For the last two years the EGU community has faced innumerable hardships and challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic, and has consistently managed to keep finding new solutions to an ever evolving situation. Last week we saw this resilience again as our members submitted over 12,500 abstracts to EGU22, despite many uncertainties. First of all, we want to thank you for participating in such a positive and enthusiastic way!

Immediately following the abstract submission deadline, the EGU Programme Committee were faced with some difficult choices due to the Austrian government having imposed new large event rules currently limiting the number of attendees at in-person events to 2000 people and increasing the restrictions on our hygiene plan that directly impacted our ability to implement the in-person components of the meeting. These severe restrictions, coupled with an increasing anxiety about the feasibility of holding an in-person meeting in early April expressed by many of our members, prompted the Programme Committee to look for a new solution.

Following extensive discussion between the EGU Programme Committee and Executive Board, our conference partner Copernicus, the Austrian Hygiene experts and the Austria Centre Vienna, we have come up with what we hope is a suitable solution for EGU22 that allows both in-person and on-line participation for all of the scientific sessions.

EGU, therefore, would like to make some important announcements:

1. The date of the hybrid General Assembly EGU22 is moving to 23-27 May 2022.

2. There will now only be one format for presentations. All presentations will be ‘short orals’ with between 15 and 20 abstracts per 1.5 hour timeslot. All sessions will host a mix of in-person and online presentations, viewable both in-person and online, giving greater accessibility for all sessions. More details about the format are available here.

3. Submission of late abstracts is available until 26 January 2022, at 13.00 CET. Late abstracts fees have been reduced this year to the regular abstract submission rate of 45€. As usual, late abstracts must be submitted by the session convener, who should be contacted directly for help (more information here). Please ensure you give conveners enough time to submit your abstract before the deadline. If you want to move your abstract to a different session, please contact egu22@copernicus.org with your abstract ID and the details of the new session by 26 January 2022 at 13.00 CET (more information here).

We realise that this change in the date of the meeting will bring its own barriers and disruptions, which may be insurmountable for some people. It is our hope and expectation that by late May, the new date of the meeting, global COVID-19 infection rates will be significantly lower and the restrictions on large, in-person events in Austria will be relaxed.

The decision to move the dates of EGU22 has been a difficult one, and has not been taken lightly. Never before has EGU changed the date of the General Assembly, but we wanted to avoid an online-only meeting for a third consecutive year when so many people are increasingly fatigued by virtual meetings. This is also a view supported by 73% of abstract authors, who indicated a preference to attend EGU22 in-person.

We hope that this new date of the General Assembly will help relieve some of the stress that many of our members are experiencing. However, if this change means you can no longer participate in EGU22 either in-person or online, you can withdraw your abstract and get a full refund of your Abstract Processing Charge. If this applies to you, please contact egu22@copernicus.org before 26 January 2022 at 13.00 CET, including your abstract ID and your name, to request a refund.

Once again, we want to thank our community for joining us on this journey back to meeting in person, and toward a fully hybrid format for the General Assembly. We really value your feedback and hope you will continue to send us your ideas and questions about this year’s General Assembly. Stay tuned to our website, the EGU22 website and social media for further updates, for additional specific questions check our FAQ and we look forward to seeing you in May!

Kind regards,

Peter van der Beek, EGU Programme Committee Chair
Helen Glaves, EGU President

EDITORS NOTE: To show our support for Ukraine and in accordance with current European sanctions, EGU will not accept any payment of EGU22 registration fees from Russian or Belarusian institutions paid on behalf of researchers based at or affiliated with them. Already paid fees will be directly and completely donated to the UN Crisis Relief Fund for Ukraine. For more information and guidance, please email: egu22@copernicus.org.

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