ISGA 2026

The 17th Congress of the International Society for the Study of Human Growth and Clinical Auxology (ISGA) was held June 22-24, 2026, at the Burleigh Court Conference Centre and Hotel, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK.

Conference attendees have received an email from the SSHB secretary containing a code for access to congress resources. 

Conference Overview

The objective of this proposed conference is to present recent advances in population and clinical research on human growth and development. This will be the 17th congress of the International Society for the Study of Growth and Clinical Auxology (ISGA) and the second to be held in conjunction with the Society for the Study of Human Biology (SSHB).  Building on the 2024 meeting, the conference will bring together a diverse group of researchers and clinicians to maximize the synergy of interdisciplinary collaboration.  Human biologists, pediatricians, endocrinologists, epidemiologists, biostatisticians, geneticists, bioanthropologists, and others will contribute updates from their fields and engage in cross-disciplinary discussions to advance research and clinical understanding.  Topics linking the exposome and genome to human growth and development from conception onward will include climate change, environmental toxicants, social determinants of health, bone health, nutrition, obesity, body composition, microbiome, epigenetics, and sensitive windows of effect during the growth span that have later health consequences.

Scientific Programme: This conference will explore how interactions between the exposome and the genome shape human growth, maturation, development, and health across the life course. Two days of focused sessions will be structured around five main themes:

  1. The exposome: Biocultural Interactions and Human Health

  2. Genomics, nutrition, and growth: translating insights into practice

  3. Child growth, maturation, and later-life outcomes

  4. Environmental disruptions and disasters: Human growth and health

  5. Evolutionary approaches to human growth 

Committed Speakers include: Linda Adair (University of North Carolina); Tim Cole (UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, UK); Nicola Hawley Yale University, US); Will Johnson (Loughborough University, UK), Pétur B. Juliusson (National Institute of Public Health, Norway); Michelle Lampl, MD, PhD (Emory University); Jelena Sarac (Institute for Anthropological Research, Croatia); Amanda Thompson (University of North Carolina, US); Samuel Urlacher (Baylor University, USA); Paula van Dommelen (The Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), the Netherlands); and Babette Zemel (Children's Hospital of Pennsylvania, US).

Abstract Submission: The abstract submission portal is closed.

Membership Information

ISGA membership inquiries can be made through this site: https://www.auxology.org/membership

Early Career Researchers and Students: The conference places strong emphasis on mentoring and active engagement with early-career researchers and students, recognising their central role in the future of human biology and growth research.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: The conference is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and actively encourages geographical and disciplinary diversity, as well as participation from researchers and students working in underrepresented contexts.