Record year for international science conferences

2024 was an all-time record year for science conferences in the city. Jyväskylä hosted the 5th largest number of congresses in Finland, with 60 in total and 5917 participants. These figures include both on-site and virtual congress attendees.

According to a nationwide survey organised by the Finland Convention Bureau, the average conference delegate leaves Jyväskylä with €1276. When online delegates are deducted from the total number of delegates, the estimated congress revenue is €5.2 million.

- Thanks for this fantastic result are due to the conference organisers. It is particularly gratifying that in Jyväskylä the conferences were mainly held on-site, with only a few hybrid and online. This is good news for local accommodation, catering and social programme providers, says Jaana Ruponen, Marketing Manager of the Jyväskylä Convention Bureau.

In the survey, Jyväskylä was rated 4.4 (on a scale of 1-5) as a conference city. When asked about the highlights, one response summed up many of the things that came out of the survey.

"I got to network with researchers in my field and visit Finland for the first time. I enjoyed the food, Finnish culture, seeing a beautiful country and interacting with many wonderful Finnish people."

Almost all the conferences were organised by the University of Jyväskylä and the aim of the gathering was to share scientific research knowledge and strengthen international scientific networks.

Jyväskylä Convention Bureau (JCB) helps international meeting and conference organisers to bring events in their field to Jyväskylä. It is based on a network of 22 public communities and companies. The network is managed by the City of Jyväskylä. The statistics were compiled by the Jyväskylä Convention Bureau and the University of Jyväskylä.