V Global Summit
Science, Nature and Health
Practical Application of Scientific Evidence
V Global Summit of Science, Nature & Health
The first in-person edition of the Global Summit. Three days connecting evidence, practice, and lived experience in Europe’s nature-based health capital.
- March 9–11, 2027
- DIBA Llacuna Building, Barcelona
- In person and online livestream
- In English, Spanish, and Catalan
- General: 150 €
- Students: 75 €
- Online: free
Why this edition
A field coming of age, in person
For four editions, the Global Summit convened the international nature-and-health network online.
Now also in person and co-organized by the Diputació de Barcelona with Forest Therapy Hub, the V Global Summit of Science, Nature & Health consolidates Barcelona as a reference point for nature-based health.
The event keeps its open and universal access, so every plenary, keynote and symposium is also streamed online worldwide.
editions
keynote speakers
Program
Three pillars, one per day
The program is built around 3 thematic pillars, one per day: science, practice, and integration. Each moves the conversation a step further: from what the evidence shows to how it is delivered to what it feels like on the ground.
- DAY 1 · TUE, MARCH 9
SCIENCE
The evidence base for nature, ecosystems, and human health
The current state of evidence on how forests, urban green spaces, and ecosystems shape human health, with an emphasis on environmental epidemiology, environmental psychology, and equity.
Opening plenary, two symposia, keynote conversations, and emerging-research lightning talks.
- DAY 2 · WED, MARCH 10
PRACTICE
Translating science into clinical, community, and policy action
What works, who delivers it, how it scales, and how quality is assured. Nature prescription from evidence to clinical practice.
Parallel Nature-based Health and Well-being practitioner workshops, a showcase of community models, and a hands-on Policy Lab.
- DAY 3 · THU, MARCH 11
INTEGRATION
Barcelona's living landscapes and nature-based assets
Participants can choose between parallel field experiences: therapeutic forest immersions in a natural park, a blue health and well-being experience on the Mediterranean shore, a tour of the superblocks urban projects, or a visit to the ISGlobal Barcelona Research Center.
Everyone will then reconvene to sign the Barcelona 2027 Manifesto collectively.
Convened, supported, and endorsed
Organizers and Partners
The V Global Summit of Science, Nature & Health is led by two co-organizing institutions and supported by public-sector and professional partners.
ORGANIZERS
Diputació de Barcelona
The Diputació de Barcelona, or DIBA (Barcelona Provincial Council), is a local government institution driving regional development, environmental sustainability, and public services across more than 300 municipalities. It manages one of the largest networks of natural parks in southern Europe and carries a long-standing agenda linking nature, health, and well-being. Its involvement anchors the summit within the Catalan public sector and connects it to a working landscape of protected Mediterranean ecosystems and municipal health partnerships.
Read more
Forest Therapy Hub
FTHub is the operational backbone of the summit. A nature-based health and education organization working across more than 80 countries, FTHub trains and certifies practitioners, leads internationally funded research, and sustains a global network of nature-based health professionals. It brings the international reach and the delivery capacity that give the summit its scale and its practitioner community.
Read morePARTNER ORGANIZATIONS
ISGlobal
The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) is a leading European research and translation center dedicated to reducing health disparities between and within regions of the world. Its research portfolio includes a broad environmental epidemiology and urban health program, with particular expertise in the health effects of air pollution, urban green spaces, and climate change.
Read more
Planetary Health Alliance European Hub
A regional hub of the Planetary Health Alliance dedicated to creating a European network where Planetary Health is integrated into all aspects of society, from research and education to policymaking and everyday living.
The summit Organizing Committee brings together the scientific, institutional, and operational expertise of all lead entities, alongside international scientific members.
WHO WE ARE
Congress Organizing Committee & Keynote Speakers
The V Global Summit of Science, Nature & Health brings together leading voices in environmental psychology, planetary health, nature-based interventions and nature prescription, from Barcelona, Europe, and beyond.
The Organizing Committee leads program curation and the peer review of abstracts, endorses the Barcelona 2027 Manifesto and the Policy Lab briefing notes, and co-edits the post-summit publication.
CONGRESS LIAISON COMMITTEE
Carlos García Oquillas
Coordinator of the Natural Spaces and Green Infrastructure Area, Diputació de Barcelona (Barcelona Provincial Council)
Spain
Josep Pena Sant
Coordinator of the Commerce, Consumer Affairs and Public Health Area, Diputació de Barcelona (Barcelona Provincial Council)
Spain
Xavier Roget Padrosa
Tourism and Culture Advisor for the Network of Natural Parks, Diputació de Barcelona (Barcelona Provincial Council)
Spain
Alex Gesse
FTHub Executive Director
Spain
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE & KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Josep Maria Antó
PhD. Research Professor, ISGlobal; Emeritus Professor of Medicine, Pompeu Fabra University; co-chair of The Lancet Countdown Europe
Spain
Mark Nieuwenhuijsen
PhD. Director of the Urban Planning, Environment and Health Initiative, ISGlobal
Spain
Liz O’Brien
BSc, PhD. Principal Social Scientist, Society and Environment Research Group (SERG), Forest Research
United Kingdom
Terry Hartig
PhD, MPH. Professor of Environmental Psychology, Institute for Housing and Urban Research and the Clinical Psychology Division of the Department of Psychology, Uppsala University
Sweden
Gregory N. Bratman
Associate Professor, Doug Walker Endowed Professor, School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, University of Washington
USA
Matilda van den Bosch
PhD. Senior Researcher, ISGlobal; Adjunct Professor, University of British Columbia
Canada
Jill Litt
PhD. Professor of Environmental Health, Environmental Studies Program, University of Colorado at Boulder; Senior Researcher, ISGlobal
USA
Melissa Lem
Clinical Assistant Professor, University of British Columbia; Co-founder of PaRx Canada
Canada
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Nevin Harper
PhD. Nature-based Therapist. Professor, University of Victoria
Canada
Kirsten McEwan
PhD. Associate Professor of Health and Well-being, University of Derby
United Kingdom
Wei-Yin Chang
PhD. Associate Professor and Master's Supervisor, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University
China
Zhiling Wang
PhD. Associate Professor, College of Forestry, Shanxi Agricultural University
China
PRACTITIONER WORKSHOPS FACILITATORS
Manuela Renzi
Training and Capacity Building Director, FTHub
Italy
Erika DiPasquale
Hub Seedlings Director, FTHub
USA
Betty Fang
Capacity Building & Content Manager, FTHub
China
Inga Dreimane
Project Manager, FTHub
Latvia
Beyond the Sessions
Networking designed for real-world impact
The summit’s networking layer is built for outcomes, not informal mingling. Each working format produces a concrete deliverable, published by the co-organizers in the weeks after the event.
Project Clinic
Designed to turn the summit’s concentration of researchers and practitioners into new international consortia. The session helps participants identify funding opportunities, find partners with complementary expertise, and leave with concrete collaborations rather than business cards.
Output: a closed Consortia in Formation list circulated to participants two weeks after the summit.
Policy Lab
Designed to convert the summit’s evidence and expertise into actionable policies. Working directly with named policymakers, participants shape recommendations that can move through real decision-making channels, from European institutions to local government.
Output: four one-page policy briefing notes published as an annex to the Barcelona 2027 Manifesto.
Mediterranean
Dinners
Designed to build the trusted relationships that formal sessions rarely allow. Over themed dinners in small groups of 15–20 people, participants move beyond introductions into substantive conversation with peers working on the same challenges. The kind of exchange that turns a shared table into a lasting professional connection.
Hosted at neighborhood restaurants across the Born and Poblenou districts, on the evenings of days 1 and 2.
These experiences are reserved for in-person summit participants.
The networking layer formats are exclusively available as in-person summit experiences. They take place on-site, where the deliverables are drafted, and the connections are built.
CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
Present your work in the V Global Summit
An open call for abstracts is the main route for emerging voices to join the program alongside invited speakers. The call is run by the summit’s Organizing Committee, with peer review based on scientific rigor, originality, thematic fit, and transferability to other contexts. Four awards are presented during the Closing Plenary on Day 3, including Best Lightning Talk by audience vote.
Key dates
Call opens: September 2026
Submission deadline: October 31, 2026
Notification: November 30, 2026
Camera-ready files: mid-December 2026
Read the full call and submit your abstract
6 categories
Scientific papers, research projects, pilot studies, nature-based interventions, community programs, policy initiatives.
3 formats
Lightning talks, poster gallery, showcase contributions.
Three days at the DIBA Llacuna Building and beyond
The venue
The V Global Summit of Science, Nature & Health takes place across several configurable spaces of the DIBA Llacuna Building, its most modern site located in Barcelona’s 22@ district, within walking distance of the sea.
Address: Carrer Badajoz, 49-51, 08005 Barcelona
Metro: L4 (Yellow Line) Llacuna station
The Sea Hall, the main auditorium, hosts plenary sessions and keynote presentations. The Cliff Room serves as a live-streamed overflow and a space for parallel content. The Pine, Sea Breeze, and Stream rooms on the first floor host practitioner workshops, breakout groups, and funding tables. The outdoor Sea Terrace is the setting for welcome coffee, lunch, networking, and poster browsing, weather permitting.
Three days at the DIBA Llacuna Building and beyond
The landscape
On the third day, the summit extends into the wider Barcelona region, with optional parallel field activities: a therapeutic forest immersion in the Montnegre i el Corredor Natural Park, a blue health and well-being experience on Barcelona’s Mediterranean shore, a tour of the superblocks (“superilles”) urban transformation projects, or a visit to the ISGlobal Barcelona Research Center.
REGISTER & HOW TO WATCH
Join us in Barcelona, in person or online
Registration includes the full in-person format: three-day program, the poster gallery, the daytime networking formats, field activities, the closing plenary, and the signing of the Barcelona 2027 Manifesto. Basic snacks and drinks are also provided during sessions.
All sessions run in English, Catalan and Spanish, with simultaneous translation available for institutional sessions.
Online
In-Person
Early bird: until October 31
General
Student *
FREE
Regular price: 200 €
Regular price: 100 €
* After registration, to qualify for the student reduced fee, we may ask you to provide official proof of current enrollment in an undergraduate, postgraduate, master’s, or doctoral program.
How to watch online
Online attendance is free. Participants can follow all plenary, keynote, and symposium sessions via livestream. Official summit livestream links will be announced and posted here before the summit. Just save the dates and join us online, or register to attend in person in Barcelona.
Get in touch
If you have any questions regarding the summit, you can get in touch with us through the form below or send us an email here.
