (if booked by sponsor)
• CME evaluations
• On-demand recording of presentations (on the following day)

General Conference Information

Mobile App

The mobile app with full programme and other useful information will be available for download one week before the conference.

Coffee Breaks

During the session breaks, refreshments (coffee, tea and water) will be served free of charge to participants wearing name badges. Coffee and lunch bags will be served in the exhibition area.

Lunch and Refreshments

Lunch tickets for lunch bags needed to be pre-ordered until 1 May 2024 – they cannot be purchased on site. Please note that lunch tickets are not refundable after May 1, 2024 at 23:59 CEST. Please take care of your lunch vouchers on site. They will be printed together with your badge. If you lose them, we cannot hand them out again to you due to reasons of fraud. So please bring them with you on each according day and do not lose them.

Lunch bags can be picked up from 12.00 – 13.00 hrs CEST on Saturday to Monday and from 12.30 – 13.30 hrs on Tuesday at the respective stations in the exhibition halls:

• Warm, Cold & Special (Regular & Vegetarian) lunches in Hall 2.2 (please follow according signage in the hall)
• On Tuesday, June 4, when the exhibition is closed, participants can pick up their lunches in the East Foyer of the A rooms or in front of Hall B

Please see the lunch menu for details.

A cash bar is also available in the exhibition area.

Official Networking Events

The ESHG Conference offers multiple networking events such as the Networking Mixer (welcome reception) and the ESHG Networking Evening. For more information please click here.

Sustainability

The ESHG Conference is committed to host an event that bears in mind the responsible use of resources, our environment and the use of sustainable conference materials. Hence, we would like to encourage all of our participants to keep these aspect in mind when attending the in-person meeting. For more information please click here.

Venue

Sustainable business is one of Messe Berlin’s strategic goals and as such is firmly established in Messe Berlin’s Code of Conduct (PDF, 1.3 MB)

“Responsible economic thinking and action, security, confidentiality and data protection, integrity, diversity and open communication as well as social responsibility and sustainability. Those are the values upon which our day-to-day business is based.”

Whether if affects projects that involve social responsibility or measures concerning environmental and climate protection, sustainability has played an important role at Messe Berlin for many years. By submitting a correlation statement regarding the German Sustainability Code for the first time for the fiscal year 2020 we also paved the way for a Sustainability Report. The German Sustainability Code (DNK) assists companies in establishing and building their sustainability strategy. You can find more information in our first publication, the 2020 Sustainability Report (PDF, 3.3 MB)

Catering

The catering at the conference follows the following criteria:

• Food and catering waste will be disposed of properly and in an environmentally sound manner.
• We do not use “open front coolers“.
• We do not use electric or gas heaters for in outdoor areas.
• We mainly use beverages from glass bottles or reusable PET bottles.
• In guest areas we mainly use reusable tableware, if not otherwise possible we resort to bio-degradable disposable tableware.
• We offer vegan or vegetarian alternatives.
• Catering employees are informed about the criteria of catering and youth protection regulations before the event.
• We will pass on the special features of the catering (regional products, seasonal or organic products, etc.) to the participants through the wording in the offer and the menu cards.

Materials

Bags
Since 2014 the ESHG Conference has aimed to provide congress bags that are made from durable materials, such as cotton. This is aimed at increasing the re-usability of the bags and decreasing the amount of waste created, and in the best case, making it biodegradable.

Pens
As previously mentioned, we are committed to using the recourses responsibly. For this reason, we have always seek for pens that are made of recycable/recycled materials with a long lifespan.

Printed Materials
In this area ESHG has been making hard efforts to reduce its printed materials over time, while ensuring to keep high standards for its conference participants. The ESHG stopped printing the abstract book 9 years ago. This 500+ pages publication totalised around 5 tons of ink and paper each year. Instead we implemented the online programme planner as well as the conference app, which we continue to improve over the years, and have been adopted by our participants. The convenience in using these tools as preparation ahead of the meeting is a quasi standard today, however the fringe benefits of reducing the number of produced items seems less obvious, but definitely contributes to the whole. Starting with ESHG 2019, we implemented an “self-printing” approach for registration materials. By using this procedure, we have been able to reduce the registration materials of each participant to a single sheet of paper. Moreover, all participants will receive their confirmation of attendance and CME certificate as pdf via the ESHG Portal. These initiatives will help us reduce more than 8000 printouts and other materials, having a significant impact in the amount of paper and ink used for the ESHG conference and in consequence largely reducing the CO2 footprint of the transport of all print work from Berlin to the conference location. Concerning printing of posters, the ESHG has been introducing e-Posters to its poster exhibition. Currently more than 700 posters are available only in an electronic version located in the exhibition hall next to the live stream and on the virtual conference platform. This has not only helped in reducing the amount of printed posters but provide a new experience in terms of interaction between the participants and abstracts being presented.

Hybrid Conference

For the third time the ESHG will be held as a hybrid conference. This means participants have the option to participate in-person or online via the ESHG virtual conference platform. By providing an online option, we aim at, not only connecting more geneticists worldwide, but at helping decrease the necessary travel carbon footprint participants create when assisting the in-person conference.

YOU!

Keep in mind that you as participant play an important role in the responsible use of the resources at the ESHG conferences. You can help us to do this by recycling your waste, using only the necessary amount of water and eating only those catering items that you know you will completely consume. Furthermore, you can contribute to reduce the amount of waste created by reusing your conference materials, such as conference bag and pen, as long as possible. Together with your efforts and ours we can continue to strive for a more environmentally friendly ESHG conference.

Venue

Messe Berlin, CityCube

Messedamm 26
14055 Berlin
Germany
https://www.messe-berlin.de

For more information about the venue please visit our Venue & Location page

Cloakroom and Luggage

A cloakroom and luggage storage are available in the registration area.

Opening hours:

• Saturday, June 1:   07:30-22:00
• Sunday, June 2:    08:00-20:30
• Monday, June 3:   08:00-19:30
• Tuesday, June 4:   08:30-17:00

WIFI

WiFi is available throughout the conference venue.

Staff

If you should have any questions, the congress staff (recognizable by a pink badge and lanyard) at the registration area will be pleased to help you.

Conference Policy

Language

The official language of the congress is English. No simultaneous translation will be provided.

Pictures

Please note that taking pictures during the sessions is allowed, unless indicated otherwise by the presenter or the poster author. Persons who will not observe this rule will be excluded from the session by the chairpersons.

Smoking Policy

The ESHG 2024 is officially a “No-smoking-Conference”. Note that smoking is banned in public buildings and private businesses – including restaurants, pubs, shops, public transport, entertainment venues and workplaces.

Social Media Guidelines

Please see our full policy here.
The ESHG supports the use of social media around the European Human Genetics Conference to network with your colleagues and friends attending the meeting. Please do however respect the ESHG social media guidelines.
The views and opinions posted on ESHG’s social media do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of the ESHG, its Board or membership. The ESHG reserves the right to remove comments it deems to be inappropriate.

Berlin– General Information

Location

Berlin is situated in Germany (Central Europe).

Official language

The official language is German.

Currency and exchange

EUROS – EUR, €
Foreign currency and travellers cheques can be exchanged at banks, post offices, travel agents, bureau de change kiosks and some hotels throughout the city.
Credit cards are widely accepted in Berlin and Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) or cash machines can be found throughout the city.

Banks

Most banks in Berlin are open from Monday to Friday from 9.00 am to 4.00 pm, shorter hours on a Saturday and closed on Sundays and public holidays.

Climate

Berlin is one of the warmest regions in Germany with an average temperature of 15 degrees.

Check the weather forecast before you travel.

Tipping

There are no hard and fast rules for tipping in Germany. If you are happy with the service, a 5-10% tip is customary.

Telephone codes

The telephone prefix for calling Berlin from other countries is: + 49 30

GSM Cell Phone Roaming

Roaming charges within the European Union have officially been abolished. For more information please contact your phone provider.

Shopping

Shops in the city centre are generally open Monday-Friday until at least 6.00 pm  and from 10.00 am – 6.00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

Shopping is available on Sundays and bank holidays at the large railway stations, at the airport and in the museum shops.

Safety

Berlin is like any other big city: it has safe areas and less safe areas, and the basic common sense rules apply.
The centre of Berlin is very safe and you should not encounter any problems. All of the city centre and tourist areas are well policed.
Experience has shown that some basic precautionary measures should always be kept in mind in any city:
– Do not carry important items like flight tickets, passports etc. with you when visiting the conference or strolling through the city, leave them in the hotel safe during your stay. Rather carry a Xerox copy of your passport or an identity card with you.
– Try not to carry all documents, money, credit cards and other essential items and valuables in one bag or purse. If it is lost or stolen, everything will be gone and might be difficult to replace on short notice, especially passports and visa to return to your country of residence.
– Take off your name badge when leaving the conference centre.
– In heavily frequented tourist zones and the metro at rush hour, be aware of attemps of scam and pickpocketing.
– Do not respond to anybody unknown to you who comes up to you on the street engaging you in a conversation, no matter how safe they appear to be

Smoking

Smoking is banned in all public places including all enclosed or partly-enclosed public areas.

Electricity & conversions

The typical mains voltage for households (as well as hotels) in Berlin is 230 volts (alternating current).

Time zone

Berlin is in the Central European time zone (CET = GMT / UCT + 1). Daylight saving time applies from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October (CEST).

VAT

All purchases in Germany are subject to VAT, which increases the cost of an item by 19%. This is already included in the price shown in shops.

Emergency services

In case of an emergency police, ambulance and fire service can be contacted by telephoning

Fire service: 112
Police: 110
Ambulance / rescue: 112
Emergency doctor: 112
European emergency: 112
Berlins Med doctor’s hotline (0-24): +49-30-11 6 11 7
Evening and weekend dental service (taped service): +49-30-89 004 333

Click here for Berlins directory for doctors on call duty.

Pharmacies

Pharmacies are open from Monday to Friday from 8.00 am – 6.00 pm, usually without a lunch break, and on Saturday from 8.00 am – 12.00 noon. Outside of these times, a 24-hour pharmacy standby service is available throughout the city. Visit the following page to find the open pharmacy in your district: https://www.akberlin.de/notdienst.html

Getting around Berlin

See you in Berlin!