Overview

The EMBL Science Education and Public Engagement team, in partnership with Merck, invite secondary school European formal and informal STEM educators as well as teacher trainers to apply for  “Epigenetics explained”, taking place at EMBL in Heidelberg, Germany, from 2 to 4 March 2026. The course is free of charge and is held in English.

The 2.5-day train-the-trainer course empowers participants to deliver professional development courses for fellow educators on epigenetics, offering scientific talks and educational content ready for the classroom. The course consists of a mix of video and other computer-based interactive elements, allowing students to learn and explore epigenetics.

Participants will also be able to share experiences and best practices in teaching epigenetics. Therefore, the course participants are provided with the tools and materials needed for delivering courses on epigenetics. By joining this course, the participants become EMBL Teacher Ambassadors who are enabled to promote the EMBL teacher training programme and deliver EMBLconnect courses on the topic of epigenetics in their local language for their community of teachers and informal educators in their home countries.

The train-the-trainer course will:

• Familiarise you with EMBL research on epigenetics, meet you with research scientists and take you on visits to EMBL’s scientific facilities
• Introduce you to the EMBL Teacher Ambassador Programme and the EMBLconnect scheme
• Prepare you to deliver courses for teachers and informal educators on the topic of epigenetics as part of the EMBLconnect scheme
• Provide you with access to materials to deliver the scientific and educational elements of EMBLconnect courses on the topic of epigenetics
• Familiarise you with a brand-new EMBL teaching resource on epigenetics suitable for classroom use 
•  Provide a platform to network and share your experiences with colleagues from across Europe

Course organisers

EMBL Science Education and Public Engagement
EMBL’s Science Education and Public Engagement office shares the scientific discoveries of EMBL with young people, teachers and the diverse public in Europe and beyond. Our education programmes convey complex, cutting-edge topics in life science research in an exciting and insightful way, fostering the discovery of current research trends, the scientific method, and scientific career paths. Our teacher training courses empower educators to bring modern life sciences into the classroom. Visit our website for further information about our activities.

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across life science, healthcare and electronics. More than 64,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people’s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From providing products and services that accelerate drug development and manufacturing as well as discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2022, Merck generated sales of € 22.2 billion in 66 countries.

Ambassador programme

EMBLconnect scheme

The EMBLconnect scheme allows teachers, teacher trainers and informal educators (so-called EMBL Teacher Ambassadors) to run professional development training courses based on the successful EMBL teacher training model in their home country. These so-called EMBLconnect courses are part of EMBL’s portfolio of teacher training courses that complement those offerings directly run by the EMBL Science Education and Public Engagement office. The EMBLconnect courses provide teachers from EMBL member states access to high-quality professional development training in the field of life sciences tailored to the needs of their school system and in their local language, allowing a wider community of teachers to benefit from the EMBL teacher training. 

EMBL Teacher Ambassadors work in close collaboration with the EMBL Science Education and Public Engagement office during the preparation of the EMBLconnect course. The Ambassadors are responsible for the course implementation. EMBL supports Ambassadors in developing the training agenda and provides scientific and educational teaching materials, along with application and evaluation templates. Ambassadors may add their own content. EMBL also promotes the course to the EMBL teacher network and offers a small budget to cover basic expenses such as printing or catering. 

EMBL Teacher Ambassador Programme

The EMBL Teacher Ambassadors act as the gateway to EMBL professional teacher training for teachers in their home country.

The EMBL Teacher Ambassador programme supports teacher trainers, teachers, and informal educators in running a professional development course for teachers in an EMBL member state and enables them to disseminate information about all teacher training opportunities offered by EMBL. 

EMBL Teacher Ambassadors are trained through a dedicated train-the-trainer course, gaining access to resources for delivering EMBLconnect courses based on the EMBL teacher training model. After completing the course, participants receive an Ambassador certificate, with additional certification provided for running EMBLconnect courses. Ambassadors receive guidance from EMBL’s Science Education and Public Engagement office on designing and delivering their courses. EMBL also keeps Ambassadors informed about its activities for teachers and young learners, and Ambassadors share relevant events and resources within their own educational communities.

Benefits for EMBL Teacher Ambassadors

• Getting first-hand insights into EMBL’s latest research and education actions
• Receiving high-quality professional development training in the field of life sciences as part of an established and recognised scheme
• Developing as a professional by gaining first experience as a trainer for teacher professional development or building on their existing experience 
• Making a meaningful contribution to the professional development of teachers in their home country
• Expanding their professional network and becoming part of a dedicated, international community of EMBL Teacher Ambassadors
• Receiving certificates as an EMBL Teacher Ambassador and trainer at an EMBLconnect course

More information about the programme can be found here. Please contact us if you have further questions about the Teacher Ambassador Programme or the EMBLconnect scheme.

Acommodation and travel

Location

The course will take place on the EMBL campus in Heidelberg, Germany.

Accommodation

Participants who do not reside in Heidelberg or the region will be provided with single-room accommodation and breakfast free of charge for 2 nights, 2 and 3 March (arrival on 2 March and departure on 4 March) in The Heidelberg Exzellenz Hotel. If you require accommodation, please indicate this in the application form. Please note that we can only book accommodation for you if you indicate this at the time of application.

If you require accommodation for additional nights/people, please arrange this directly with the hotel at your own cost.

Hotel contact details:
The Heidelberg Exzellenz Hotel
Rohrbacher Straße 29
69115 Heidelberg

T +49 6221 9150
F +49 6221 16427-2
info@the-heidelberg.de

Travel

Travel to Heidelberg and EMBL 
Participants are responsible for organising their travel to and from Heidelberg. Some useful information can be found here: https://www.embl.org/sites/heidelberg/travel/

Getting to EMBL on 2 March by the EMBL shuttle bus
For those staying in the hotel, a shuttle bus will transfer participants between the hotel and EMBL on 2nd March and for the course duration.

There will also be a shuttle transfer taking participants from EMBL Heidelberg to the Heidelberg main train station at the end of the course on 4 March.

A detailed shuttle schedule will be shared with the course participants before the course begins.

Important: Please wait for the shuttle in front of the hotel, if not otherwise communicated. Participants are kindly asked to be on time for the pick-up/drop-off. 

Bursary

Travel expenses to and from the course location in Heidelberg, Germany, need to be covered by the course participants.

We have a limited number of travel bursaries available to cover part of an individual’s travel expenses. These bursaries are aimed at participants who would have difficulties attending the course without financial aid. If you would like to apply for a bursary, please fill in the bursary section in the course application form. In case successful, you will be notified about the success of your bursary application no later than 18 January 2026.

Bursary recipients will receive partial support for their incurred travel costs upon completion of the course. Only complete bursary applications with supporting statements received via the application form will be considered for review.

Eligibility requirements for a travel bursary

• All applicants must be either active in training secondary school teachers or teaching biology to 14-19-year-old students.
• All applicants must be willing to run at least one EMBLconnect course in their home country within 9 months of attending the train-the-trainer course.
• Candidates of any nationality may apply but must be residents of and work in a European country.

Bursaries will be awarded based on:

• Justification of the use of the funds to support your attendance of the train-the-trainer course
• Demonstration of involvement with national teacher/educator networks and a commitment to sharing course materials through these networks
• Commitment to running at least one EMBLconnect course within 9 months of attending the train-the-trainer course.

Application

Please ensure that you have read all course information and are confident that you can attend the train-the-trainer course if your application is successful. Please know that providing a support statement in your application is essential for its success.

To apply, please fill in the following application form: Application form

Application deadline: 11 January 2026, 23:00 CET

You will be notified of the success of your application beginning 13 January 2026. If your application is successful and you have been invited to the train-the-trainer course, we will ask you to confirm your attendance by completing our registration form by 25 January 2026. Please make sure you have access to the internet and email during this period.

Maximum number of participants: 20. 

Minimum number of participants: 15.

Attendance and Cancellation

We ask participants to apply only if they are certain that they can attend the whole course. If you need to cancel your attendance after having confirmed your participation, please notify us as soon as possible by email, so we can give your place to somebody on our waiting list.

Cancellation fees

Please note that cancellations and non-attendance might jeopardise the viability of the course for other participants. If you requested accommodation and did not cancel your attendance, a reservation has been made for you at the hotel. Please note that penalty fees may apply in the case of late cancellation (according to the hotel’s cancellation policy) or no-show.

Programme

Please find below a DRAFT course programme. A final detailed programme will be shared with the selected course participants.

02.03.2026_Day 1_Monday

• Welcome and networking
• Introduction to the EMBL Teacher Ambassador Programme
• Dinner at EMBL

03.03.2026_Day 2_Tuesday

• Scientific talks and Q&A on epigenetics
• Introduction to the brand-new EMBL teaching resource
• Hands-on with the EMBL teaching resource
• EMBL lab tours
• Dinner in Heidelberg downtown

04.03.2026_Day 3_Wednesday

• Introduction to the EMBLconnect scheme
• Becoming a teacher trainer
• Workshop “The right EMBLconnect course for you”
• Best epigenetics teaching practices & resources
• Course wrap-up