The 12^th International Mycological Congress (IMC12) was held from 11-15 August in Maastricht, the Netherlands, bringing together over 1,400 mycologists from around the globe. The event featured 62 workshops, 16 symposia, and six pre- and post-congress trips, with participants representing 80 countries. In total, 315 speakers and session chairs contributed to the congress.

FABI was well-represented at the congress, with 12 current FABIans participating by taking part in the IMA council meeting, chairing sessions and workshops, delivering oral and poster presentations highlighting the institute's work and fostering international collaborations.

IMC12 marked a significant milestone for FABI, as it was the first time the congress hosted a symposium organized by and for early-career mycologists, in collaboration with the European Mycological Society, Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute, and British Mycological Society. The symposium featured 22 speakers from 14 countries, all sharing their research with an enthusiastic audience of mycologists from around the world. FABI's Dr Neriman Yilmaz was recognized with the second-best presentation award for her talk titled “Understanding fungal pathogens and mycotoxins in South African maize: Implications for food security and health.” Additionally, Kira Lynn received one of the Best Poster Awards for her work titled 'Dispersal of the fungal pathogen Ceratocystis manginecans in Indonesian plantations.' The award was accepted on her behalf by her PhD advisor Prof. Irene Barnes.

The attendance of Dr Neriman Yilmaz, Prof. Cobus Visagie, Carlynn Jacobs, Jenna-Lee Price, Nicole van Vuuren, Christiaan Grobler, and Prof. Bernard Slippers was made possible through the Mycobiomics project, funded by the Marie Skłodowska Curie Action. Following IMC12, Carlynn Jacobs, Jenna-Lee Price, and Alida van Dijk will spend three months at BOKU and AIT in Austria, Christiaan Grobler will spend two months at HZI, and Nicole van Vuuren will spend two months at the Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute. 

Other participants included Prof. Irene Barnes, Prof. Martin Coetzee, Dr Magriet van der Nest, Prof. Emma Steenkamp, Bianca Hough, as well as extraordinary Professors Pedro Crous, André Fleißner and Eva Stukenbrock, and ex-FABIans and recent visitors, Dr Xudong Zhou, Prof. Anne Pringle, David Hernandez Hernandez, Nombuso Ngubane, Dr Wolfgang Maier, Dr Martin Kemler, Dr Andi Wilson and Dr Milica Zlatkovic.

The congress was a memorable experience for FABIans, filled with learning, collaboration, recognition and inspiration.