Welcome note

Dear Participants, Colleagues and Friends,

It is our great pleasure to welcome you to Munich to join us at the 15^th International Symposium on Biomineralization (BIOMINXV).

The 15^th congress in this series again provides a lively forum for presentation and discussion of the many recent advances and open questions in biomineralization. The submitted contributions to BIOMINXV are as diverse as the processes by which organisms form minerals. From accidental metabolic products to precisely controlled functional tissues, all aspects are covered. Many scientific fields are brought together from biology, human health, and environmental studies to the chemical, physical, and mechanical materials sciences. Our eight keynote speakers review a wide spectrum of mineral-organism interactions or lead into new fields.

We thank all the participants for their valuable contributions and the members of the organisation committee and the scientific advisory board for their invaluable help.

Wishing you all a successful congress participation and stimulating discussions.

Wolfgang W. Schmahl                                Erika Griesshaber