Welcome

Welcome to the website of the 8th Congress of the Hellenic Ecological Society (HELECOS-8)

This congress is the 8th in the series organized by the Hellenic Ecological Society. It will be held 20-23 October 2016, at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, in the KEDEA building (Research Results Dissemination Center). It is part of the celebrations for the 90 years of Aristotle University.

Its theme is "150+ years of Ecology: structures, dynamics and survival strategies". This is because we are celebrating the 150th anniversary of Ecology΄; it was only in 1866 that the term was coined by Ernst Haeckel, who also laid out the scope for the new scientific discipline.

The term may have existed for only 150 years, but this is not so for the ecological research. This goes far back in time. And here, in Greece, we have the privilege of speaking a language that is a natural continuation of the one in which scientific thought was first expressed as a method of approaching and interpreting nature and the whole world. And here, in Thessaloniki, we are only a few steps away from Stageira, birthplace of Aristotle, the founder of scientific reasoning and research. As 2016 also marks 2400 years since his birth, UNESCO proclaimed it ‘the Aristotle Anniversary Year’. This is why we have added suggestively the plus symbol (+) in the congress theme.

The rest of the title condenses in a few words what we aim at as researchers in the field of Ecology. This allows us to understand the world, particularly that part on which our science focuses: the biosphere. We try to understand the ecological structures and the invisible bonds that connect them as well as their spatiotemporal changes and finally to comprehend the meaning of a successful survival strategy. When we succeed, we can use the results of our research for the good of humanity and the planet. This is what makes our science so valuable to society.

Recent research efforts of this type will be presented in the congress, mainly by Greek researchers. But, there will also be foreign participants, among them invited speakers of high eminence bringing valuable knowledge and experience from the international scientific environment.

So, it’s a triple anniversary! It would be great if you could join us in this congress. We dare say that you will not regret it.