Nature or nurture: How does the birth environment of planets shape their properties and habitability?

Planets, including the ones in our Solar System, form within disks of gas and dust around young stars. For a long time, these planet-forming disks were assumed to evolve in isolation. However, recent observations and simulations suggest that disks continue to interact with their environments. In particular, interactions with nearby young stars and star-forming clouds can drastically affect the properties of disks and therefore, of the planets they form. We will organize an international conference to discuss the impact of these processes on disks, a timely need given the rapid growth of this field. This will allow the community to assess the current state of the field and coordinate future efforts.

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