Olympian Symposium 2026: The Evolution of the Interstellar Medium Across Cosmic Times

The interstellar medium plays a fundamental role in the life cycle of galaxies, acting as the reservoir from which stars and planetary systems form, and as the matter returned through stellar feedback processes. Tracing the evolution of the ISM from the early universe to the present day is essential to understanding galaxy formation, chemical enrichment, star formation histories, and the emergence of habitable environments. Recent advances in both observations and numerical models — from JWST and ALMA to high-resolution simulations — now allow us to study the ISM across a wide range of epochs and environments. This Symposium aims to bring together experts in galactic and extragalactic ISM studies, star formation, astrochemistry, and cosmology to synthesize our current understanding and chart future directions. Held under the shadow of Mount Olympus, this meeting will provide a platform for open discussions, inter-disciplinary insight, and forward-looking strategies in interstellar medium research. This is the fourth Olympian Symposium focusing on star-formation, a series of Symposia that started in 2014.