Computational Modelling for Consciousness Science: From Fragmentation to Integration

• Carcassonne, France

• August 29 - September 5, 2026

• 950€ - Participation fees will include accommodation for 7 days, all meals and the workshop fee.

  Cancellation Policy

• 20 participants

• A limited amount of bursaries will be available for participants who wouldn't be able to attend otherwise, covering part or all of the fees.

• Application deadline: May 29th, 2026, 23:59 anywhere on earth

Computational models are becoming increasingly relevant in consciousness science. Researchers are using formal models not only to simulate brain activity, but also to clarify concepts, test assumptions, and connect theories to empirical data. Yet this landscape remains highly fragmented: models often target different phenomena, operate at different levels of description, and rely on different assumptions without a shared framework for comparison.

This workshop is designed to confront that fragmentation directly. It will bring together researchers working across computational approaches to consciousness and related phenomena, such as metacognition, attention, and working memory. We will address various computational approaches—from brain dynamics and artificial neural networks, to cognitive modelling, predictive processing, and formal models of subjective experience. Our aim is to create a space where these approaches can be situated, compared, challenged, and connected. By bringing together expert modellers and motivated participants, this workshop is set out to pave the landscape of computational models in consciousness science.

Workshop format

As in other MESEC events, the workshop will be small-scale, immersive, and dialogue-driven. We will gather researchers-in-training and keynote speakers in a relaxed Mediterranean setting to create the kind of sustained exchange that is often missing from conventional conferences. The goal is not only to showcase models, but to collectively reflect on how they are built, what they explain, where they diverge, and how they might inform one another. We aim to publish a joint paper on the emerging field of computational consciousness science.

Why this workshop matters

This workshop reflects MESEC’s commitment to building a more collaborative and pluralistic culture in consciousness science. By creating a human-scale environment for serious discussion across perspectives, we hope to foster both conceptual clarity and new forms of collaboration around one of the field’s most promising emerging directions.

Who should apply

This workshop is primarily intended for PhD students and post-docs working with computational approaches to consciousness or related phenomena (e.g., metacognition, attention, working memory, brain modelling in psychiatry, etc). Exceptional undergraduate and Master students will be considered, but the workshop is geared towards more advanced researchers-in-training (please check out MESEC Winter School!).