1- We have presented the film “The Universe in a Drop of Seawater”, a 20-minute documentary produced by Warholm Film. The film features interviews with the two Principal Investigators of ConFect, Selina Våge and Ruth-Anne Sandaa, as well as former PhD candidate Marius Langvad from the VirVar project (affiliated with ConFect).
The premiere took place on September 18 during the Research Days in Bergen 2025 and was also part of the celebration of the University Museum of Bergen’s 200th anniversary. In connection with the documentary, shorter films for social media have also been produced. These have already been released and will continue to be shared across different platforms.
2. Summer research school in marine viral ecology and evolution
In early August (4-15 August 2005) , we hosted a summer school for PhD students at the Marine Biological Station at Espegrend, sponsored by the Intpart project ConFect. Twelve students from 6-7 different countries took part. During the course, they learned both classical and novel techniques for studying virus–host relationships.
The program focused on host–virus systems where the hosts represent key primary producers in the oceans. Students explored how changes in temperature affect these systems. The course was led by local researchers Marius Langvad, Jesselyn Tjendra, Kyle Mayers (Norce), Hilde Stabell, Elzbieta Petelenz, and Ruth-Anne Sandaa (PI), together with six professors from Japan, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and Israel, who shared their expertise in different virus–host models and methodologies. We also received excellent support from Rannveig Myklebust in logistics and administration.
Feedback from the participants indicates that the summer school was a great success, with enthusiastic students and professors who gained new insights while also enjoying the social aspect of scientific exchange. For us at BIO, it was not only a valuable chance to showcase and share our exciting work in marine viral ecology here at BIO but also an opportunity to strengthen research collaborations.
CONFECT is an initiative to enhance research in viral ecology and evolution at UiB embodied by two ongoing research projects, and to provide state-of-the art platforms for education and dissemination in this topical field. Project members across five different countries (USA, Canada, Japan, Taiwan (ROC) and Norway) will actively contribute to workshops, a symposium and research stays abroad, which will strengthen ongoing research, and newly developed online courses as well as hands-on summer schools will create an efficient and interactive learning environment for students.
The leader group has long-standing experience in traditional viral ecology and theoretical microbial ecology and has been co-founding the field in marine environments. By enhancing collaboration with five international partners, CONFECT complements this expertise with skills in modern sequencing techniques, bioinformatics and numerical simulations. The resulting team is extremely capable, with members being all interested in the same questions about regulation and drivers in microbial virus-host interactions. Knowledge promoted through CONFECT will give a basis for better understanding infectious disease as well as environmental questions of how biodiversity and consequently cycling of energy and matter may change in a changing environment.
Notably, all members in CONFECT are also experienced teachers. Together with pedagogical resources made available through a center of excellence in education at UiB (BioCeed), this will ensure optimal obtension of scientific knowledge and methods for students taking part in CONFECT. Finally, dissemination and outreach of this field is our final objective, which we seek through open-access peer-reviewed scientific journals, popular science articles and interactive games with the public.
