4th - 6th February 2026
The Quaker Meeting House
7 Victoria Terrace, above, Victoria St, Edinburgh EH1 2JL
This year Social Psychology of Risk (SPoR) conference theme is centred on Holistic Ergonomics and Human Factors. But instead of factoring the human in the system, we will learn about the ethics, methods and frameworks that humanise people and enhance their wellness at workplaces and beyond.
Ergonomics and Human Factors: Where are we headed
It is an irony of our times that at the time when the discussion about human factors and ergonomics is at its peak, there are more people than ever reporting sick at work. The number of people claiming disability benefits has doubled. People often feel anxious and stressed by work culture and use this as the basis to claim long term sickness. Relationships are at an all-time low. The former chief economist of the bank of England, Andy Haldane says that “For the first time, probably since the Industrial Revolution … health and wellbeing are in retreat”.
Learning Ergonomics through Experiential (Semiotic) Walks
In this conference, we will apply the discipline of Social Psychology of Risk to the nature of work, work design, work processes and ergonomics. Orthodox approaches to human factors and ergonomics view human behaviour as a mechanical response to environmental stimuli. It is a common view that if we can improve the physical design and the environment at work, people will perform better, safer and feel healthier. Stepping outside of the stimulus-response approach to human behaviour, we will learn how humans as embodied (whole) beings are emotionally affected by their environment and by social relationships at work.
As part of the conference, we will also go on three semiotic walks to observe and feel how space and place influences our emotions, anxiety and stress and how we can create rituals and routines in our everyday lives that would truly humanise our workplaces and meeting spaces.
https://novellus.solutions/mec-events/social-psychology-of-risk-conference-spor-europe-2026/
The 45th International Conference on Computer Safety, Reliability and Security
22-25 September 2026
Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), Spain
The 45th edition of SafeComp, to be held in Valencia, Spain, provides a unique occasion to explore and debate the growing challenges of safety-critical computing systems. Safety is more relevant than ever, as adaptive and advanced digital infrastructures are increasingly embedded across all layers of hardware and software, giving rise to complex systems of systems. These computing systems must not only deliver high performance and scalability but also work in a sustainable way, addressing energy efficiency, resource usage, and long-term societal impact.
The 2026 theme is “Engineering safe and sustainable computing systems”. Safety engineering must therefore evolve to tackle this dual challenge: guaranteeing safety while ensuring sustainability in computing infrastructures.
Since it was established in 1979 by the European Workshop on Industrial Computer Systems, Technical Committee 7 on Reliability, Safety and Security (EWICS TC7), SafeComp has contributed to the progress of the state-of-the-art in dependable application of computers to safety-related and safety-critical Systems.
SafeComp is an annual international conference covering the state-of-the-art, industrial experiences and new trends in the areas of safety, security and reliability of critical computer applications.
SafeComp provides ample opportunity to exchange insights and experience on emerging methods, approaches and practical solutions. It is a single-track conference without parallel sessions, allowing easy networking.
Towards human-centred organisations
Ethical. Practical. Balanced.
What are we missing?
The culture of risk and safety is traditionally anchored to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). STEM sciences has its main focus on efficiency and optimisation. Unsurprisingly, safety and risk have turned excessively towards measurement (the KPI culture) and more specifically towards a dominant focus on 'reducing harm’.
This singular approach to measuring risk and safety comes with its own set of problems. Within this culture, humans are treated like objects to be controlled and hazards to be managed. One obvious example is accident investigations where people feel more traumatised and stressed by the investigation process than by the experience of an accident. The situation is no different with audits and inspections. Over the years, this efficiency machinery has turned into a source of fear, anxiety, trauma, distress, and even dehumanising for those at the sharp end.
Who is this helping? What are we missing?
A day in Svendborg Our first meeting to discuss these issues will be held in Svendborg on 17th December from 10am-3pm
Venue: Svendborg International Maritime Academy (SIMAC), Nordre Havnevej 4, 5700 Svendborg, Denmark.
The purpose of this meeting is to bring a small group of people from across disciplines and sectors who realise the need for Humanistic Ethics in Risk Management.
The Annual Systems Engineering Conference is the UK’s premier Systems Engineering event, attracting a wide range of industry professionals, international presenters and practitioners, which provides a distinguished platform for networking, learning and sharing ideas.
ASEC 2025 will be taking place on 25-26 November 2025, at the Ashford International Hotel, Kent.
INCOSE UK hosted its first ASEC in 2010, now in its 16th year, the two-day conference has developed to include technical presentations on contemporary Systems Engineering theory and practice, tutorials run by leading Systems Engineering Practitioners, an exhibition of Systems Engineering organisations presenting their products and services.
Theme
The theme for ASEC 2025 is ‘Broadening Our Horizons’ within which we intend to explore the following sub-themes:
- Enabling Sustainability
- The impact of Al on Systems Engineering
- Enhancing Collaboration
- Managing Stakeholder Expectations