The first European Congress on Environmental Pathologies (ECEP) will be held in Rouen on 9 – 10 October 2009, in an attempt to alert and help the medical profession as well as pharmacists, biologists, teachers, healthcare engineers and researchers in social sciences understand the relations between health and the environment. The European congress will provide an opportunity for participants to exchange points of view with fellow-members and scientists of international renown on a range of issues, such as emerging pathologies related to climate change; electromagnetic radiation, ecosystem disruption and nanotechnologies and their impact on health; teaching environmental health in Europe, and European environmental health policy.