Happy new year! As we stride into 2023, the Medellín conference is fast approaching. Closer still is the end of the early bird rate to save on your registration. We have had a great deal of interest and enquiries and so are extending the early bird deadline to the end of the month to allow more of you to take advantage of the special rate. Register now to save up to $100 USD off your admission rate to WCSJ23, prices go up February 1. Book your accommodations at one of our host hotels in Medellín while you’re at it! The full parallel programme for the World Conference of Science Journalists in Medellín, Colombia is now live! The 24 sessions across five tracks have been published on the WCSJ 2023 website as well as the details of the themes for the plenaries – though these are yet to be announced. We are highlighting a handful of sessions below. We hope you agree they will be insightful and offer plenty of opportunity for discussion and engagement. A note from Ximena Serrano Gil, director of the WCSJ Medellín conference This will be a wonderful year for scientific journalism, our great reunion is approaching and we are excited to know that the time will soon come to meet again, see each other face to face, hug and share. We started this new year with many new requests from international and national institutions, as well as journalists from all corners of the planet to join the Conference, so we are building a varied, attractive and impressive WCSJ2023 for all of you. Colombia is a magical land, its colors, rhythms, biodiversity and warmth of its people have positioned it as one of the world’s attractions to visit. The New York Times last week pointed out Medellín as one of the best destinations for this year, so do not miss this great opportunity to enjoy the magic that this WCSJ will have and register soon to secure your place and attractions. 
Programme information We are happy to release more of the programme with a reminder that there are five tracks to enjoy during the conference. Details below. Track 5. Our craft: tools of the trade (ideas to improve our reporting!). Science podcasts and the rise of audio Give your ears the pleasure of a good science story! This session aims to share different experiences in science podcasts from around the world and show the diversity of audio stories, as well as how productions adapted to the pandemic. Moderator: Lindsay Patterson, USA Speakers: Silvia Viñas, UK Anne Chisa, South Africa Halima Athumani, Uganda Writing the popular science book: Four authors tell their stories Read any good science books lately? Ever thought of maybe writing one? This round table session with four authors of recently published books will address the challenges of planning, pitching and completing a book. Find out how they found the ways and means to succeed. 
Moderator: Kathryn O’Hara, Canada Speakers: Sarah Everts, Canada Frederico Kukso, Argentina Engela Duvenage, South Africa Alyaa Abo-Shabha, Egypt Track 4. North/South: to a new dialogue in the 21st century. Reporting on Indigenous Knowledge In this discursive session, journalists from different parts of the world talk over the issues they faced reporting on cases where science has gone wrong in a context where science denialism is surging. 
Moderator: Rebekah White, New Zealand Speakers: Dr Daniel Hikuroa, New Zealand Kalen Goodluck, US Native American Maria Clara Valencia, Colombia/Latin America Rae Johnston, Australia Track 1. Science immersion (great science stories) 8,000 Metres of Discovery: First Crewed Expedition to the Atacama Trench, the Deepest Point in South America Science under pressure: come travel with researchers to the ultimate ultra deep ocean adventure, the first crewed expedition to the Atacama Trench, 8,069 metres deep, off the coast of Chile-Peru. Moderator: Angela Posada-Swafford, USA/Colombia Speakers: Dr. Osvaldo Ulloa, Chile Hector Salvador, Spain Mtro. Hugo Montoro, Cdr, Perú Catalina García-Jove Contreras, Chile 
More travel grants will be announced soon! Watch this space…. The World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ, www.wcsj.org) is the biggest global event on science journalism, attracting approximately 1,200 journalists covering science and medical issues, as well as international experts, scientists, and communicators, among others. The 10th World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ2017) in San Francisco (26–30 October 2017) and the 11th World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ2019) in Lausanne (1-5 July 2019) both attracted more than 1,300 attendees. WCSJ2023 Medellín will be hosted at the extraordinary venue of the city’s Jardin Botánico de Medellín from 27-31 March 2023. | 
