Sense Retreat 2025 – 2nd Edition: Innovation and Research in Champéry

Sense Retreat 2025 – 2nd Edition: Innovation and Research in Champéry

Between mountains and innovation, the Palladium de Champéry and the Hôtel Suisse provided an inspiring setting for the second edition of the Sense Retreat, bringing together nearly sixty participants, Sense affiliates, and members of the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). Three years after the launch of Sense in 2022, this meeting strengthened scientific collaboration and excellence in health and neuroscience research.

“The Sense Retreat was a valuable opportunity for exchange and reflection for all attending affiliates. Emphasis was placed on transparency regarding Sense’s operations and on opportunities to participate in upcoming activities. I was particularly impressed by the scientific excellence and richness of our work, as well as by the remarkable cohesion of our team. Together, we truly give meaning to Sense,” said Prof. Micah Murray, Scientific and Academic Director of Sense.

Outstanding Keynotes by SAB Members

Keynotes were delivered by two distinguished members of the Scientific Advisory Board, who also served as judges for the poster session. The Sense is honored to host internationally renowned scientists who share their rigor, expertise, and strategic vision with the center’s affiliates.

Prof. Mickael Tanter (INSERM, ESPCI PSL – Paris, France), member of the Academy of Sciences, presented the latest advances in biomedical ultrasound and their applications in functional neuroscience. His work allows imaging the brain with unprecedented speed and precision, paving the way for brain-machine interfaces.

Prof. Fiona Newell (Trinity College Dublin, Ireland), a specialist in multisensory perception, explored how the brain integrates information from different senses to create a coherent perception of the world. Her research offers new perspectives on human cognition, sensory aging, and perception-behavior interactions.

These presentations served as a prelude to the poster and datablitz sessions, enabling direct exchange between researchers and SAB members, fostering scientific know-how sharing and the creation of interdisciplinary collaborations.

Datablitz and Poster Sessions

The Sense Retreat included datablitz sessions, presentations of affiliated projects, and a poster session rich in exchanges. SAB members evaluated the projects and provided practical advice, reinforcing the culture of innovation and scientific rigor.

Poster Session Results

The poster session highlighted the creativity and scientific excellence of projects affiliated with Sense. Judges evaluated the posters based on innovation, scientific rigor, and potential impact.

Award-winning Projects:

  1. Unraveling sensory dysfunction in hEDS/HSD: the role of small fiber neuropathy and functional neurological signs Aurore Fernandez, Bérengère Aubry-Rozier, Marc R. Suter, Selma Aybek, Chantal Berna Renella
  2. Exploring Mixed Reality to Study the Impact of Pain-Related Fear and Sensory Inputs on Movement and Physiological Stress Cyril Ben Amara, Carole Ruppli, Noah Richert, Antoine Widmer, Julien Favre, Chantal Berna Renella
  3. Upper limb perceptual and motor errors Ayla Gay, Gaia Risso, Michel Akselrod, Eugenio Scaliti, Francesco Crottini, Jacopo Evi, Cristina Becchio, Andrea Serino, Michela Bassolino
  4. Cognition going wild: Multisensory communication in wild vervet monkeys using VerTIGo touchscreen system Vedrana Šlipogor, Olivier Collignon, Erica van de Waal

“A session with many high-quality posters highlighted the diversity of projects carried out within The Sense. This made choosing the best posters a real challenge for the jury. In the end, a consensus decision was reached to award the best posters, recognizing the equivalent excellence of four recipients.”
— Prof. Henning Müller, member of the Sense Direction Committee and judge of the poster session