Junior European Drosophila Investigators

Who are the JEDIs

The JEDIs are early career scientists working on Drosophila melanogaster in Europe who have recently established their independent research groups.
The JEDI Club was founded to allow Junior European Drosophila Investigators to share ideas, expertise, and resources. This portal serves as a hub for JEDIs to get to know each other and interact, both through these pages and via our mailing list.

Can I become a JEDI?

If you lead your own Drosophila research lab for up to seven years, whether on a tenure-track or temporary position, we warmly invite you to join us.
Please take a few minutes to fill out this form.

Who is behind this?

The JEDI club originated from a brainstorming session between Bart Deplancke and Alex Stark. Within a few months, the group grew to more than 60 members across Europe, working in universities and research institutes.
Bart and Alex were later joined in the organization by Giorgio Gilestro, Pavel Tomancak, and Yogi Yaeger.

👉 Meet the 2026 committee here.

news

Jan 13, 2026	Registration will open soon for the next JEDI meeting: June 1st - 3rd in Palmela, Portugal! Join us and our keynote speaker Eugenia Chiappe. Her #neuroscience lab studies how #Drosophila estimates its own movement and integrates sensory inputs to control locomotion. chiappelab.org [image or embed]— Junior European Drosophila Investigators (@fly-jedi.bsky.social) January 13, 2026 at 9:36 PM
Oct 28, 2025	Preparations for the next JEDI meeting are underway! The upcoming Junior European #Drosophila Investigator / #NewPI meeting is planned for Portugal in June. Final dates and additional details will be announced soon - stay tuned for updates! [image or embed]— Junior European Drosophila Investigators (@fly-jedi.bsky.social) October 28, 2025 at 11:14 PM
Oct 28, 2025	Update from #EDRC2025! Four days of amazing talks and poster sessions and JEDIs have reconnected across geographical boundaries. Dinner was fun and we are looking forward to everyone at the next #Drosophila conference! [image or embed]— Junior European Drosophila Investigators (@fly-jedi.bsky.social) September 28, 2025 at 11:38 AM