A groundbreaking genomics agreement will celebrate its 30th anniversary in Bermuda next year.

The fifth Bermuda Principles Impact Conference will take place from February 24 to March 2 at the Hamilton Princess & Beach Club and will centre on the theme “Population Genomics”.

The Bermuda Principles were established at the International Strategy Meeting on Human Genomic Sequencing in 1996 and set a standard which ensured that data collected during the Human Genome Project would be made public within 24 hours.

Carika Weldon, founder of the Bermuda Principles Foundation and genetic research firm CariGenetics, said these principles “have been instrumental in shaping the global landscape of genetic research for the last three decades”.

Dr Weldon added: “When I founded the Bermuda Principles Foundation in 2016, I was determined to highlight the role Bermuda played in this huge decision that made medical advancements a reality for us all.

“It is an honour to put on this 2025 conference in the place where it all began with the support of the Wellcome Sanger Institute, which was directly involved in the Human Genome Project.”

Almost 150 international delegates from within genomics are expected to attend next year’s event, which will begin with a working group discussing Bermuda Principles 2.0, which will shape genomic data sharing for the next three decades.

Participants will speak on several topics during the conference, including biodiversity’s impact on human health, population genomics and emerging methods and technologies.

Sarion Bowers, head of policy and advocacy at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said: “The Bermuda Principles are the heart of all we do at the Sanger Institute, and [this conference] is a wonderful opportunity to pay tribute to scientists who were instrumental in shaping the field of genomics 30 years ago, and to use this opportunity to imagine how the next 30 years can deliver benefit for human and planetary health.”

• Visit bermudaprinciples.org to learn more or register for the conference from August 1. Interested sponsors for the event can e-mail admin@bermudaprinciples.org and there are nine sponsorship levels to choose from