International Ragweed Society

1. Number and Value of the Grants

The International Ragweed Society (IRS) will award three Young Researcher Travel Grants to support participation in the 13th International Conference on Aerobiology (ICA 2026).

Each grant will include:

• payment of the ICA 2026 conference registration fee directly to the conference organisers;
• EUR 700 as a contribution towards travel and accommodation expenses.

 

2. Eligibility Criteria

Applicants must:

• be current members of the International Ragweed Society (IRS) at the time of application;
• have submitted an abstract on a ragweed-related topic to ICA 2026;
• be an early-career researcher, including:
  • PhD candidate;
  • postdoctoral researcher;
  • research fellow;
  • or another non-tenured researcher.

 

3. Application Procedure

Application deadline: 1 September 2026

Applications should be submitted by email to the IRS Secretary:

Prof. Arnaud Monty

arnaud.monty@uliege.be

The application should include:

• completed application form;
• submitted conference abstract;
• short CV (Europass or similar format).

 

4. Selection Criteria

Applications will be evaluated based on:

• scientific quality and relevance of the submitted abstract;
• applicant’s career stage;
• expected benefit of conference participation for the applicant’s scientific career;
• demonstrated need for financial support.

Priority will be given to applicants with limited access to alternative travel funding. Where applications are of comparable scientific quality, geographical diversity and gender balance may also be taken into consideration.

 

5. Conditions of the Award

The IRS will:

• pay the ICA 2026 registration fee directly to the conference organisers;
• transfer EUR 700 towards travel expenses to the successful applicants after the conference, upon confirmation of attendance and presentation.

Grant recipients will be required to acknowledge the support of the International Ragweed Society in their conference presentation.

The Selection Committee reserves the right not to make all three awards if the submitted applications do not meet the required scientific standard.

The International Ragweed Society (IRS) organized a highly successful Ragweed Section at the 8th International Plant Science and Technology Congress (IPSAT) on November 18, 2025. The congress was held by Ankara University, Turkey. We are deeply grateful to the congress organizers, Prof. Nur Münevver Pınar and Prof. Aydan Acar Şahin, for their excellent coordination and support in making this session possible.

The Ragweed session brought together leading researchers from across the world to share their latest findings on ragweed research. We had a great lineup of speakers who shared their latest work on ragweed and its impacts.

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Prof. Victoria Rodinkova, IRS President

Among plants that release allergenic pollen, ragweed has rapidly claimed the lead position in Ukraine in recent years. So rapidly that now virtually everyone knows this word. The plant has spread to all regions of the country, and in the south and east, its flowering period feels like a natural disaster. So why does ragweed cause allergies so actively? And, most importantly, why is this plant so invincible?

To answer these questions, we need to understand what ragweed is and how it distributed all over the World.

Origin and Distribution

The American continent is ragweed’s native habitat. It entered Europe starting in the nineteenth century and especially during World War I, probably by accident through imported seeds and contaminated horse feed, and has spread rapidly since the 1950s. In Europe, common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) is primarily widespread, which happens to be the most allergenic among all ragweed species. There are about 30 species in total.

Currently, the species is widespread in southern parts of Eastern and Central Europe, with invasion hotspots in the Pannonian plains of Hungary, Croatia, Slovakia, Romania and Austria. Ragweed is found in Serbia, Italy, Ukraine and Russia. After the 1980s, Ambrosia spread increased rapidly and became a serious threat to human health in the infested countries. Hungary, Northern Italy, and the Rhône Valley in France are considered the most infested European regions, and intense research activities have been dedicated to this topic. The main factors favoring Ambrosia spread are considered to be inappropriate changes in agricultural practices, urbanization, and the international trade of seeds and grains.

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Below is a recording of the latest issue of “Let’s talk about ambrosia” about the presence of Ophraella communa in France.

The IRS Committee is pleased to invite everyone interested in Ambrosia research and management to join our upcoming “Let’s Talk About Ambrosia” online conference! The session will be presented by Zoé Rousset, a PhD researcher at INRAe, who will discuss the spread of Ophraella communa in France since its detection in October 2023. This insect, a natural predator of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), is currently under monitoring to better understand its expansion and potential impact.

The event will feature a 15-minute presentation followed by a 15-minute Q&A session and is scheduled for February 19 at 9:00 AM CET.
For those who are unable to attend, the conference will be recorded and made available afterward.

Join the conference via Microsoft Teams using the following link:

Teams link

Please feel free to share this invitation with your colleagues and networks.
We look forward to your participation!