Since its inception in 2012, BMIC firmly believes that “exploring the small details of life starts with bringing people together”. With different types of events, we aim to unite all Belgian molecular imaging labs and all other collaborating and/or interested groups. These events not only strengthen our local networks but also facilitate the entry of young scientists in the molecular imaging community by providing a first opportunity for scientific presentations. In addition, we always allocate sufficient time for social interaction and scientific discussion.
Below, we give you a glimpse of the type of activities BMIC has previously organised. 
BMIC Congress
BMIC Congresses are the biyearly scientific meetings where young scientists get the chance to present their science. In addition, it is the ideal occasion to meet fellow Belgian Molecular Imaging Scientists and build local networks. In 2012 the first BMIC congress was organized with the idea to gather all Belgian molecular imaging labs and collaborating and/or interested groups. Based on the huge success, we organised next editions in 2015, 2017 and 2019. In 2022, we embarked on a joint organisation with our yESMI neighbours from The Netherlands for a joint BMIC-DyMIC conference.
Scientific Speed-Dating
Networking is an essential aspect of a scientific career, but young scientist can often use a bit of help in getting introduced to new contacts. Therefore, we introduced the concept of scientific speed dating: all subscribed attendees are matched to people from other labs, with different expertise and background. The 5-minute window is easily filled with lively discussions about science and future plans, and helps to establish an active network in the field.
Since it was a great success in Belgium, the concept was introduced at EMIM 2015. Since then, it took place at the start of every EMIM with with more than 150 subscriptions from all over the world!
Academia meets Industry
In 2016, we kicked-off our first focused meeting in the concept of “Academia Meets Industry”, in collaboration with Janssen Pharmaceutica. The goal of these meetings is to foster collaborations and show early-career scientists that research is not limited to academia but also impacts drug development and patient care. In 2018, we joined forces with UCB with a focussed session on “Imaging hallmarks of disease progression and treatment response”. The recent edition of the “BMIC meets Industry” series took place in December 2024 at the SCK CEN and was a huge success.
pre-EMIM Meetings
Since 2018, we organise a yearly pre-EMIM meeting, where young scientists can receive valuable input on the oral or poster presentations they aim to present at the EMIM meeting. By learning from peers and (external) experts, the Belgian scientists are optimally prepared to share their work at an international level.
BMIC ACTIVITIES
