6th ECDHM in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands

23 September 2025

Photo: A. Rödl

Researchers and practitioners from various fields of blood donation work met in Wijk aan Zee on the picturesque Dutch North Sea coast from 10 to 12 September 2025 for the European Conference on Donor Health and Management. The aim of the conference was to discuss the latest scientific findings, share experience, and network.

The newly created Social Impact Research Lab consisting of the research groups Community Awareness and Engagement 2030 took the opportunity to present its findings to date in special sessions and to engage in dialog with the other delegates concerning challenges and solutions in the areas of donor acquisition and volunteer management.

Prof. Dr. Silke Boenigk, Sarah Fenske, and Alexander Rödl presented the Engagement 2030 research group’s current projects together with Dr. Lena Kristin Kunz of the German Red Cross’s DRK Blood Donation Service North-East. Its projects concern the courses that engagement takes, engagement preferences, and the flexibilization of voluntary work.

The team from Hamburg enjoyed an inspirational, insightful, and highly entertaining ECDHM 2025, and would like to thank the organizers for an all-round successful conference!