Global Taste & Smell Summit, Designing The Feel
This year’s theme Global Taste & Smell Summit’s theme is Designing the Feel. As we redesign our world, who is designing what it feels like to live in it?
From flavor and fragrance to healthcare, hospitality, AI, architecture, food systems, consumer products, public spaces, virtual environments, and space exploration, every experience is mediated through the senses.
We are seeking bold, idea-driven talks that challenge assumptions, reveal emerging research, share unexpected insights, and inspire new ways of thinking.
ECRO 2026 Conference
ECRO - the European Society for Smell and Taste Research - will hold its annual conference in Paris this year. This year’s theme is chemosensory innovation, with a focus on building connections across disciplines, sensory modalities, and creative approaches.
Caroline McMillan, Ph.D. of WTSA’s Space Sensory Lab will present our research at poster session S5-P18 (Abstract page 192)
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Olfactory experience and behavioural processing as a human factors frontier in spaceflight.
Silverbrook Manor: Sunday Scent Session
Sunday Scent Session: Botanicals & Beyond
Join WTSA’s Mindy Yang for an in-person adventure into the world of fragrances! Discover the magic of botanical scents and so much more in this relaxed, fun-filled session.
The Air Is Not Neutral: Chemical Signaling and What it Feels Like to Live in It
This session examines what happens to emotion, memory, and the sense of self when we live inside an engineered air that is chemically loud and informationally silent, and what shifts when we start reading the air instead of decorating it--asking not what to add to a space, but what is already being communicated in it, and by whom.
ARx Philadelphia at uCity Square: A Collaboration between Professional Artists and Scientific Researchers
Science takes the stage as dancer and choreographer Lyra Butler-Denman premieres an original performance inspired by Dani Reed and other Monell scientists who study the sense of smell. Blending movement, ritual, and sensory storytelling, the piece explores how our noses carry memory, emotion, and identity — revealing that biology is never separate from feeling.
International Astronautical Congress (IAC)
Jarin Chu of WTSA’s Space Sensory Lab is thrilled to present our research, “Managing "The Ick Factor” for Space Readiness - Historic Approaches & Future Opportunities for Nausea, Menstruation, and Excrement”, at the 2026 IAC.
CIA: World of Flavors
Chefs and tradition-bearers from around the world gather to unpack the flavor architectures of Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, and Singapore. Across three days, you’ll see how techniques passed down for generations are sparking the next era of American menu innovation with our friends at the Culinary Institute of America at their stunning, Napa, California campus.
2027 IWS Theme: Moonbound!
The Investigators’ Workshop (IWS) is the primary venue for reporting progress and results from research and technology tasks funded by NASA’s Human Research Program to program leaders. The workshop also fosters cross-discipline interaction among the full spectrum of investigators within and outside NASA.
WTSA’s Space Sensory Lab will be in attendance.
Filtered Taste: Whisky, Gender, and the Possibility of Direct Experience: A Phenomenological Inquiry
Tea Nicolae will bring together observations from whisky tasting as well as from using TheWhiskyBaba, a physics-based engine that generates personalized sensory projections to explore how gender and lived experience shape what - and how - we taste.
World Taste & Smell Day Live: The Human Taste & Smell Spectrum
90.7% of the 510 people we surveyed said a scent brought back a personal memory. 75.7% recovered one they had completely forgotten. Join WTSA’s Mindy Yang with Rachel Herz, PhD, and Martha Bajec, PhD, live on World Taste & Smell Day at 2 PM ET as we present our 2026 report.
Rediscovering Flavor: An Evening of Science, Stories, and Hope
What happens when smell changes—and food no longer tastes, feels, or comforts us in the same way?
Join the Monell Chemical Senses Center, the World Taste & Smell Association, and STANA for a special hybrid program exploring the science and lived experience of smell loss. Presented in the lead-up to World Taste & Smell Day on September 14, the evening will bring together researchers, advocates, and practical guidance for rediscovering the pleasure and meaning of food.
Using Smells in Museums: An International Themed Smell Day Event
This international online speaker series brings together curators, educators, and museum practitioners who are working with scent as an interpretive tool in museums, cultural attractions, and heritage institutions. The program focuses specifically on scent as museum interpretation and cultural education, rather than perfumery or olfactory art practice.
Silverbrook Manor Forage & Blend
Forage & Blend is a 3-hour private experience where guests explore the living landscape of Silverbrook Manor alongside world-renowned sensory designer Mindy Yang. Discover aromatic plants, flowers, and natural materials while learning how scent emerges from place, season, and perception.
The 2026 Humans to the Moon & Mars Summit
What will it take to nourish a thriving human community on Mars?
This one-day special edition of the Mars Innovation Workshop brings together scientists, entrepreneurs, technologists, investors, and industry leaders to explore the future of food and nutrition for space, with a special emphasis on innovations that can transform food systems on Earth today. Using Mars as a powerful design lens, participants will examine challenges and opportunities across food production, biomanufacturing, personalized nutrition, circular resource use, and resilient supply chains.
Through focused discussions and collaborative exercises, participants will surface breakthrough ideas, spark new partnerships, and identify high-impact opportunities for research, investment, and innovation. By the end of the day, participants will leave with a clearer view of how solving the challenge of feeding humans in extreme environments can help build healthier, more sustainable food systems and the flourishing communities they support-on Earth and beyond.
Olfaction Beyond Gravity: Human Scent Experience in Space
Dr Caroline McMillan presents research from the WTSA Space Sensory Lab developed with co-founders Mindy Yang, Coleen McLeod Garner and Jarin Chu for the Institute for Art and Olfaction's Olfactory Research Notes, an online series.
Living with Parosmia
Free event about living with parosmia for anyone who experiences smell distortions or wants to learn more about this condition.
2026 World Perfumery Congress
The American Society of Perfumers (ASP) is delighted to announce that the 2026 World Perfumery Congress (WPC) will take place from June 23-25, 2026, at the Monterey Conference Center in Monterey, California. Find out more here
Menus of Change Leadership Conference
The this leadership program from the CIA will feature high-impact, interactive, and educational content along with delicious meals and valuable networking. Register here
Silverbrook Manor Spring Farm Tour
Join the proprietors of Silverbrook Manor for an intimate guided tour of their regenerative research farm, an unfolding landscape shaped by season, soil, and slow intention.
It's a chance to walk the grounds with us, to understand what is being grown here, both in the earth and beyond it.
Beyond Smell: Finding Pleasure, Identity, and Ritual in Food and Fragrance
A virtual event presented by the World Taste and Smell Association and STANA on Monday April 27 at Noon (Eastern) will explore how people with anosmia and smell dysfunction can still experience meaning, pleasure, and connection through food and fragrance.
FREE BY REGISTRATION HERE
Global CRSwNP Awareness Day
Global CRSwNP Awareness Day, April 23, is day dedicated to raising awareness and showing support for the millions of patients living with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP).
AChemS
AChemS, the Association for Chemoreception Sciences, is a scientific research organization dedicated to understanding the "chemical senses" of smell, taste, trigeminal irritation and internal chemoreception from the fundamentals of neurobiology to complex behavior.
THE ACHEMS ANNUAL MEETING is the preeminent international gathering of chemoreception scientists. Join us to:
Network with top international scientists from both academia and industry
Discuss the most recent research discoveries in the chemical senses
Learn about the latest developments in chemical senses research before publication
Connect with AChemS members with specialized expertise
Engage with an integrative approach as well as historical context for modern research
Register here: https://achems.org/2026/registration.php
Yuri's Night, Space Sensory Lab Exhibit, Away from Earth
Away from Earth is an interactive scent installation exploring the sensory memories that define us and what happens when they disappear. Join WTSA’s Space Sensory Lab in building a living archive of scent, memory, and the invisible forces that tether us to Earth.
WFFC New Jersey Presents: 2026 Educational Seminar – Catalysts for Change: Advancing Tomorrow’s F&F Industry Innovators
WFFC’s Annual Spring Education Seminar brings together corporate executives, founders, consultants, marketers, and educators to share real-world lessons on building confidence, navigating change, launching brands, and shaping meaningful careers across every stage of the professional journey!
INTERNATIONAL FRAGRANCE DAY & FRAGRANCE WEEK ON MADISON AVENUE
International Fragrance Day is celebrated annually on March 21st to welcome spring, with major events including Fragrance Week on Madison Avenue (NYC) (March 21-27, 2026), featuring in-store activations, new launches, and expert-led tours. The Fragrance Foundation coordinates nationwide retail promotions, social media campaigns, and brand meet-and-greets to promote scent education
Rivian's Design Electric Weekend: Scent - The Invisible Dimension of Design
With appreciation for Rivian’s generous support and collaboration, we’re honored to participate in a special private gathering exploring the invisible dimension of design.
Featuring Doug Schwartz of Detroit Wick and WTSA’s Mindy Yang, the evening will reflect on how fragrance, landscape, and adventure quietly shape perception, memory, and experience.
Thank you to Rivian for helping advance this work through their partnership and donation.
We look forward to an inspiring night together.
Living With Acquired Smell Loss
An interactive discussion of living with the social and emotional aspects of smell loss for Anosmia Awareness Day
Gulfood 2026, Live from Dubai
Dubai becomes the world’s epicenter of culinary innovation once again — and WTSA is stepping onto the global stage with Co-Founder Mindy Yang as a moderator and special guest at the Future Foods Pavilion.
Smell Loss and Quality of Life: Understanding the Impact and Finding a Way Forward
A two-hour interactive course led by Chrissi Kelly will include research about the emotional elements of smell loss and sharing and discussion by participants. The start time in the UK is 7pm. Please check google for your time zone! The course is open to members of the ckos Network. Sign up for free, here.
Decoding Cacao: From Bean to Bar
Explore cacao’s science and sensory power. Gain tools in neurogastronomy, wellness, and design to elevate innovation and experience with WTSA’s Mindy Yang.
Why Chocolate Tastes Sweeter with Music
Discover how sound shapes flavor in this FREE 30-minute sensory class by WTSA’s Mindy Yang. Through live video experiments and guided listening, you’ll experience how pitch, rhythm, and timbre can make the same food feel sweeter, creamier, or more intense—without changing a single ingredient.
2025 MOFAD GALA
Join MOFAD at Essex Market on Thursday, November 20, 2025 for an evening filled with great food and company, hearty drinks, and a chance to break bread together.
Monell’s Inaugural Celebration of Science
Monell’s Inaugural Celebration of Science, featuring an Evening of Wit & Wisdom With Marc Abrahams and a Scientific Symposium in Honor of Director Emeritus Robert Margolskee.
CEW's BEAUTY AWARDS LUNCHEON
Join CEW on November 11 for the Beauty Awards Luncheon, honoring the year’s winning products and trailblazing brands. Surrounded by 1,000 beauty VIPs — from executives and innovators to retailers and suppliers — this is where excellence takes center stage.
IFRA UK Fragrance Forum 2025
The International Fragrance Association UK (IFRA UK) is hosting their annual Fragrance Forum in London, a flagship event that brings together leading voices from science, industry, and culture.
Smell Loss & Quality of Life
Tired of being told to "just get over it"? This course from the ckos network dives deep into the real impact of smell loss and evidence-based ways to move forward.
The class will explore:
- Why smell loss makes you feel awful
- The brain science behind it all - How to communicate with family
- Practical solutions that work
- Interactive exercises to map your personal journey
Saturday 11th October | 7-9pm UK time | Online
This is more than information sharing - it's a supportive workshop where you'll connect with others and develop your own action plan.
Join the free ckos Network for access details
the next Start-Up Stars!
NutraIngredients is on the lookout for the next Start-Up Stars! Innovative companies in sports & active nutrition ready to present their groundbreaking ideas on the Sports & Active Nutrition Summit USA 2026 stage! If your start-up is science-driven, tech-focused, and pushing the boundaries of ingredients, formats, or benefits, this is your chance to shine.
WOC summit 2025 & Cacao Reimagined: A Sensory Strategist's Guide to the Future
In honor of World Taste & Smell month, the World Taste & Smell Association is partnering with this amazing group of women for 4 powerful days of insight, celebration, and global connection. We’re bringing together farmers, makers, scientists, chocolatiers, entrepreneurs, wisdom keepers, and activists to reimagine the future of cacao—together.
Sponsored by
Help us build a global community.
The World Taste & Smell Association is continuously seeking volunteers, sponsors, and partners to collaborate with us for local, digital, and regional events, as we aim to further our mission. We invite you to connect with us and discover the numerous opportunities available for your involvement. Together, we can make a difference!
