IWISC-1: 1st International Workshop on Incremental Safety Culture

Purpose and Character of IWISC-1 

The First International Workshop on Incremental Safety Culture (IWISC-1) marks the formal launch of an international, practice-led initiative focused on how safety, resilience, and performance are actually improved in complex socio-technical systems — incrementally, locally, and often invisibly. 

Rather than positioning itself as a conventional academic conference, IWISC-1 is deliberately designed as a small, invitation-oriented working meeting, grounded in real operational exprience and sustained dialogue. The workshop follows a simple principle: long discussions, interrupted by short presentations, rather than the reverse. 

Participation
will be limited to approximately 50 delegates, ensuring depth of engagement and shared reflection. 

Dates and Structure 

• Tuesday 23 June 2026 (evening); Informal welcome and conference dinner at venue - IDA Conference Roof Top Restaurant
• Wednesday 24 June 2026 (full day): Workshops, facilitated discussions, and panel-based reflection 

Venue 

The workshop will be hosted at IDA Conference (The Danish Society of Engineers).
IDA Conference Centre, Kalvebod Brygge 31–33, Central Copenhagen, Denmark 

The venue sits directly on Copenhagen’s harbourfront, within easy walking distance of Copenhagen Central Station and the Tivoli Gardens. It offers modern conference facilities designed for dialogue-based meetings rather than large lecture
formats. 

Copenhagen is renowned for its public transport infrastructure, including a fully automated metro system operating at high frequency. Several comfortable and affordable hotels are located nearby, including Wakeup Bernstorffsgade, Tivoli Hotel, Copenhagen Island and the Copenhagen Marriott Hotel adjacent to the venue. 

Seasonal and Cultural Context 

Participants should note that June 21 is the summer solstice, bringing exceptionally long daylight hours. On June 23, sunset is close to 22:00, creating a distinctive evening atmosphere followed by few hours of white night before sunrise at 04:26. 

June 23 is also Saint John’s Eve (Sankt Hans Aften), traditionally celebrated in Denmark with bonfires and communal gatherings. Delegates are encouraged — after the conference dinner — to experience these celebrations, including those at Tivoli Gardens, which are within walking distance of IDA. 

Hosts and Facilitators 

IWISC-1 will be hosted by Erik Hollnagel, with featured facilitation and thought leadership from:  

• Tom McDaniel 
• Nippin Anand 

Together, they bring long-standing experience in safety science, organisational learning, and applied resilience practice. 

Workshop Format (24 June) 

The day will consist of four themed workshops, each built around:  

• Short framing inputs from invited contributors 
• Facilitated group discussion panel reflection drawing on participant experience 

 The emphasis throughout will be on work-as-done, concrete examples, and the practical conditions under which incremental improvements emerge, persist, or fail. Rather than producing polished “best practice” statements, the workshops are intended to surface:  

• Tensions, trade-offs, and local adaptations 
• Mechanisms of learning that operate below formal programmes 
• Conditions that enable or inhibit incremental safety improvement 

Who Should Attend 

IWISC-1 is intended for:  

• Safety professionals and operational leaders 
• Researchers working in Safety-II, resilience engineering, and systems thinking 
• Regulators and policy specialists interested in learning-oriented approaches 
• Practitioners with concrete experience of incremental change in complex systems 

 Delegates are expected from across Europe and beyond. 

Participation will be by expression of interest, aligned with the workshop’s interactive format. 

Why Attend IWISC-1 

Participants will:  

• Engage directly with the emerging science and practice of incremental safety culture 
• Contribute to shaping an international research-practice agenda from its outset 
• Take part in sustained dialogue with peers facing similar systemic challenges 
• Help develop methods that strengthen resilience, safe performance, quality, and productivity — without resorting to simplistic control or compliance narratives 

By the time of IWISC-1, two major publications will provide a shared conceptual foundation:  

• Hollnagel, E. & Slater, D.(Eds.) Incremental Safety Practices. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
  A collected volume documenting incremental safety practices from multiple domains and countries. 
• Hollnagel, E. Decremental and Incremental Safety Cultures: Safety-I and Safety-II Revisited. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
  A textbook-style treatment of the scientific and theoretical foundations of incremental safety. 

Price in DKK (approximate price in Euro)

Standard ticket including breakfast, lunch, refreshments:

• Early-bird rate unti 15 April (inclusive): 2.900 kr (€390)
• Regular rate from 16 April: 3.500 kr (€470)

Student ticket including breakfast, lunch, refreshments:

• Early-bird rate unti 15 April (inclusive): 745  kr (€100)
• Regular rate from 16 April: 1.490kr (€200)

Pre-conference dinner 23 June: 560 kr (€75)

Download The Incremental Safety Manifesto

Additional material is available via www.incrementalsafety.com

Organizers: IDA Risk / IDA Ingeniørforeningen and Cambrensis Ltd. in collaboration with DSKS (Dansk Selskab for Kvalitet i Sundhedssektoren) and SimTrans

Hotels nearby include: 

Wakeup Hotel (300 m walk from IDA Conference): https://www.wakeupcopenhagen.com/#/

 Copenhagen Island (700 m walk from IDA Conference): https://www.copenhagenisland.com/

Tivoli Hotel (500 m walk from IDA Conference):  https://www.tivolihotel.com/

Marriott Hotel (300 m walk from IDA Conference): https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/cphdk-copenhagen-marriott-hotel/overview/

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Danish:

IWISC‑1: 1st International Workshop on Incremental Safety Culture

Den første internationale workshop om inkrementel sikkerhedskultur

Workshoppen markerer den formelle lancering af en international, praksisbaseret indsats med fokus på, hvordan sikkerhed, resiliens og performance i komplekse socio‑tekniske systemer faktisk forbedres — inkrementelt, lokalt og ofte usynligt.

Formål og karakter

Den første internationale workshop om Incremental Safety Culture (IWISC‑1) markerer begyndelsen på en international, praksisdrevet indsats med fokus på, hvordan sikkerhed, resiliens og ydeevne i komplekse systemer forbedres gradvist, lokalt og ofte uden for det formelle blik.

I modsætning til en traditionel akademisk konference er IWISC‑1 bevidst udformet som et lille, invitation‑orienteret arbejdsforum forankret i reel driftspraksis og vedvarende dialog. Formatet bygger på princippet: lange samtaler afbrudt af korte oplæg – ikke omvendt.

Deltagelse

Begrænses til ca. 50 deltagere for at sikre fordybelse og fælles refleksion.

Datoer 

• Tirsdag den 23. juni 2026 (aften): Uformel velkomst og konference-middag på IDA Conference Roof Top Restaurant
• Onsdag den 24. juni 2026 (heldag): Workshops, faciliterede drøftelser og panelrefleksioner

Venue

Workshoppen afholdes hos: IDA Conference Centre, Kalvebod Brygge 31–33, København K

Stedet ligger direkte ved Københavns havnefront, i gåafstand fra Hovedbanegården og Tivoli, og tilbyder moderne faciliteter designet til dialogbaserede møder frem for store forelæsningsformater.

København er kendt for sin kollektive trafik, inkl. et fuldautomatisk metrosystem, der kører med høj frekvens. Der ligger flere gode og prisvenlige hoteller i nærheden, herunder Wakeup Bernstorffsgade, Tivoli Hotel, Copenhagen Island og Copenhagen Marriott.

Sæson og kulturel kontekst

Deltagere bør være opmærksomme på, at 21. juni er sommersolhverv, med meget lange dage.

Den 23. juni går solen ned omkring kl. 22:00 og står op igen kl. 04:26.

23. juni er også Sankt Hans Aften, traditionelt fejret i Danmark med bål og fællesskaber. Deltagerne opfordres til – efter middagen – at opleve disse fejringer, fx i Tivoli, som ligger i gåafstand.

Værter og facilitatorer

IWISC‑1 vil blive ledet af Erik Hollnagel, med facilitering og fagligt bidrag fra:

• Tom McDaniel
• Nippin Anand

De bringer mange års erfaring inden for sikkerhedsvidenskab, organisatorisk læring og anvendt resilienspraksis.

Workshopformat (24. juni)

Dagen består af fire tematiske workshops, hver bygget op omkring:

• Korte indledende oplæg fra inviterede bidragydere
• Faciliterede gruppedrøftelser
• Panelrefleksion baseret på deltagernes erfaringer

Fokus er på work‑as‑done, konkrete eksempler og de praktiske betingelser for, at inkrementelle forbedringer opstår, består eller fejler.

Formålet er ikke at skabe polerede ”best practice”-dokumenter, men at tydeliggøre:

• Spændinger, trade‑offs og lokale tilpasninger
• Læringsmekanismer under de formelle systemer
• Forhold der understøtter eller hæmmer inkrementelle forbedringer

Hvem bør deltage

IWISC‑1 henvender sig til:

• Sikkerhedsprofessionelle og driftsledere
• Forskere inden for Safety‑II, resiliens og systemtænkning
• Regulatorer og policy‑specialister med fokus på læringsorienterede tilgange
• Praktikere med konkret erfaring i inkrementelle forandringer i komplekse systemer

Hvorfor deltage

Deltagerne vil:

• Indgå direkte i den fremvoksende videns‑ og praksisretning om inkrementel sikkerhedskultur
• Bidrage til at forme en international forsknings‑ og praksisagenda fra begyndelsen
• Deltage i dyb dialog med kolleger, der står over for tilsvarende systemiske udfordringer
• Være med til at udvikle metoder, der styrker resiliens, sikker performance, kvalitet og produktivitet — uden at reducere arbejdet til kontrol eller compliance

To større publikationer vil være fælles referencepunkt for workshoppen:

• Hollnagel & Slater (red.): Incremental Safety Practices (Routledge)
• Hollnagel: Decremental and Incremental Safety Cultures: Safety‑I and Safety‑II Revisited (CRC Press)

Priser (DKK / ca. EUR)

Standardbillet inkl. morgenmad, frokost, forplejning - 2.900 kr. (til og med 15. april) / 3.500 kr. (efter 15. april)

Studenterbillet - 745 kr. (til 15. april) / 1.490 kr. (efter 15. april)

Middag 23. juni: 560 kr.

Materiale

Download: The Incremental Safety Manifesto

Mere materiale findes på: www.incrementalsafety.com

Arrangører

IDA Risk / IDA Ingeniørforeningen og Cambrensis Ltd. i samarbejde med DSKS (Dansk Selskab for Kvalitet i Sundhedssektoren) og SimTrans