4th Environmental Dialogue: Microbiome and Environment: How Humans Depend on ‘Their’ Bacteria

The human body consists of more bacterial cells than human cells.
Almost every day, researchers discover new connections between the human microbiome, i.e. the whole of the microbes of our body, and our health. Whether we are born by Caesarean section or in a natural way, the microbes we put into our mouths as children, how we eat, whether we have pets and which countries we travel: all this affects our microbiome with sometimes dramatic consequences for our health. But how does the loss of microbial diversity in our immediate environment, for example through excessive hygiene, modern animal husbandry and urbanisation, affect the composition of our microbiome and our health? Which effect do drugs such as antibiotics have on our body’s microbe balance? Can we improve our microbiome in a targeted way? And can we as human beings continue to perceive ourselves as individuals or are we rather a consortium of different living beings?

Welcome

• Christian Köberl, Director General Natural History Museum Vienna and professor at the University of Vienna
• Heinz W. Engl, Rector of the University of Vienna
• Thilo Hofmann, Director of the Environmental Sciences Research Network at the University of Vienna

Keynote: New Perspectives in Microbiome Research

• Jillian Petersen, symbiosis researcher and assistant professor at the University of Vienna

Panel Discussion

• David Berry, microbiome researcher and professor at the University of Vienna
• Jillian Petersen, symbiosis researcher and assistant professor at the University of Vienna
• Lucie Strecker, researcher at the Art & Science Department of the University of Applied Arts Vienna
• Martin Wagner, food microbiologist, professor at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
• Moderator: Marlene Nowotny, science editor Ö1 radio