Monday, June 22

• 10:45-11:30 A practitioner's view on AI ethics: What is our role? Daniel Lau and Prof. Eva Cheng (University of Technology, Australia)

This workshop will help you start your own "AI ethics charter". Bringing perspectives from AI industry professionals working with Machine Learning fairness, join us to find out why metric-based methods such as AI evaluations ("AI evals") make ethical discussions more urgent. This workshop does not require any prior knowledge about how AI or LLMs work, everyone is welcome!

• 13:30–15:30 Programming Mobile Android Applications Prof. Dr. Cristian Ciurea (Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania)

Presentation

• 16:00–17:30 Narratives as infrastructure: Think Tanks, strategic communication, and the information environment of the Russia-Ukraine War Prof. Sasha Molotkova (CEU Universitat Abat Oliba, Spain)

Title: "Narratives as infrastructure: Think Tanks, strategic communication, and the information environment of the Russia-Ukraine War"

Subtitle: "How 0pen-source analytical reports shape what Europe sees, thinks, and decides about hybrid war"

Angle: humanities/social-science view. The session will be framed as the "human and political layer" of the same information ecosystem the cybersecurity colleagues defend at the technical layer. There is a natural bridge: they study attack surfaces in code; I study attack surfaces in narrative.

Opening + framing (8-10 min): title, the project in one breath, and the all-important bridge slide that recasts your work as the "cognitive layer" of the same information environment the cybersecurity people in the room defend. That's the slide that earns this audience's attention. 

Conceptual map (15 min). This is where you do the hybrid war / cognitive war / information environment / strategic narrative conceptual work + the true/false × intent disinformation taxonomy, and strategic narrative as the keystone. 

Empirical heart (25 min): the eight-country sample. 2–3 concrete examples of narrative moves: framing, sourcing patterns, metaphor.

The Berlin connection (10 min). Germany - and Berlin specifically - sits at the receiving end of the Eastern European think-tank discourse. Reports from Warsaw and Vilnius are read in the Bundestag, in Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, by German journalists. 

Discussion / workshop element (15–20 min). Two short paragraphs from two different think-tank reports on the same event. Task: identify framing, attribution patterns, implied audience, what is not said. Then 10 minutes of group discussion. 

Close (5 min). A takeaway, invitation to collaborate, materials.

Tuesday, June 23

• 08:45–10:15 Entry into the Social VR platform Hiram Bollaert (University of Applied Sciences and Arts Antwerpen, Belgium)

Soft introduction to Social VR and immersive presentation More information on the ERA+ project about Social VR, introduction into the use of Hubs, the opensource platform for SVR we use, and an easy way for a new manner of presentation (immersive presentation) If possible we'll have a short discussion on the application of SVR for informal activities to facilitate more immersive collaboration during international projects and or to enhance integration and involvement of regular students, or to teach or collaborate No need for technical background Connection to internet on cellphone is sufficient, but access to computer (laptop) with mouse is best setup Take away= participants leave with the possibility to use the 'immersive presentation' way of presenting, and have access to a series of ready to use virtual rooms, and a broad idea of applications of SVR

• 10:30–12:00 Deeper into the Social VR Hiram Bollaert (University of Applied Sciences and Arts Antwerpen, Belgium)

Deeper into Social VR, play with avatars and facilitate informality Still no technical background is necessary, but some digital literacy can be of help Mind, participants need to have access to internet and laptop with mouse We'll explore a little bit a more technical approach towards Hubs, using its 3D editor. Have a brief look at MUDXR, a branch of Hubs and perhaps also visit Overte (a German opensource platform for SVR which is way more complicated) We'll also experiment with avatars, and how they offer new dimensions to express one's state of mind Take away= participants will have the knowledge to build their own 'room' using MUDXR (maybe also, limited (as I'm currently paying for the instance), in Hubs), have a good idea on how to customize an avatar and maybe (depending on their digital literacy) tailor an avatar even more. And we'll have some discussions on the application of avatars in education and digital didactics, how to empower students into effectively and efficiently use SVR.

Wednesday, June 24

• 08:30–10:00 Governance of Artificial Intelligence Prof. Mohamed Makhlouf (ESSCA, France)

Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming the way organizations operate, communicate, and make decisions. While AI offers significant opportunities for innovation, productivity, and value creation, it also raises critical questions related to ethics, accountability, transparency, risk management, and human oversight. This interactive seminar explores AI not only as a technological innovation but as an organizational transformation that affects work processes, leadership models, and human collaboration. Bringing together perspectives from computer science, business, and communication, the session examines how organizations can move beyond experimentation toward the responsible and strategic adoption of AI.
Participants will discover practical frameworks for AI governance, including key principles such as ethical design, risk management, human-in-the-loop approaches, data governance, and performance measurement. Through real-world examples and a collaborative workshop, attendees will design a responsible AI policy for an international university, identifying use cases, risks, governance mechanisms, and relevant key performance indicators.
The seminar aims to foster interdisciplinary dialogue and equip participants with practical tools to ensure that AI systems remain aligned with organizational goals, societal values, and human needs.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, AI Governance, Ethics, Human-Centered AI, Digital Transformation, Responsible Innovation, Human-AI Collaboration, Organizational Strategy.
Learning Outcomes: By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
Understand the organizational implications of AI adoption; Identify key ethical, operational, and governance challenges; Apply AI governance frameworks; Define mechanisms for human oversight and accountability; Select relevant indicators for responsible AI implementation.

• 12:45–13:45 Unpacking power and privilege in technology development  Prof. Eva Cheng (University of Technology Sydney, Australia)

Join me to explore how societal structures of power and privilege can perpetuate systemic, sociocultural inequities and marginalisation in technology development. How can we become more aware of this in our teams, organisations, and the technologies we design to action sociotechnical intersectional inclusion? This workshop is open to all areas of study!

• 14:00–15:00 Corotational Beam Splines: An Energy-Efficient Approach to Interpolation, Smoothing, Curve Matching, and Path Finding  Dr. Roman Mazuryk (The National Technical University of Ukraine, Ukraine)

Interpolation problems involve constructing optimal curves by specifying a sequence of relatively sparse points. This area of study is fundamental to many fields, ranging from computer graphics and computer-aided design to trajectory planning for autonomous robots and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Historically, the theory of splines originated in geometric design, where physical elastic beams were used, the shape of which was determined by special weights. Subsequently, methods for calculating elastic beams formed the basis for the mathematical construction of curves, particularly in the work of Holiday. 

In modern systems, parametric curves such as B-splines and Bézier splines are predominantly used. However, such curves are often unable to independently control maximum curvature and ensure high aesthetic fairness. To achieve smoothness, they must undergo additional optimization procedures, which are very often based on mechanical analogies to the deformation energy of beams.

An effective solution to this problem is the use of the two-dimensional corotational beam spline (CBS) method. The CBS operates on clothoid segments, but its construction boils down to a straightforward algorithmic procedure based on the Fowler–Wilson pseudospline. Studies show that 2D-CBS satisfies the most important requirements for ideal splines: extensionality (preservation of shape when adding points to an existing curve), roundness (accurate reproduction of a circle), monotonicity of curvature, and a high level of continuity. Since the CBS generates a clothoid spline with high energy efficiency, its mathematical generalization to three-dimensional space and its application in the field of interpolation, smoothing, curve matching, and path finding shows high potential of further research and application of the method.

• 15:30-16:00 Women in NATO: A comparative Analysis Lt Iwona Szkudlarek, PhD (Eng.) (The Karkonosze University of Applied Sciences, Poland)

The presentation explores the evolving role of women within the North Atlantic Alliance through a multi-faceted analytical lens. It begins with a quantitative and statistical analysis of female participation across various NATO member states, highlighting current trends and disparities. Next, the study evaluates the specific tools utilized to build gender awareness and equity, assessing the effectiveness of their implementation. To provide deeper qualitative context, the analysis examines the key factors influencing the career trajectories of female officers, drawing on original research conducted within the Polish Armed Forces from the book Women Defence Secuirty (Kobiety Obronność Bezpieczeństwo). Concluding with actionable insights, the presentation offers strategic recommendations and best practices aimed at fostering greater gender integration and institutional support across the alliance.

• 16:00-16:45 Navigating Between Black Swans - From a First-Year Student to a Researcher Educating the Next Generation of Engineers  Dr. Cezary Makarewicz (Łukasiewicz Research Network, Poland)

When I chose my field of study in 2009, the European labor market offered relatively stable industrial structures, predictable career paths, and limited global competition. Concepts such as remote work, recurring systemic crises, or rapid deindustrialization played only a marginal role in discussions about engineering education. Over the past fifteen years, however, global events, technological shifts, and economic disruptions have profoundly changed the conditions under which today’s engineering graduates enter the labor market.
This presentation reflects on these changes through the lens of a personal professional trajectory spanning academic research, project management in the automotive industry, and applied research within the Łukasiewicz Research Network. By comparing entry into the automotive sector in 2016 with project acquisition and industry collaboration attempts in 2023, the talk highlights increasing uncertainty, intensified cost pressure, and structural barriers affecting both companies and academic institutions.

Against this backdrop, the presentation argues that traditional engineering education models—largely focused on memorization, standardized assessment, and stable industrial scenarios—are becoming insufficient. As repetitive, process-driven manufacturing roles continue to decline in Europe, greater emphasis should be placed on adaptability, resilience, creativity, teamwork, and problem-oriented thinking. Referring to broader European strategic analyses, the talk concludes with a discussion of the responsibility of universities not only to teach technical knowledge, but also to openly inform students about the realities of the labor market they are about to enter and to prepare them for continuous change rather than long-term stability.

• 16:45–17:15 Vibe Modeling in Education Prof. Dr. Jamal Al Qundus (German Jordanian University, Jordan)

Students are already using LLMs for homework; should we ignore it, ban it, or teach with it? This talk explores Vibe Modeling, a recent approach where LLMs generate models (e.g., UML diagrams) instead of code, followed by deterministic processing. The core educational question is: Can we use Vibe Modeling in education? What do students learn and what do they miss?