On the occasion of the BUT Scientific Board meeting on Friday, 19 January 2024, a year-long celebration was launched, during which the oldest university in Brno will commemorate 125 years since its establishment. As part of the celebrations, the university is planning more than twenty events which will be linked by a topic of fundamental importance for the future of the Czech Republic and the European Union. The topic is technical education and its key role in training future professionals and leaders in technology and innovation.
The beginnings of Brno University of Technology (BUT) date back to 19 September 1899, when the Imperial and Royal Czech Technical University in Brno, now known as Brno University of Technology, was established. Over more than a century, the university has evolved from humble beginnings in rented classrooms into an internationally renowned educational and research institution. Its history is intertwined with personalities such as Armin Delong, Bohuslav Fuchs and Otto Wichterle. Its honorary doctors include Nikola Tesla, Tomáš and Jan Antonín Bat'a, and the first two Czechoslovak presidents T. G. Masaryk and Edvard Beneš.
Today, BUT is achieving excellence not only in traditional engineering fields, but also in areas that are the technologies of the future, such as semiconductor technology, microscopy, space and aerospace technology, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, as well as environmental engineering and the circular economy. With representation from the arts, architecture and design, the university can offer a bridge between the technical and artistic worlds, developing creativity in technical research and education in a unique way. What many consider to be the distant future is currently being developed at Brno University of Technology.
The Jubilee is not just an occasion to reflect on the past but also an opportunity to present the visions and themes that shape the current and future direction of the university. One of the most crucial themes is the significance of technical education for the development of technological excellence and competitiveness, not only for the Czech Republic, but also for the European Union.
“We want to highlight what technical education means for the Czech Republic, one of the most industrialised countries in the European Union. Technical universities, such as BUT, are an essential source of personnel capacity for industry, including creative industry, and thus a contributor to the competitiveness and economic prosperity of national economies, and therefore also the EU economy. Competitiveness today is built on knowledge and innovation. It is one of the great challenges for technical higher education, but also for countries whose economies base their competitive potential on industry, to think in the context of their strategic development about how to support technical education, which is what enables the knowledge and innovation potential of the national economy to develop. Therefore, the theme of its promotion became the main message of the university's anniversary celebrations. This is the only way to turn technological visions into reality,” explains the rector of BUT Ladislav Janíček.
BUT has been promoting technical education for a long time and is taking concrete steps to connect key participants. One example is the round table on technical education, which was held at the university with the participation of representatives of the state administration, leading Czech universities, and representatives of the hi-tech industry.
This discussion meeting will be followed by several international events organised by BUT, which will address the issue of technical education from a European perspective. In April, there will be a meeting of the Learning and Teaching Task Force of the European research network of prestigious technical universities CESAER, where its members will discuss the future of technical education. Then, in May, BUT will host the General Assembly of the European University EULiST, which consists of ten predominantly technically oriented European universities. Both events are planned as a key preparation for the upcoming International Conference on Technical Education in autumn.
More information can be found in the press release or on the website but.cz/125
Source: vut.cz/en
