PROGRAM

NanoFront Winter Retreat 2019

Date:

Time:

full week

Location:

Courchevel, France

 

All PhD students, postdocs and members of the scientific staff working in the NanoFront program and NanoFront related research at the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience Delft and the Leiden Institute of Physics are kindly invited to join us for the third edition of the NanoFront Winter Retreat!

In the week of March 18 to March 22, 2019, we will stay in Courchevel in the French Alps, for a five day conference program full of exciting interactive lectures on nanoscience and fun social activities.

The NanoFront Winter Retreat offers an excellent opportunity to meet your fellow NanoFront researchers. During the scientific sessions in the mornings and evenings, you will learn more about their recent findings. In the afternoons, all participants are free to go skiing (at their own expenses).

Travel and stay
We will depart by coach from Leiden and Delft in the early morning of Monday March 18. We will arrive in Courchevel after dinner time. During the five days, we will stay in this Mercure hotel in Courchevel. PhD students and postdocs will have to share a hotel room (max. 4 persons per room), for senior researchers we will book private rooms. There is free Wi-Fi access throughout the hotel. 

The return trip is planned for Friday March 22, after dinner. In the early morning of Saturday March 23 we will be back again in the Netherlands.

Program
From Tuesday through Friday, we will organize scientific sessions in the mornings and early evenings. The program includes contributions from our group members, ranging from experienced PIs to PhD students who just started their research. We expect everyone to actively participate in the program! To keep the presentations interesting for all, the program in the late afternoons will consist of a series of 15-minute layman's talks. The scientific committee consisting of Liedewij Laan, Sonia Conesa Boj, and Stefan Semrau will select the talks. In the second half of November 2018, the scientific committee will let you know if your presentation or poster is accepted. 

In the afternoons, all participants are free to go skiing or snowboarding. The hotel is situated on one of the Courchevel skiing slopes. The "Vallée de Courchevel" has 150 kilometers of piste, and 60 lifts. It is part of the "Les Trois Vallées" area, the world's largest linked skiing area, with over 600 kilometers of trails and 174 lifts.

Costs
Please note that NanoFront will cover the costs for:

  • your travel by bus to the conference location on March 18 and back home again on March 22/23,
  • your stay in the hotel (four nights),
  • the meals in the hotel (breakfast, lunch, dinner),
  • coffee/tea/water with the meals and during the breaks.

The costs related to skiing or snowboarding or other afternoon activities are at your own expense, as are the other extras, like the meals on the road and the drinks at the bar etc.

Afternoon activities
We have arranged group discounts for the equipment rental (sets or skis/board only, adjusted to your level) and for the ski passes of the area. Please indicate in the registration form if you want to make use of these offers. If you do, Stijn Reniers from our booking agency Corporate Meeting Partner (CMP) will contact you about the costs, the rental details and the payment specifications.

If it is your first time skiing or snowboarding, or if you want to improve your technique, you can take lessons in Courchevel. Please indicate in the booking form if you want to be contacted by CMP about the ski/snowboard class options. If you already are an experienced skier or snowboarder and want to teach your tips and tricks to your fellow PhD students and postdocs, then let us know in the registration form!

For those of you who are not very fond of skiing or boarding we are looking for alternative afternoon activities (guided hiking tour, a trip to a nearby indoor sports center etc.). Please indicate in the form if you want to be contacted about those activities.     

Cancellation policy
Please note that since our first cancellation deadline (1 Dec. 2018) has passed, it is no longer possible to cancel without any costs involved (unless you find someone else to take your spot). Depending on the moment of cancellation (the earlier we know it, the less costs involved for you), this can accumulate to 800 Euro per person. So if you want to cancel, please notify Nadine Kuijvenhoven ASAP!

Registration
The registration deadline has passed. In case you registered: your data will be used for organizational purposes only, and will be removed from our database after the event, or earlier if you ask us to do so. In case you want to change or add anything to your registration, please send an e-mail to Nadine Kuijvenhoven.