Aachen is the westernmost city in Germany and looks back on more than a thousand years of European history. Once the favoured residence of Charlemagne, it was the coronation site of German kings for centuries and its cathedral became the very first German monument to be inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1978. Today this historic city on the border triangle of Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium is equally known as a centre of science and engineering, as it is home to RWTH Aachen University, founded in 1870 and now one of Germany's leading technical universities and a designated University of Excellence.

The workshops will be held at the RWTH Aachen University Hospital (Universitätsklinikum Aachen). The hospital, which was officially opened in 1985, with the aim of bringing together teaching, research, and patient care under one roof, is one of the largest clinical complexes in a single building in Europe, with approximately 1,400 beds and more than 30 specialized departments.

Its striking high-tech architecture, with technical systems deliberately exposed on the façade, often compared to the Centre Pompidou in Paris, has made it an architectural landmark. The building has been a listed monument since 2008. For ISEM 2027, delegates will benefit from this combination of historic surroundings and a world-class research and teaching environment.

Just across the border, in the Dutch town Vaals, Hotel Kasteel Bloemendal offers a setting with authentic historical character. The foundation stone for the castle was laid in 1791 by Arnold von Clermont, a cloth manufacturer from Aachen. Over the next two centuries, the estate served as a private residence, a monastery and a boarding school (attended by the mother of J.F. Kennedy), as well as a military hospital during World War II. Since 1992, it has welcomed guests as a castle hotel.

The location could not be more ideal for an international gathering: Bloemendal is just a few minutes from the famous Drielandenpunt, the unique tripoint where Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium meet. Additionally, it is, at 322.5 meters, the highest point on the Dutch mainland. This cross-border location, combined with the historic castle gardens, the elegant rooms, and the warm hospitality, makes Kasteel Bloemendal an inspiring base for the ISEM 2027 program.