Dioscuri is a programme initiated by the Max Planck Society (MPG) to support the development of centres of scientific excellence in Central and Eastern Europe by promoting outstanding researchers wishing to carry out their research in this region. Adopting a bottom-up and sustainable approach, the programme aims to establish future-oriented research fields and foster international standards of scientific quality. Dioscuri contributes to strengthening the European Research Area as a whole and lays the groundwork for long-term economic and social prosperity in Europe.
The first seven years of the programme's implementation have already brought measurable results, including the production of world-class future-oriented scientific research, support for early-career researchers, career development, recruitment of international and internationally competitive teams, the building of scientific excellence and expertise, and the establishment of new collaborations at scientific, managerial, and personal levels.
The first transnational Dioscuri Symposium will be held on 3-4 November 2025 in Kraków, at the headquarters of the National Science Centre, Poland (NCN), and will serve as a platform to showcase the outcomes of these seven successful years.
The event, focusing on science communication, will highlight the scientific achievements of Dioscuri Centres in Poland and the Czech Republic, and promote the exchange of best practices among the participating institutions.
The Dioscuri Symposium is also intended as a platform for knowledge exchange, offering a wide range of seminars for researchers at all career stages, as well as for research managers and policymakers.
The event will bring together research teams from all 11 Dioscuri Centres, German partners of the respective Centres, Chairs of the Scientific Advisory Boards, Administrative Coordinators, members of the Dioscuri Committee, and representatives of the Max Planck Society, the National Science Centre Poland, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic, as well as representatives of diplomatic missions.
Key-note speech
Prof. Christian Doeller “Communicating Science”
Christian Doeller studied psychology at the Universities of Würzburg, Berlin (Humboldt), and Bonn, as well as computer science in Bonn. In 2005, he completed his PhD in psychology about studies on the neuroscientific foundations of learning at Saarland University in Saarbrücken. From 2004 to 2010, he worked as a Research Fellow at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology/Institute of Neurology at University College London (from 2006 as Senior Research Fellow). In 2010, he was appointed Associate Professor and Principal Investigator at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour at Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Since 2016, he has been a Professor of Medicine (Neuroscience) at the Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience at NTNU in Trondheim, Norway, and has directed the Braathen-Kavli Centre there from 2017 to 2018. Since 2018, he has been the Director of the Department of Psychology at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig. In 2019, he was appointed as Professor of Psychology at Leipzig University. Since 2023 he is Honorary Professor for Cognitive Neuroscience at TU Dresden and Vice President of the Max Planck Society. With his research team, Doeller aims to answer fundamental questions in cognitive neuroscience: What are the key coding principles of the brain enabling human thinking?
Abstract TBA
Program
3rd November 2025 | Day 1 |
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10:00 – 12:00 |
Guided Tour Kraków (optional) |
| 12:00 – 13:00 | Registration & Light Lunch |
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13:00 –13:15 |
Welcome Addresses
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13:15 –16:30 |
Dioscuri Centres of Scientific Excellence: Impact and Achievements
14:15 – 14:45 Break
Discussion |
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16:30 – 17:00 |
Break |
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17:00 – 17:45 |
Keynote: Communicating Science
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17:45 –19:00 |
Panel Discussion: Dioscuri’s Future
Moderated by: Marta Miączyńska, Head of the The International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology in Warsaw (IIMCB) |
| 19:00 – 21:00 |
Dinner Reception & Networking |
4th November 2025 | Day 2 |
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| 08:00 – 09:00 | Dioscuri Committee Meeting (closed) |
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09:00 – 10:30 |
Dioscuri Centres of Scientific Excellence: Achievements of Early Career Researchers
Break
Discussion |
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10:30 – 10:45 |
Closing Remarks |
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10:45 –11:00 |
Break |
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11:00 –15:30 |
Parallel Sessions (closed)
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| 12:30 – 13:00 | Lunch |
| 15:30 – 16:00 |
Break |
| 16:00 – 17:30 |
Management Networking (closed) |
Registration
Practical information
Photo Gallery
