From 7 to 15 September 2024, Germany will be the official host country of the 88th Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF). The event, which is regarded as the most important trade and public fair in Greece, provided the festive setting for the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between OTH Regensburg and the University of Ioannina (Panepistímio Ioannínon).
Vice President Prof. Dr Oliver Steffens and Prof. Dr Georgios Raptis, International Representative of the Faculty of Computer Science and Mathematics, travelled to Greece for the event. In the presence of the German Consul General in Thessaloniki, Monika Frank, as well as several guests of honour and representatives from other Greek universities, Rector Batistatou explained in her speech to mark the university's 60th anniversary that the agreement opens up new opportunities for exchange, both for students and lecturers as well as for research. It became clear that the bilateral agreement is also an important first step towards establishing the EU-funded European university alliance ARTEMIS.
As Vice President Prof. Dr Steffens emphasised in his contribution, ARTEMIS, as a strategic alliance of eight universities from France, Greece, Germany, Italy, Romania, Estonia, Norway and Belgium as well as two associated partner universities in Ukraine, is to create a European campus with over 130,000 students and more than 10,000 employees, which will focus on the key areas of research and transfer, environment and energy, medicine and health, agriculture, circular economy, law and art. Inclusive and equal access to technology and mobility, regardless of income and location, is a key objective. ‘For our students, studying abroad means developing intercultural skills. It promotes open-mindedness and the ability to communicate across borders, to promote freedom and values. In times when democracy - a Greek invention! - is under attack, freedom of opinion and equal opportunities are under threat, we must act,’ said Vice President Prof Dr Steffens.
In the following days, Vice President Steffens, accompanied by Professor Raptis, visited the university in Ioánnina and held talks with Vice President Prof Dr Xenophon Bitsikas and professors from the fields of applied mathematics, computer science, materials and natural sciences, medical technology and architecture. The aim is to establish cooperation in teaching and research by networking colleagues. In addition to student exchanges, staff mobility is also to be promoted.
