Birmingham secures major international science conference
Birmingham has won the bid to host the annual international conference for experts in the field of vertebrate palaeontology.
The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology’s 85th Annual Meeting will bring together 1,200 scientists, students, artists, writers and scholars from across the world at the ICC Birmingham from 12-15 November, with University of Birmingham palaeontologists acting as the local hosts.
The conference will be made up of symposiums, technical sessions, presentations, exhibitions and films on the history and evolution of vertebrate animals and the discovery, conversation and protection of vertebrate fossils and fossil sites.
Birmingham will become just the second UK city and third European destination to welcome the event in its 85-year history, which has traditionally taken place in North America, with Toronto, Canada (2022), Cincinnati, USA (2023) and Minneapolis, USA (2024) the most recent hosts.
The event is expected to be worth more than £1.5 million for the West Midlands’ economy.
It was secured by the Birmingham and West Midlands Convention Bureau – part of the West Midlands Growth Company – and The ICC, Birmingham – part of the NEC Group – working with VisitBritain, MCI USA and University of Birmingham.
Steve Knight, senior business tourism manager at the West Midlands Growth Company, said: “It is a great start to 2025 for the West Midlands’ business events community to be able to announce another major international conference in our calendar.
“We look forward to welcoming 1,200 palaeontologists from around the globe to our region in November and hope attendees enjoy both the ICC Birmingham’s fantastic facilities, as well as our popular cultural and culinary offer during any downtime.
“Winning this event is a result of the Birmingham and West Midlands Convention Bureau’s presence at IMEX America in 2023, so we thank VisitBritain for their continued support as we spread the word about our region to event organisers worldwide.”
Andy Gibb, managing director of Conventions at the NEC Group, said: “We’re thrilled to be hosting the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Annual Meeting at the ICC.
“It's a great win for Birmingham and we look forward to welcoming all of the delegates to our venue and the city this November.”
Marcia White, senior manager of Strategic Events, Meetings & Incentives at MCI USA, said: “The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology is thrilled to announce that its Annual Meeting will come to Birmingham in 2025.
“The largest gathering of palaeontology from around the world will descend on the West Midlands in November 2025 with activities at the University of Birmingham, the International Convention Centre, and the surrounding English countryside.
“From dinosaurs to ice-age mammals and everything before and after, we look forward to bringing the palaeontological world to Birmingham in 2025.”
The West Midlands boasts a £10.3bn full-service life sciences economy. The region has 87,000 STEM students graduating each year from its world-class universities.
It also provides investors with a dynamic alternative to the UK’s traditional life sciences “golden triangle” of Oxford, Cambridge and London.
Pictured: Roary at Lapworth Museum of Geology, University of Birmingham
