Public Magazine 2020

Collaboration with partners & NGOs BEST vs Pandemic

Training sessions and the development of our initiatives

BEST Values Tips & Tricks from the company representatives The development of our services BEST as a Career Booster

WELCOMING WORDS FROM THE BOARD Dear Reader,

Since the founding of BEST, the world has changed considerably and at an increasingly fast pace. The past years, in particular, have sometimes seemed like a sequence of technological and societal revolutions. At least, until we all were called to a halt early this year. For a while, mankind was forced to stop and take a breath.

As unfortunate as the global situation was, and still is, it is without a doubt that we are regaining momentum and that we are once again taking considerable steps in the direction of innovation. Rather than having stood still, people everywhere have pivoted and have used this opportunity to get ahead.

That is also what we have been doing in BEST. Within days only, new initiatives popped up all over our organisation, as a proof of the limitless imagination of our diverse, yet like-minded, community. Rather than spoiling the surprise, we will let you discover for yourself how BEST has changed in the past months.

Technology students are in a key position to solve the challenges confronting us today and in the future, and to make the post-COVID world more focused on sustainable development.

As BEST, we are ready to continue doing our part in empowering students to face these čĻðŘŘěţĴěƞʅ ŀţʅ ðʅ ĴŘůČðŘʅ čůţƪěǐƪɋʅ ČǑʅ ůȁěƖŀţĴʅ ƪĻěšʅ ƞěŘijɮĔěNJěŘůƓšěţƪʅ ůƓƓůƖƪƲţŀƪŀěƞʅ ðţĔʅ ČǑʅ promoting intercultural understanding.

We warmly invite you to turn the (digital) page to learn about our activities of the past year ðţĔʅƪůʅĴŘŀšƓƞěʅƲƓůţʅNjĻðƪʅNjěʅĻðNJěʅƪůʅůȁěƖʅijůƖʅƪĻěʅƲƓčůšŀţĴʅǑěðƖƞɐʅ

Enjoy!

The XXXIII International Board of BEST

1

BEST Introduction 1

Welcoming Words

4

Editor’s Article

5

Public Magazine History

6

What is BEST?

10

Departments

12

Regional Division

14

Development of our IT Systems

16

Hackathons as a service

BEST Events

2

BEST Courses

20

European BEST Engineering Competition

22

BEST Career Centre

24

Training Network in BEST

26

BEST Symposia on Education

28

International Projects’ Forum

29

Education 32

A-STEP 2030

33

UNESCO Futures of Education

33

Aalborg survey

34

Local Events on Education

BEST vs Pandemic TiGro Quarantine

38

BEST Virtual Summit

39

Online General Assembly

41

How our members see BEST 45

How our members see BEST

Our partners Atos

57

Nestlé

61

ABB

62

BEST’s External Relations 64

Student NGO partners

71

Youth NGO consortia

73

Engineering education partners

Credits Credits

75

3

EDITOR’S ARTICLE Dear Reader, In the previous year we presented the first edition of Public Magazine of BEST, which replaced the Annual Reports that BEST had been publishing for the past years. The change aimed to have a wider range of content than previous Annual Reports. This way we want the Magazine to be more recognisable in the STEM world, especially to our stakeholders.

Now, one year after the first publication we are presenting the second edition of the Public Magazine. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak and its effect on our organisation, with the new issue of the Magazine, we wanted to bring BEST together. To unite BEST which has been divided by the pandemic restrictions and limitations. Despite them, we still remained ourselves - BESTies who love to connect to each other and to create outstanding things together.

In the Magazine, we desire to show how all of us perceive BEST, what makes us so special and also how as an organisation we managed to adapt to the current situation because for us it’s neither easy nor comfortable.

Of course this Magazine wouldn’t have been possible without the effort of many BESTies and I would like to give special thanks to my amazing team that gave their all during the past few months. They are: Content Directors:

Designers:

Claudia Andrea Cojan, BEST Cluj-Napoca

Apostolia Gatsiou, BEST Thessaloniki

Ayca Yaren Yavuzer, BEST Ankara

Eva Caballero Carbajo, BEST Madrid Carlos III

Proofreaders:

Partners Responsible:

Bogdan Andrei Baltes, BEST Madrid Carlos III

Eystathios Vezyris, BEST Chania

Joao Rafael Filipe, BEST Almada

We hope you enjoy it!

Best wishes, Krystian Matlosz Editor of the Magazine BEST Wrocław

4

PUBLIC MAGAZINE HISTORY Last year, we took a bold step and produced the first edition of Public Magazine with the effort of a creative team. Needless to say, they worked hard, but never forgot to create unforgettable memories. Let's recreate that amazing adventure through their words.

Alekos, Editor: “For me coordinating this pilot project was an amazing experience, full of risks, creative decision making and basically shaping something from scratch! Seeing the magazine being printed was basically like giving birth to your goals, aspirations and of course our effort as a team.”

Emre, Content Director: “I'm so proud of being part of the first Public Magazine Crew. We all had great times together and improved ourselves through the project. At the beginning of the project, I was like a fish out of water but when time passed by, I felt like everyone was there to help each other. That feeling was just so fantastic! I'll always remember our memories with great pleasure. See you somewhere around Europe!”

Vasilis, Partners Responsible: “Being part of this project was really an honor for me. Even 100 pages could not do justice to all the hard work that is provided by BESTies throughout the year but I believe the result gave a really good representation of what we are able to achieve as an organization.”

Domen, Proofreader: “It's great to see that an organisation so large and diverse in people and activities can be summed up so well in one single publication. Being able to use my skills and interests to showcase our shared vision was a unique opportunity.”

Marta, Designer: “The Public Magazine of BEST was my first international project. It was not only exciting because I was working with people all over Europe, but also because we were building the very first edition! We were able to decide the sections, articles and of course the visual identity, which I was responsible for. I was lucky enough to work alongside a great team, which made everything easier. It was a great experience!”

5

WHAT IS BEST? Firstly,

we

education

provide

complementary

integrating

universities

already

the provide,

one

our

bringing

knowledge ever closer to the students in need from all over Europe. Our most notable service on this is the organisation The Board of European Students of

of around one hundred BEST Courses per

Technology, also known as BEST, came to

year, gathering students from several

existence in April 1989. It has been 31 years

different backgrounds.

that BEST has been connecting students of technology from all over Europe. Currently,

Secondly, BEST offers itself to be a

we are composed of 93 Local BEST Groups

platform for educational involvement. To

(LBGs) from 34 countries. BEST has

do this, we gather students, academy and

developed itself to be a center for

industry’s input on how education should

innovation in the educational field and

be improved, so that solutions can be

student support, and also organised to

proposed to higher education institutions.

work for a million students from the hundred universities that we take part in.

Thirdly and lastly, BEST acts as a network

BEST works to ensure that students are

between

able to apply their full potential in a

students, so opportunities of collaboration

culturally diverse environment and, to

can be found and also provides career

achieve this, we constantly strive to find

support to our students so they can get

new and disparate opportunities for the

closer to their future careers.

development of students of technology.

The focus of the organisation has revolved around three main areas.

6

the

industry,

academy

and

Following

the

vision

“Empowered

Our actions are inspired by our values.

diversity”,

we

provide

complementary

Through flexibility, we are open to quickly

education through BEST Courses and

respond to changes. We always aim for

Competitions, adding value to formal

improvement by continuously raising the

education

unique

standards in everything we do. We value

opportunity to learn through experience.

friendship through building good personal

That’s how the mission of our organisation,

relations and supporting teamwork. We

“Developing students'', reaches its full

strive to help students become more

meaning, by giving students the chance to

internationally minded by learning and

study and gain both practical knowledge

having fun in every area where we exist.

and self-improvement, all in a multicultural

That, however, is not where we stop, since

environment.

international

we believe in continuous improvement and

involvement, students lower their cultural

growth. And we will for the years to come.

barriers

and

Providing BEST services to over 1.200.000

understand different ways of thinking. All

students from all around Europe wouldn't

of our work is done for students and by

be possible without highly motivated and

students. Through the engagement of our

devoted BEST members. For us, the

members, we provide services that aim to

members, every single corner of Europe is

broaden

our home, and we are a huge family.

and

and

the

of

creating

Through

learn

to

horizons

students of technology.

a

respect

of

European

7

INTERNA BOA

SENNE MEEUSEN

DANIEL ANS

PRESIDENT

8

SECRE

EGEMEN NAS

PAULINA KOPTON

VICE-PRESIDENT FOR

VICE-PRESIDENT FOR

HUMAN RESOURCES

SERVICES

ATIONAL ARD

SIA DIBUJA

WALID G. H. SAAD

ETARY

TREASURER

IFIGENEIA SIDERI

OSVALDO GONZALEZ

VICE-PRESIDENT FOR

VICE-PRESIDENT FOR LOCAL

PROJECTS

GROUP SUPPORT

9

DEPARTMENTS

Competitions Department

Grants Department

Coordinator: Sara Nagy

Coordinator: Alex Contreras

The

purpose

of

the

Competitions

The Grants Department cooperates with

Department is to provide support and

funders in order to ensure ďŹ nancial

develop Competitions and its services,

support for BEST through grants.

according to the needs of BEST, to offer a quality service to our stakeholders.

Information Technology Department

Corporate Relations Department

Coordinator: Tom Mahieu

Coordinator: Valentin Pereira

The Information Technology Department

Corporate Relations Department supports

is a body of BEST that listens to the IT

the Treasurer in providing the resources for

needs

BEST International in order to work and

concepts of applications, implements the

reach the goals of the organization. The

systems and provides technical resources

main fundraising projects for CRD are

and services, in order to support the whole

General Meetings and EBEC.

organisation in achieving its goals and visions.

10

of

the

organisation,

develops

Design Department

increase

Coordinator: Gergana Georgieva

involvement

Design Department is here to provide

gather their input on educational matters

design materials for the needs of BEST in

and disseminate it to relevant Higher

order to maintain and strengthen the

Education stakeholders.

image of the organisation.

students’ on

awareness

educational

and

matters,

Training Department

Public Relations Department

Coordinator: Csaba Kun

Coordinator: Elif Yildiran

The Training Department aims that BEST

The Public Relations Department monitors,

members grow and contribute to the

builds and maintains the external image of

organisation in an effective way, enabling

BEST by building strong relations with the

it to reach its goals, by maintaining and

media and relevant public.

developing the training system of BEST.

Educational Involvement Department

Vivaldi Department

Coordinator: Silvia Marogel

The purpose of the Vivaldi Department is

The

purpose

of

the

Educational

Involvement Department of BEST is to

Coordinator: Irene Sanlorenzo

to supervise and support the organisation of BEST Courses.

11

REGIONAL DIVISION Reykjavik

After four years without changing the Regional Division, the XV generation of Regional Advisers (RAs) worked on a new one, which is presented above. It is important to modify the Regional Division regularly to enable LBGs to discover new cultures, new ideas and new BESTies. This Regional Division has been thought according to the following criteria:

Diversity: The vision of BEST is “Empowered Diversity”. Regions’ purpose is to fulfill this idea. As it is shown on the map, the new Regions thrive to gather LBGs from multiple countries with various profiles. Diversity can make the strength of the Region itself as it creates enriching exchanges between BESTies.

Accessibility: In order to encourage these exchanges within the Region, it was crucial to ensure that the LBGs of one Region can easily be connected to each other by low-price and short journeys, without too many constraints.

Size: The number of LBGs in one Region is between 8 and 10 LBGs. In case of a higher amount, it would become difficult for an RA to provide support

Porto Aveiro Coimbra Lisbon Almada

effectively and equally to all its LBGs.

Madrid Carlo

Balance: Finally, in each Region, some bigger and smaller LBGs are put together in order to increase the sharing of good practices and make all LBGs grow.

Here is the 15th generation of Regional Advisers - XVdRA: REGION 01 SUZANNA MICHAILIDI

12

REGION 02 FEZA ULUDUZ

REGION 03 GALINA ZIZAKOV

REGION 04 OLEKSANDR YAKIMTSEV

REGION 05 JONATHAN VINTS

REGIO ANTO VUL

Trondheim Tampere Helsinki Saint Petersburg

Uppsala

Ekaterinburg

Tallinn Moscow

Ekaterinburg UrFU

Riga Aalborg

Kaunas Copenhagen

Teesside

Gdansk

Warsaw Lodz

Del� Ghent Brussels ULB Louvain-la-Neuve ENSTA Bretange

Paris Polytechnique CentraleSupelec

Liege

Frankfurt

ENSAM Metz ENSTA ParisTech

Gliwice

Prague

Erlangen

Chisinau

Budapest

Graz

Veszprem

Maribor Ljubljana

Zagreb

Milan

Zaporizhzhya

Iasi Cluj-Napoca

Vienna

Lyon

Vinnytsia

Lviv Kosice Bra�slava

Nancy

Grenoble

Krakow

Brno

Zurich

ENSAM Bordeaux

Kiev

Wroclaw

Brussels Leuven Aachen

Brasov Timisoara

Novi Sad

Bucharest

Belgrade

Turin Mostar

Podgorica

Barcelona

Sofia

Skopje

Rome Valladolid

Nis

Rome Tor Vergata

Istanbul

Ankara

Thessaloniki Naples

Madrid

Istanbul Bogazici Istanbul Yildiz

Xanthi

Izmir

os III Isparta

Valencia Patras

Athens

Messina Chania

Las Palmas

ON 06 ONIU LPE

This is the new Regional Division as formed by the XV generation of Regional Advisers

REGION 07 RUTA ZARINA

REGION 08 VIDTHDYAN VEERAVAKARAN

REGION 09 REGION 10 LOUIS JOAO CESBRON LAVAU CUNHA

REGION 11 TERESA SOUSA

13

DEVELOPMENT OF OUR IT SYSTEMS BEST relies on relatively complex IT systems to provide its services and fulďŹ ll its needs. We can be proud of the fact that our collective systems are implemented and managed exclusively by BESTies.

We maintain everything from our hosting

Other essential tools include the Virtual

and mailing servers to the BEST Application

International Plenary (VIP), the integrated

System for our events and the myriad of

HR

functionalities on our intranet - Private Area

International Projects Platform and the

(PA). The backbone of the PA is written in

Training Tool which tracks all trainers and

Java and Makumba - a Java-based

their delivered training sessions.

Tool,

the

Position

Tracker,

the

framework created by a BESTie named

14

Cristian Bogdan exclusively for BEST. PA is,

Since PA lays at the very core of our

in its essence, the link between all online

organisation, the IT Department of BEST is

tools of the organisation. It contains the

constantly working on improving and

Document Archives and the Wiki Pages

expanding its many features. In the past

which together properly store all the written

year we got quite a few improvements.

knowledge of the organisation and make it

The most important ones are the support

available for generations to come.

for dark mode, a redesigned look of the

login page and sidebars, support for

Even though we are very proud of our dear

mobile browsers and the whole application

Makumba, this year we decided to start

system for BEST Virtual Summit. Another

building a new system using modern

improvement of our IT system in the past

technologies. Due to the high level of

year has been the creation of G Suite

sophistication of our system, there have

accounts. As of March 2020, every active

been HR problems in the IT department in

BESTie with a PA account has received a G

the past years and it has become

Suite

domain

unfeasible to continue like this. That's why

best-eu.org. The PA and G Suite accounts

we are currently working on building a

are linked with each other, so that the

whole new version of the PA using newer

changes to the password or personal data

technologies and hosting solutions. It will

on PA, automatically get synced with the G

be available during the next BEST year, so

Suite.

stay tuned for updates from the IT

account

on

our

new

Department!

15

HACKATHONS AS A SERVICE

WHY DID WE DECIDE TO

WHAT IS THE ACTUAL STAGE OF

ORGANISE THEM?

IMPLEMENTATION OF

For the past few years the IT world has

HACKATHONS AS A SERVICE?

become very popular and a lot of

Right now we’re going into the testing

Hackathons, which were organised locally,

phase of the service concept. What this

were noticed in BEST. So after a project

means

called “Research on Competitions”, which

introduced to LBGs and hopefully one or

was conducted in 2017 by Competitions

more events will be organised in order to

Department,

slowly

see it into action and have proper data to

started. In the meantime, a need to

implement changes, make it more feasible

innovate in our core services was identified,

and finally introduce it as an official BEST

which made exploring the possibility of

service.

the

conversation

Hackathons as a BEST service more realistic.

16

is

that

the

concept

will

be

HAVE YOU ALREADY THOUGHT ABOUT

WAYS

TO

IMPLEMENT

THEM ONLINE? Hackathons are relatively easy to be “transferred� to an online environment. The main part of the competition, which is solving the tasks, either way takes place in front of a computer, so you can do them online and still offer a similar experience to the participants. A way to improve them

WHAT HAVE WE DONE SO FAR? For the past two to three years, a lot of discussions have been made revolving around Hackathons as a Service. However, before we moved on with anything, we needed to analyse the actual feasibility of this event as a BEST service. Due to this

would be to include some career-related activities and get the participants in touch with the company world. Companies can also

offer

prizes,

which

are

always

appealing. As for the technical aspect of the event, the most interactive platform so far is Discord.

reason, Hackathons as a Service Project was formed and for six months, a few experienced BESTies paved the way to the creation of a service concept. Now, we are at the stage of having it ready and we are going to test it with the appropriate methods.

17

BEST

COURSES

One of the main services that BEST has

Three types of courses can be found

offered to students for almost 30 years are

depending on the field that they cover:

BEST

BEST Courses on Technology, in which

Courses.

These

courses

cover

modern technological fields as well as

participants

areas

professional knowledge about a specific

like

management.

economics, They

marketing are

or

performed

can

increase

their

field of technology.

throughout the year in different European

BEST Courses on Career Related Skills,

locations where Local BEST Groups are

which have a non-technological focus and

present.

whose aim is to develop personal skills in a variety of topics related with working methods, communication techniques or project management.

BEST Courses on Applied Engineering, where participants put into practice the theoretical knowledge acquired, working in teams and solving specific tasks.

20

All the courses are taught by professionals,

Due to the COVID pandemic, a new kind of

they last around 10 days and between

event has been developed, BEST Online

20-30 students around all Europe can

Courses, which takes the concept of

participate. Participants of these courses

traditional BEST Courses and transforms it

will be able to complement their education

into an online format. In these events, that

(through company visits or by performing

will also cover areas of technology or soft

case studies), learn and take their ďŹ rst

skills, participants’ safety is guaranteed as

steps towards an international career,

they can follow the academical program

increase their international experience and

directly

improve their language skills. At the same

Furthermore, students will still be able to

time, they have fun during the cultural

participate in an international environment

activities performed outside the academic

and

hours and they also have the possibility of

planned by the organisers.

from

perform

their

some

home

cultural

countries.

activities

obtaining ECTS in recognised courses.

21

EBEC WHAT IS EBEC? EBEC (European BEST Engineering Competition) is the Engineering Competition with multiple level challenges and an international environment that allows students with any technology background from all Europe to apply their theoretical knowledge in practical tasks designed by companies and professors.

WHAT OPPORTUNITIES DO OUR PARTICIPANTS

HAVE

DURING/

Develop

Our participants count with the beneďŹ t of

creativity

and

presentation skills; Improve

AFTER THE COMPETITION?

teamwork,

practical

skills,

theoretical

knowledge and English level.

two core services that we offer:

Career Support

Complementary Education Practice and test out the knowledge acquired problems;

in

their

university

on

real

Have relevant experience in the current industry by solving real tasks.

Get closer to the industry’s reality, their way of thinking and working.

22

WHAT DOES THE EBEC PYRAMID LOOK LIKE AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

WHAT WERE THE ONLINE ADAPTATIONS?

EBEC Programme is developed through a

were facing at the beginning of the year,

pyramidal structure and it works as it

we started working on different scenarios

follows:

in which participants would still take part in

Local Rounds (LRs) of EBEC are events

the competition without putting in danger

organised by Local BEST Groups from

their health and respecting the different

different technical universities. On average,

restrictions established in every country.

75 Universities from 33 countries in Europe

According to these conditions, we’ve

host LRs, involving more than 5000

developed an online format for both

students.

categories of EBEC, Case Study and Team

National/Regional Rounds (NRRs) of

Design,

EBEC are organised, on average, in 14

scenarios.

different countries in Europe, gathering

participants of the same team could get

around 600 students. They are the winners

together in the same place and a second

of all LRs that are part of each NRR and

scenario, which was stricter because in this

usually last for 3-5 days.

format, every participant was going to be

The Final Round of EBEC gathers around

competing from home through an online

100 students, which are the winners of the

platform.

NRRs.

We also worked on adapting some

Regarding the pandemic situation that we

working One

under of

two

them

possible in

which

concepts and conditions of the quality 1 Final

14 National & Regional Rounds

management of online competitions.

Finally, we worked together spreading this new adaptation to all people involved through mails, online meetings and some

83 Local Rounds

other approaches.

23

BEST CAREER CENTRE

There

is

a

significant

demand

for

To bridge this gap and follow our mission,

developed and flexible students of science

“Developing Students”, BEST provides a

and technology with a broader range of

service

knowledge. Hard and soft skills are

between students and companies - BEST

acquired during the students’ degrees,

Career Centre (BCC).

that

promotes

the

contact

however; there still is a significant gap between the knowledge that is learned in a

BCC is an online career center, where both

classroom, and the expected performance

companies and universities can share their

from a given job.

job offers and students have the chance to expand

their

range

of

opportunities

through a diverse and broad European network. BCC is divided into Dissemination, CV Database and Webinar.

24

Currently, we have over 65 000 CVs in our database and the numbers are constantly increasing. Last year we received over 5000 new CVs. Webinar - Using an online platform, these events are scheduled and conducted by partners. Webinars can be a seminar or workshop

held

over

the

Internet.

Companies tend to present themselves and

the

company

culture;

propose

discussion groups about solutions to problems that are being studied by the Dissemination dissemination

of

BCC career

allows and

the

company, or demonstrate some of their

study

products or approaches. The webinar is

opportunities, as well as special programs,

aimed

to specific target groups. It consists in the

between our partners with up to 100

career section of BEST’s official website

selected students from all over Europe.

to

provide

online

interaction

and the newsletter sent to subscribers complemented by social media promotion.

Taking into account the changes we are seeing in the current work environment

CV database - In the BEST website,

with the pandemic, we believe this is an

students are able to fill in their profile,

opportunity for students to explore more

which will generate a CV. Their CV can be

and more remote work and to promote

actively used to apply for job offers and

that culture. BCC can also be a tool where

special programs passively when partners

companies can share an online inside view

are looking for candidates in our database

of their work environment and staff,

(companies can target specific groups

increasing everyone’s opportunities and

through their CVs).

value proposals.

25

TRAINING NETWORK IN BEST

TRAINSHOPS, TRAPs, TRAINERS’ MEETINGS, WHAT ARE THOSE AND WHAT IS HAPPENING THERE?

Trainshops allow members to develop

Trainshops are training events for BEST

also allows participants to get to know

volunteers focused on a specific topic.

other BESTies who will work in the same

Currently, trainshops cover 5 different

area and exchange experiences.

themselves in specific working areas of our organisation throughout different training sessions on soft and hard skills. The event

areas, and are distinguished by their unique names: Leadership (bePROUD), Human

But how are these events even possible?

Resources

Relations

Well, first of all, we need a Local BEST

Relations/

Group to host and organise the event. We

(beMORE),

(beKNOWN), Fundraising

Public

Corporate (beRICHER)

and

Design

(Graphic Design Camp).

are always grateful for having some great LBGs

applying

and

showing

their

willingness to host it. Due to the current

26

They usually last six days and are meant

situation and the lack of applications for

for 15-20 participants who will be active in

hosts early on, we only had beMORE11

their LBG for at least one year.

hosted by LBG Patras during the past year.

Last but not least we also want our trainers to

keep

Therefore,

growing we

and

sometimes

developing. organise

Trainers’ Meetings (TRAM) and Training Trainers’ Meetings (T-TRAM). These focus on specific areas of training and make sure we improve and keep specific knowledge in depth within different generations of Trainers. We had two planned events T-TRAM on Session Design in Budapest Other events that were planned to happen but

were

Isparta,

cancelled

are

beRICHER19

bePROUD19 Porto

and

beKNOWN15 Izmir.

and T-TRAM on Personality Types in Bratislava that could not happen in person unfortunately. Furthermore we had a T-TRAM

together

with

trainers

from

another NGO, European Pharmaceutical

Besides a hosting LBG and participants, we also need trainers to deliver trainings at those trainshops, and they usually are

Students'

Association

(EPSA),

and

supported by BEST Brussels on the topic of Adult Learning.

trained to become a Trainer at Trainers Camp

(TRAP).

There,

a

group

of

experienced BESTies are provided with training on soft skills, which helps them consult and train other fellow BESTies after the event in order to help them contribute more effectively to the association. By now we have had the event 31 times, with the most recent TRAP31 hosted by BEST Coimbra.

27

BEST SYMPOSIA ON EDUCATION

BEST Symposia on Education (BSE) are

The outcomes of the discussions are

events

where

international different

students,

professors, industrial

local

and

afterwards gathered in a ďŹ nal report.

experts

from

Through the analysis of different BSE

research

reports, papers are submitted and, when

or

associations, higher education institutions

accepted,

and

conferences

company

representatives

discuss

presented on

to

international

education

European

European Higher Education.

Education (SEFI) Annual Conference, World Education

for

as

educational matters and try to improve

Engineering

Society

such

Engineering

Forum

(WEEF),

Interactive Collaborative Learning (ICL) etc.

BSEs are mainly run by the Educational Involvement

Department

(EduID),

in

cooperation with the Local BEST Group that hosts the event.

28

INTERNATIONAL PROJECTS’ FORUM Winter IPF (wIPF) sessions are in general mostly focused on driving the work of the organisation forward, at least for the year.

That is exactly what happened in wIPF 2020 Istanbul. It was an intense event packed with interesting sessions. Finally, we had the chance to meet face to face with all the people we have worked with for the last six months. That was one of the last events where we had a chance to meet International Projects’ Forums (IPFs) are the second largest internal event in BEST. They gather over 70 people that come from all over BEST - International Board, Coordinators,

International

Teams

Members and people from LBGs just beginning their international journey.

have

different

levels

of

experience and different backgrounds in order to work together on planning, solving pressing issues and creating new ideas.

pandemic started.

On the other hand, Summer IPF (sIPF) was moved online and it was more spread out than wIPF because of that. It was during sIPF that the final touches on the Annual Action Plans were put and initial ideas on

These 70 people come from different countries,

in person on such a large scale before the

how to realise those plans were discussed.

Meeting everyone online is not the same as doing it live. Still, with so many people involved in the same activities at the same time, at moments it was like we were all together - just a few steps apart.

29

A-STEP

2030 In the longer term, we aim to increase awareness of the Engineering profession in Europe, highlighting the critical part that engineers will play in solving global challenges.

We

will

also

promote

excellence in high-level skills development as per the renewed EU agenda for higher education. We will showcase engineering as a valuable and rewarding career, to encourage more diverse students to engage in engineering studies. This project is the ďŹ rst step in an ongoing collaboration between the consortium partners, one A-STEP 2030 will bring long-term beneďŹ ts

which we hope will continue beyond 2030,

to

in

when we can show progress on meeting

addition to the 8 other project target

some of the Sustainable Development

groups at the local, regional and European

Goals (SDGs).

the

participating

organisations

level. It will provide numerous local, national conference workshops,

32

and

international

and

journal

webinars,

events,

In 2019 the main topic in BSEs was

articles,

"Diversity in STEM Education", which is also

webcasts,

a

one of the key interests in A-STEP 2030. In

webpage, studies and reports. In the short

order to gather students' opinions, four

term, we shall highlight the skills and

different Symposia were organised in

competencies required of future Engineers,

Athens, Brno, Skopje and Aveiro, in which

together with a learning activity for broad

the topic of diversity was approached from

dissemination to teach high-quality skills

different angles - cultural, racial and ethnic

and competencies relevant to the labour

diversity,

market and societal needs.

disabilities and gender diversity.

problems

of

students

with

UNESCO FUTURES OF EDUCATION As we strive to raise awareness on educational involvement among students in Higher Education and make sure their input is heard, we joined a global discussion on the future of education. We finalised the written report, which has become the first contribution of BEST to the world's leading education advocator, UNESCO. Our daily environment is changing and along with it, education and learning are also evolving. In today’s world, our schooling system is still far from perfect, in the future we hope for our educational system to be based more on critical thinking, open-mindedness, and more accepting towards diversity.

AALBORG SURVEY In cooperation with Aalborg University, we participated in collecting responses to the survey as an association with a high impact on students across Europe.

We want to thank all of the people who took the time to fill in the survey and helped us achieve three times more answers than we aimed for! All of the input is very valid and it will be used to create positive changes in our educational system.

33

LOCAL EVENTS ON EDUCATION

Local Educational Involvement activities could be considered the local version of BSEs, that allow Local BEST Groups to make an impact in the education of their own universities. While the Educational Involvement Programme of BEST raises awareness and proposes solutions to the European educational issues of STEM students, Local Educational Involvement Activities allow a faster, more speciďŹ c response to the challenges of local STEM students, due to the smaller dimension and targeted topic. In this way, each LBG could make a change on the way education is delivered in their university and, possibly, in other higher education bodies. Other than providing one of the BEST core services, this will also have the beneďŹ t of increasing the recognition inside the university, towards professors, educational bodies, and students. Lastly, it will ease members of the LBG into the beautiful world of Educational Involvement.

34

36

BEST vs PANDEMIC

TIGRO

QUARANTINE

TiGro Quarantine was the first of its kind

The announcement of each round was

and the first complete initiative towards

done by email, further promoted via BEST

online training sessions in BEST. It was

social media and mouth to mouth (in this

quickly crafted and launched from the

case, smartphone to smartphone). There

2019/20 TiGro Management.

was no prior planning done of how the

For the first phase of TiGro Quarantine, training sessions were announced in 3

announcement should happen, other than sending a mail and opening the form.

batches, between the 23rd and the 31st of

Concerning the topics of the training

March.

sessions, they were chosen by the trainers

For the second phase, using the first phase data, it was agreed to have a two part

themselves who could suggest what they were interested in.

Phase 2, from the 13th to the 26th of April

The platform that was provided and used in

and from the 4th to the 16th of May. It had

most of the sessions is a video call program

a one week gap in between, planned in

called Zoom, that offers quite a few extra

order to provide any support and revision

tools like breakout rooms and much more.

changes.

To conclude, some numbers will explain the reach and the impact of the event: 123 sessions

64 LBGs out of 96 were covered

369h delivered

(in the first phase only)

More than 50 unique topics 75

different

trainers and tutors

2300 unique hits on the TiGro Quarantine Private Area page

Thanks to all the trainers and tutors that made this possible!!

38

BEST VIRTUAL SUMMIT What is the best way to predict the future? Co-create it.

A pandemic is a huge adversity with

BVS was an interesting challenge by itself.

tremendous health, social, and economic

We had only 5 weeks to make it happen

consequences. A pandemic is also a

from conception to realization. Dozens of

opportunity. A permission to change, to

volunteers from all over Europe quickly

build back better. COVID-19 highlighted

came together to create an event that

how our world is interconnected and

brought more than 50 prominent speakers

interdependent and how, today more than

from

ever, a brighter future is only possible

Economic Forum and UNDP, universities

through international, cross-generational,

such as ETH Zurich and Politecnico di

and cross-sectoral inclusive cooperation.

Torino, companies such as Atos and JP

BEST thrives to empower diversity. We see challenges as opportunities for a better way forward. As an organisation, and most importantly as young active volunteers, reaction wasn’t merely sufficient. Our belief in the power of youth contribution led us to the creation of BEST Virtual Summit (BVS), a youth-led space for meaningful conversations, inspiration, and value co-creation for young people who decide to take an active role in tackling important societal challenges and defining what is next.

39

institutions

such

as

the

World

Morgan, and organized over 40 sessions for 7 continuous days. The online event, entitled “Beyond The Pandemic”, gathered students, young professionals, thought leaders, universities, companies, and public institutions to network, discuss, inspire and get inspired, and define what’s next in Education, Work, and SDGs. It was a signal for young people to not just undergo the changes, but to help shape them.

The week-long event was not only full of

Looking back at how BEST Virtual Summit

insightful keynotes, hands-on workshops,

was born, developed and lived by the

discussion

volunteers and the stakeholders, it’s a

opportunities

panels

and

between

networking but

reminder of the incredible value of youth

it was concluded with a real case study

civic societies such as BEST and how they

that challenged the attendees to craft a

can drive change in society, instead of

solution for a better inclusion of people

reacting to it. BEST is a fertile environment

with disabilities in the workplace. The case

that encourages young people to go beyond

study was co-developed with Atos, the

their boundaries, embrace the uncertainty

main partner of the event. The event was

of doing work that matters, and show up

sponsored by Atos, InnoEnergy and Isomat

with something generous. BVS might have

and was supported by European Society

not changed the world, but it definitely is a

for Engineering Education (SEFI), European

signal that changing the world is possible,

Federation

starting with ourselves.

of

volunteers,

National

Engineering

Associations (FEANI) and BEST Alumni Network.

40

ONLINE GENERAL ASSEMBLY The General Assembly is the biggest and

happened close to the event and cancelled

most important decision-making event

all the plans, work and arrangements,

of BEST, where the organisation gathers

demanding

to discuss important topics and make

procedures to be devised in a very short

decisions. Representatives from all the Local

period.

BEST Groups together with the International Board and international teams come together to improve our organisation, build the future and choose the people to lead us in the following year.

41

for

a

new

timeline

and

All the sessions, including the elections of the XXXIII International Board, were held during April and May using videoconferencing platforms like Zoom and Google Meet. For a period of a few weeks,

Although originally planned to take place

a lot of presentations and discussions took

in Istanbul in April 2020, the COVID-19

place, where many volunteers from all the

pandemic forced us to cancel this physical

Local BEST Groups were involved, learning

gathering and transfer all the discussions

more things about BEST, providing their

and sessions to an online format. This

input and making decisions for the future

proved to be quite a challenging task since it

of our organisation.

bestathon What is it?

How has it been?

BESTathon is an internal competition of

So far, the three editions have given useful

BEST. So far, its format has been a Case

outcomes which have been analysed by

Study competition and it can vary in its

the relevant international bodies in order

working hours and topics. During live

to be taken into consideration for the

General Meetings it can take up to two

improvement of some areas. For example,

blocks of working hours (four hours in

in GA Krakow the topic of Innovative

total), and the Quarantine Edition, that was

Events was tackled, while in Presidents

done online, lasted 36 hours. The topics are

Meeting Valladolid money flow and the

usually related to the development of BEST

attractiveness of Local BCC were amongst

and they tackle either internal problems or

the topics. Lastly, in the Quarantine Edition,

future opportunities for the organisation.

online alternatives to our services could not be missing.

When does it happen?

Meetings. It started in General Assembly

Do you think about ways to improve it?

Krakow 2019 and so far in GMs there have

BESTathon is a pretty simple competition

been two editions, the first one and another

and so far has been successful, so the

one in Presidents’ Meeting Valladolid 2019.

improvement points are in the details. For

In spring 2020, there was a Quarantine

example, the awareness of it by other

Edition as well. Therefore, the period to do

BESTies might need to increase since it

such an event is around the time of General

usually happens during GMs, so if you’re

Meetings.

not a GM delegate, it’s not very likely you’ll

Usually, it takes place during General

hear about it or its outcomes.

42

43

HOW OUR MEMBERS SEE BEST johannes spaas

In

my

opinion,

the

most

valuable

development coming from being part of BEST or from participating in BEST’s services is the development of one’s world view. Since I joined BEST, I have been able to develop myself in countless ways. Skills I’ve developed include project management, mediation, leadership… None of these, however, have affected me to the same degree as the shift of my perception of the world around me.

BEST helps students to understand and

President of BEST 2020-2021

work with people from different cultural and social backgrounds and offers invaluable

MSc in Engineering Physics University of Ghent

personal development opportunities. In that sense, an alternative interpretation can be given to one of BEST’s core services, namely complementary education: BEST equips students of technology, prepared through academia, to solve the technical challenges we are facing, with the right skill set to work

What does BEST change in your perspective? Which skills have you gained through BEST and how?

45

in international and interdisciplinary teams.

If you ask me, these skills are indispensable for technological students in tackling the challenges of tomorrow.

What is your favourite thing in BEST? I will go with a somewhat cheesy answer here: the BEST Spirit. With every BESTie you meet, whether they are active on a local level, in international teams, or they were previous International Board members, you immediately feel like you share something. What connects us all is this BEST Spirit, which, freely interpreted, is the longing we all have to encourage others to engage in complementary selfdevelopment experiences and to design

What made you stay in BEST and evolve inside the organisation?

I think what made me want to continue in BEST is the many possibilities for contribution

and

for

self-development

BEST offers. With all the different options that are there, both on a local level and on an international level, anyone can find something they’d like to work on and you don’t easily get tired of working in BEST. I guess that’s why I’m still here, and why I’m still enjoying what I do.

these experiences for them. Furthermore, it is the enjoyment, the amicability and the resourcefulness that characterises how we pursue this.

46

HOW OUR MEMBERS SEE BEST daniel ansia dibuja

What does BEST change in your perspective? Which skills have you gained from BEST and how?

Being part of BEST has been one of the most enriching experiences in my life. It shaped and continues shaping my life, interests and professional future.

Thanks to my work in the organisation I have discovered several passions I was not aware of, such as my interests in Law, IT, Information Security, Strategic Planning and Education.

Secretary of BEST 2019-2020 BSc in Industrial Electronics and Automation Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

This organisation completely shaped the way I see the world and the majority of skills I have gained during these recent years. I have evolved several sets of abilities, such as learning how to properly provide feedback to others, being able to talk in public in front of hundreds of people or having the capacity to plan and execute the strategy of an organisation.

47

What is your favourite thing in BEST?

What made you stay in BEST and evolve inside the organisation?

Even though BEST is a great organisation

The great potential for self development

to have fun, meet new people from all over

and for developing others. I have learnt and

Europe and travel, I think that my favourite

continue learning countless things thanks

things about this association are the skills

to this organisation. Having the opportunity

that people can gain by being part of this

to guide others and continue improving

community and the impact that we as an

the association, so its purpose is better

organisation can generate through our

achieved, is a very motivating experience

work.

for me.

It is one of the biggest playgrounds that a curious STEM student can ask for.

That is the case because, firstly, it allows for a fast learning pace and a fast undertaking of responsibilities. How much time would it take for a new employee to be part of the top management of a multinational company? In the case of BEST, not much.

Secondly, the impact that we can generate through the association is enormous. From training thousands of students each year in soft and hard skills, to directly impacting STEM Higher Education at an European level while helping in the creation of an European STEM community. The possibilities are endless.

48

HOW OUR MEMBERS SEE BEST bianca-iulia ionescu

What does BEST change in your perspective? Which skills have you gained from BEST and how?

After three-and-some years, it’s getting difficult to pinpoint one thing - or ten, for that matter. I could go on and on about traveling to dozens of countries with a single backpack, meeting people from different backgrounds and motivations, learning to communicate, mediate, persuade, accept and adjust to ever changing situations, but everyone else talks about that. Above all, BEST has given me a unique worldview,

Public Relations Department Coordinator 2020-2021 MSc in Information and Communication Technologies JoĹžef Stefan International Postgraduate School

49

shared with amazing people from all over Europe, and a conviction that any challenge can be overcome if tackled by enough people working towards the same goal.

What is your favourite thing in BEST? A show of hands for the introverts-turned-

What made you stay in BEST and evolve inside the organisation?

motivators, please. There is a special joy

Once I saw the ease with which people do

that I believe exists in all people if they look

it, it didn’t take me long to open myself to

hard enough, and that joy is bringing others

traveling unknown places with unknown

up. Sharing experiences, knowledge, and

people just for the fun of it. Helping our

motivation with others in a fairly stress-free

local students grow was rewarding for

environment is rewarding in and of itself,

sure, but once I got involved in connecting

but seeing what those people are capable

thousands of students from places I didn’t

of with their newfound confidence is a

even know exist, it was the sheer sense

world-changing force. Seeing how many

of scale that overtook. I became a part

very diverse people can be united in one

of something larger than me, larger than

purpose, one goal, and one shared set of

anything life had prepared me for so far.

amazing experiences - and knowing that

In BEST it doesn’t matter who you are or

fun and learning know no border.

where you come from, because everyone is given this exact same opportunity to discover a better version of themselves and help others do the same. Once you’re in, it’s a chapter of life you can’t see yourself writing an ending to.

50

HOW OUR MEMBERS SEE BEST gregory schlesser

What does BEST change in your perspective? Which skills have you gained from BEST and how?

BEST puts a lot of effort into its events to make them substantial. We set ourselves goals on what to accomplish and what our participants should take from it.

This

goal-oriented

thinking

is

in

the

foreground and makes the organising fun by setting a goal and then figuring out together how to reach it with the resources you have. That’s very much an approach

President of BEST Frankfurt 2018-2021

that engineers use. The difference is that here the goals vary, it is not about resisting certain forces or reaching a certain amount

BSc in Service Engineering Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences

of torque (at least usually it isn’t). We extend this way of thinking and apply it to fields that university might not teach you: How do I negotiate with this company? How will I promote our event? How do I motivate my team?

This approach of using a familiar way of thinking and transmitting it into new elements is a skill that I value every day.

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What is your favourite thing in BEST?

What made you stay in BEST and evolve inside the organisation?

My favourite thing about BEST is the

The different positions with individual

mentality of BESTies. I know, I know, that’s

responsibilities are very interesting and

what every student organisation tells you.

push me to evolve. Each event and every

However, while participating in international

responsibility brings its own challenges

events, I get reminded over and over again,

which you can tackle in your own way but

no matter where the people come from or

with the support of a whole organisation.

how good I know them, we will be able to have a great conversation. Each one has a project they are working on and which they are passionate about. You can see the sparks in their eyes that can only come

I personally love challenges and BEST has a huge amount of them in store while letting you have fun and interacting with people with the same mentality.

from passion for what they do.

52

HOW OUR MEMBERS SEE BEST fabian berreth

Hey hey! I am Fabi from LBG Erlangen. I started my journey in BEST about 4.5 years ago and the way I learned about it was that the local HR at that point approached me while we were in a student lounge and started to tell me about it, so I went to the meeting the week after. Well, here I am now all these years later and still trying to make it to the meetings.

What is your favourite thing in BEST? Soft Skills Trainer BSc in Production Engineering/ Management Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg

The loving, open minded and generally positive atmosphere that I first experienced locally was definitely something that I could and can still see throughout BEST and is something that I love. I definitely felt welcome in every single meeting and activity. The energy and motivation that I get at BEST events is something unmatched and made me discover new parts of myself.

Combining the shared passion with others at the event while being fluffy, supportive and hard-working is something that I truly admire.

53

to point out is bePROUD16, since it was my

What made you stay in BEST and evolve inside the organisation?

first internal event and first working event

Being involved in Trainshops, TRAP and

in that sense. I didn’t know that much about

other training events, as well as in TiGro

what I was getting myself into by applying

and in EduID is truly a blessing and I am

and then getting accepted to it. While I was

excited and amazed over and over by the

there I could already tell that it would have

things we are doing in these departments

quite some impact on me, and I can truly

and what we are achieving. The fields of

say that experience shaped me a lot as a

work we do in both of these departments

person. My interest for soft skill training

and the people alongside me in these teams

and education therefore got kickstarted

have a very, very special place in my heart

there and I am happy I get to pursue that

and shaped me as a person.

One of my most memorable events I want

passion within BEST since the past years.

54

OUR PARTNERS

ATOS Can you give us some information about the working fields in which Atos is engaged?

We are a global leader in digital transformation with 110,000 employees in 73 countries and annual revenue of â‚Ź12 billion. We are the European number one in cloud, digital security and high-performance computing, the group provides end-to-end Orchestrated Hybrid Cloud, Big Data analytics, Business Applications and Digital Workplace solutions. With over 30 years of experience and expertise in major events we are also proud to be the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic & Paralympic Games.

Our purpose is to help design the future of the information space. With our expertise and services we support the development of knowledge, education and research in a multicultural approach and contribute to the development of scientific and technological excellence.

Across the world, the group enables its clients and employees, and citizens generally to live, work and develop sustainably, in a safe and secure information space.

Joining Atos means you’ll be given choices to influence and design the future on three different levels; the future of the information space, the future of our company and then at an individual level, your own future.

atos.net/careers #TheFutureIsOurChoice

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What are your main milestones as a company in order to bring quality to what you deliver to students in collaboration with BEST? Atos is ambitious in SCR targets and aims to pioneer in decarbonisation for the benefit of all its stakeholders and society at large, by transforming the way digital technologies are designed, developed and used. In June, Atos shared the decision to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions by 2035 which definitively positions us as worldwide leader in decarbonisation.

In addition, Atos embraces diversity and inclusion and has put in place several dedicated programs to drive our D&I strategy. One of the programs focuses on the wellbeing of everyone we work with. We’d like to work with BEST-in-class innovation and expand our vision by knowledge sharing.

58

ATOS In which direction do you see BEST move in the following years?

We believe BEST and Atos will be able to further develop broad international collaboration where we can jointly deliver (remote) internships and career opportunities. BEST can be the pivot point connecting us with “BEST-in-class” technology students starting their career.

Also we look forward to intensive knowledge sharing between BEST and Atos to ensure both parties increase mutual understanding on what’s needed and available in the ever changing and dynamic digital world.

Finally, Atos would like to increase the cooperation with BEST as pilot partner for innovative concepts (like xtern-ships – remote internships).

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In the end, what was the main thing that made you say “Yes, we want to collaborate with BEST�?

Both BEST and Atos are large, international organisations with a huge passion for promoting and innovating digital business technology. The mix between local/global and the innovative nature of BEST and Atos match fluently.

Working together with a positive attitude in a vibrant environment, combined with a critical eye delivers new ideas, collaboration and the starting point of careers. We are proud of setting/to set the highest decarbonisation standards for the digital industry with the support and drive from/of BEST-in-class students.

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NESTLÉ At Nestlé, we constantly explore and push the boundaries of what is possible with foods, beverages, and nutritional health solutions to enhance quality of life and contribute to a healthier future. We focus our energy and resources where unlocking the power of food can make the greatest difference to the lives of people and pets, protect and enhance the environment, and generate significant value for our shareholders and stakeholders alike.

Nestlé and BEST have been partners since 2019. Through BEST, Nestlé has managed to offer many career opportunities to students who follow our network by operating as a career partner of BEST. Nestlé was also present at one of the most innovative events that BEST has ever organised: the BEST Virtual Summit. We had the opportunity to have a keynote at the event about how Nestlé is leveraging tech innovation to adapt to the post-pandemic reality.

61

ABB ABB is a leading global technology company that energises the transformation of society and industry to achieve a more productive, sustainable future. By connecting software to its electrification, robotics, automation and motion portfolio, ABB pushes the boundaries of technology to drive performance to new levels. With a history of excellence stretching back more than 130 years, ABB’s success is driven by about 110,000 talented employees in over 100 countries.

ABB and BEST have been cooperating in different forms throughout the years and many BEST alumni are currently part of ABB. More recently ABB organized for BEST a webinar regarding their activities and their working culture. Moreover, ABB is going to be a partner of BEST for the Presidents’ Meeting 2020.

Numerous internship and entry level opportunities are available every year all over Europe and globally – please check www.abb.com/careers for more details!

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BEST’s EXTERNAL RELATIONS

63

BEST’s EXTERNAL RELATIONS Covering student NGO partners, youth NGO consortia and engineering education partners Introduction As much as we love BEST, we should not forget that BEST is only one of the many players in the European landscape. The impact of a single player in this landscape can be multiplied considerably through strong and meaningful partnerships. For that reason, BEST cooperates with a multitude of organisations, including both organisations led by youth as well as organisations led by professionals, and is a member of different consortia of youth NGOs. In this article, we elaborate on BEST’s cooperation with student NGO partners, on its membership of different youth NGO consortia and on BEST’s engineering education partners.

64

STUDENT NGO

aegee AEGEE

is

PARTNERS

bonding one

biggest

bonding is a German student association

organisations,

focused on providing undergraduates as

striving for a democratic, diverse and

well as graduate students insights into the

borderless Europe. As a non-governmental,

working life and giving opportunities to

politically

non-profit

get in touch with employers of all kinds. A

organisation AEGEE is open to students

wide portfolio of events enables them to

and young people from all faculties and

pursue these goals. For instance, they form

disciplines. Founded in 1985 in Paris, today

the market leader for job fairs in Germany.

AEGEE has grown to a Network of 13 000

You can find a bonding local group at

AEGEEans, present in 161 cities in 40 countries

thirteen university cities, mostly technical

all over Europe. Through their activities,

universities. As a registered association all

they empower students and young people

their members work on a voluntary basis

in Europe to take an active role in society.

and their services are offered to fellow

They create a space for dialogue and

students for free.

interdisciplinary

of

Europe’s

student

independent,

and

learning opportunities as well as act as their representative towards decision-makers.

AEGEE strengthens mutual understanding among young Europeans and brings Europe closer to young people.

65

cfes The Canadian Federation of Engineering Students is a bilingual national student organisation representing Canadian engineering students. Their goal is to enhance the student experience through opportunities fostering the development of leadership, professional and ethical qualities, engineering identity, technical proficiency, and communication. Each year, they host a number of annual engineering conferences to foster leadership and networking, engineering competitions to inspire innovation and work with external partners to provide education & outreach opportunities.

estiem ESTIEM is the organisation for IEM (Industrial, Engineering and Management) students who combine technological understanding with management skills. Founded in 1990, their goal is to foster relations between IEM students and support their development. They are striving for each IEM student to have a connection not only with other students all over Europe of the same field but also to other companies and universities, to ensure each student has a voice as well as the opportunity to make a difference, and to allow each outstanding innovative idea to become reality.

eestec Electrical Engineering STudents’ European assoCiation is an apolitical, non-governmental and non-profit organisation for EECS (Electrical Engineering and Computer Science) students at universities, institutes and schools of technology. EESTEC aims to develop international contacts and to encourage the exchange of ideas among EECS students through professional workshops, cultural student exchanges and publications. With various activities that EESTEC provides, it creates opportunities for students to develop in their academic, professional and social lives.

66

STUDENT NGO PARTNERS AEGEE Autumn Agora

bonding Presidents’ Meeting

BEST was represented during AEGEE’s

For the first time, BEST was represented

Autumn Agora (their general meeting),

at the bonding Presidents’ Meeting in

which took place in October 2019 in Salerno,

Hamburg. It is one of their general meetings

Italy. The Autumn Agora is an event typically

and gathers delegates from all local

gathering around 700 attendees. This was

bonding groups in Germany. We provided

a great opportunity to learn about several

a workshop dedicated to finding new

AEGEE projects such as Europe on Track

opportunities for the cooperation between

and Y Vote.

bonding and BEST.

AEGEE SMASH Final Conference BEST attended the final conference of AEGEE’s

“Structural

Measures

Against

Sexual Harassment”- or SMASH-project in Brussels. In this conference, the outcomes of the project were discussed with the aim of disseminating the work to youth organisations, to help them raise awareness regarding the importance of having a safe environment and take measures to prevent and deal with sexual harassment. It was a great opportunity for BEST to learn about this topic and how AEGEE is handling it.

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EVENTS ATTENDED CFES Canadian Engineering Leadership Conference (CELC) BEST attended the CELC in January. It took place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

This meeting serves as the Annual General Meeting of the CFES, it is their largest event with the aim of providing a platform for students to collaborate and learn from their industry partners, sponsors and fellow students. Furthermore, CELC provides the setting of an International Summit with the rest of its International Partners.

EESTEC Autumn Congress EESTEC

Congresses

are

the

general

assemblies of EESTEC. BEST was invited and represented at the Autumn Congress in November 2019 in Essen, Germany. The event gathers delegates from every local committee of EESTEC and many other people involved at the international level of EESTEC.

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STUDENT NGO PARTNERS EVENTS ATTENDED

ESTIEM Autumn Council Meeting

ESTIEM College

BEST was represented during ESTIEM’s

of ESTIEM that gathers 20-30 of the most

Autumn Council Meeting (their general

involved people on the international level of

meeting) in Famagusta, Cyprus. It was great

ESTIEM. This event includes many strategic

to experience first-hand how similar BEST

discussions and serves to boost the work

and ESTIEM are in terms of aims, methods,

that is being done towards the fulfilment

structure and spirit. The event took place in

of ESTIEM’s action plan. Given the dense

October 2019.

content of the event and the experience of

ESTIEM College is a mid-mandate event

the attendees, it’s a wonderful event to get to know ESTIEM in depth. The event took place in February 2020 in Belgrade, Serbia.

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STUDENT NGOs AND THE PANDEMIC The pandemic for sure affected the working of our partner NGOs just as it did to us. Many events were moved online or are going to take place online in the near future. Besides this obvious measure taken by NGOs, AEGEE is also currently doing a brainstorming with all members interested about changing the format of their summer universities. They also did their LGBT pride event online, as it was not possible live.

At first, ESTIEM wanted to have the next Council Meeting in Autumn live with the necessary safety measures. However, they recently decided to turn the event into an online one to guarantee everyone’s safety.

In IFISO, there was an emergency COVID-19 meeting in March. The idea was to bring the member NGOs together and talk about how they all deal with the pandemic.

The communication between BEST and the other NGOs was only slightly affected by the pandemic. Most communication was already online, but of course, the events where a live meeting was planned were all cancelled.

For the upcoming year, it is very likely certain things will need to be tackled differently. But having a lot of events online also opens doors to opportunities that would not be possible in normal times. We’ll get the most out of it!

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YOUTH NGO

CONSORTIA

European Youth Forum

The European Youth Forum (YFJ) is the

advocating their needs and interests and

platform of youth organisations in Europe.

those of their organisations. In the current

It represents over 100 youth organisations,

uncertain

which bring together tens of millions of

that affects young people, they can be

young people from all over Europe. The

powerful catalysts for positive change

member organisations of the Youth Forum

and contributors of innovative solutions to

are international youth NGOs and national

Europe’s challenges.

youth councils.

political

and

context

BEST currently is an observer member

The Youth Forum works to empower young

of the Youth Forum and is represented

people to participate actively in society to

in the Council of Members, the biannual

improve their own lives by representing and

general meeting of the Youth Forum, by its dedicated contact person.

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social

IFISO Autumn Meeting and IFISO Spring Meeting The Informal Forum for International

the topics approached and tackled were

Students

external donations, mental health and the

Organisations

(IFISO)

is

a

non-political and non-profit forum for international organisations run by students and working for the benefit of students in different fields of studies. The purpose of this forum is to offer these NGOs an opportunity to network, to share knowledge and to encourage pursuing new possible collaborations. This Autumn meeting was hosted in October 2019 by EPSA (European Pharmaceutical Students’ Association) in their house in Brussels. Among other things,

future of IFISO. Due to the pandemic, the meeting in Spring 2020 took place online. In different online discussions spread over three days, there were talks about climate change advocacy, tackling the pandemic and about new opportunities for IFISO. Also, the new management team and the host for the next IFISO Spring Meeting were elected here.

72

ENGINEERING EDUCATION PARTNERS SEFI

Educational Involvement Programme, the international

latter in particular through the inclusion

organisation, considered as the largest

of engineering education experts in the

network of engineering education players

BEST Symposia on Education and the

in Europe. SEFI’s members are institutions

representation of SEFI in the advisory

of higher engineering education, rectors,

board of the Educational Involvement

deans,

Department.

SEFI

is

a

non-profit

professors,

companies

and

students, other

but

also

international

associations and societies involved in the field. The mission of SEFI is to contribute to the development and the improvement of engineering education in Europe, to emphasise the need for and to strengthen the image of both engineering education and engineering education professionals in society.

FEANI is a federation of professional engineers that unites national engineering associations from 32 European countries.

Thus, FEANI represents the interests of over 6 million professional engineers in Europe.

FEANI is striving for a single voice for the engineering profession in Europe and wants

the

to affirm and develop the professional

development of engineering education

identity of engineers. Through its activities

through

including

and services, FEANI aims to facilitate

contributions by BEST to the SEFI Annual

the mutual recognition of engineering

Conference, the cooperation between SEFI

qualifications in Europe and to strengthen

and BEST within the scope of the A-STEP

the position, role and responsibility of

2030 project, the mutual dissemination of

engineers in society.

SEFI

and

BEST

various

cooperate

initiatives,

on

initiatives to improve engineering education and a strong SEFI involvement in BEST’s

73

FEANI

FEANI and BEST cooperate primarily through the Engineers Europe Advisory

of

took place from September 21st, 2020 until

professional organisations of engineers,

September 24th, 2020 in an online format,

employer associations and institutions

organised by the University of Twente. BEST

of higher education in engineering, and

contributed to the conference through its

BEST. Its main focus is the development

paper session on the topic ‘Diversity and

of the “Engineers for Europe”-project, a

Inclusion’, through the moderation of the

project aiming to complete our knowledge

University-Industry round table and through

and insights on engineering professionals

the organisation of a student workshop on

in Europe and to make this knowledge

the topic of ‘Students in teaching’. BEST

and insights serve directly the quality of

was represented by four delegates for this

engineering education and the innovative

conference.

Group.

This

consortium

consists

capacity of the engineering workforce.

From

November

16th,

2020,

until

November 19th, 2020, BEST contributed

Conferences

to and was represented in the World

One of the various manners in which

Engineering Education Forum (WEEF) &

BEST contributes to the development of

Global Engineering Deans Council (GEDC)

engineering education is by taking part in

2020 Virtual Conference on the topic

conferences on higher education through

“Disruptive Engineering Education Amidst

various contributions. During the past year,

Global Challenges”. BEST led the theme

BEST has taken part in 2 conferences on

“Engineering education of the future” as

engineering education.

part of the student track of the conference.

The

highlight

of

BEST’s

conference

attendance is traditionally the SEFI Annual Conference (SEFI AC). This year’s edition of the conference revolved around the topic “Engaging engineering education” and

Six representatives of BEST took part in the conference through the organisation of two workshops and by taking active part in the consolidation session on engineering education of the future and in the concluding strategy session.

74

CREDITS BEST PUBLIC MAGAZINE WOULD HAVE NOT BEEN THE SAME WITHOUT T Johannes Spaas, BEST Ghent

Damjan Denic, BEST Nis

Iosif Tsekos, BEST Athens

Andreea Lopataru, BEST Bucharest

Jasper Rots, BEST Leuven

Miguel Pittar, BEST Madrid

Luka Koscak, BEST Zagreb

Fabrizio Di Gennaro, BEST Naples

Mina Mitrovic, BEST Belgrade

Ihor Lerro, BEST Naples

Nishtha Tiwari, BEST Brussels

Maria Gorska, BEST Warsaw

Suzanna Michailidi, BEST Athens

Anja Macan, BEST Zagreb

Senne Meeusen, BEST Ghent

Francesca Zacchei, BEST Rome

Daniel Ansia Dibuja, BEST Madrid Carlos III

Sara Stocek, BEST Zagreb

Walid G. H. Saad, BEST Turin

Silvia Marogel, BEST Bucharest

Egemen Nas, BEST Istanbul

Tom Mahieu, BEST Leuven

Paulina Kopton, BEST Gliwice

Valentin Pereira, BEST Lyon

Ifigenia Sideri, BEST Athens

Ziga Solar, BEST Ljubljana

Osvaldo Gonzalez, BEST Arts et Métiers

Panagiotis Lampsidis, BEST Thessaloniki

Daniel Ferreira, BEST Coimbra

Mehmet Tolga Kara, BEST Istanbul Yildiz

Martusja Grybyk, BEST Lviv

Daniel Garcia Garcia, BEST Madrid

Bianca-Iulia Ionescu, BEST Bucharest

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Carlos III

HEIR INPUT. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR INVOLVEMENT, TIME AND EFFORT! Deniz Bozkurt, BEST Ankara

Daniela Faria, BEST Porto

Perrine Bauchot, BEST ENSTA Bretagne

Mariana Pimenta, BEST Almada

Maria Obraz, BEST Ekaterinburg UrFU

Lukas Kyzlik, BEST Brno

Natalya Lebedeva, BEST Saint Petersburg

Ediz Gorkem Akinci, BEST Istanbul Yildiz

Anna Tsebenoha, BEST Lviv

Fabian Berreth, BEST Erlangen

Beatriz Navarro Ventura, BEST Valencia

Gregory Schlesser, BEST Frankfurt

Jesus Saenz, BEST Valladolid

Lucía Lopez de Turiso Perez, BEST Madrid

Simon Laureys, BEST Ghent

Carlos III

We are the BEST Public Magazine Team - 2nd Edition Krystian Matlosz, BEST Wroclaw - Coordinator Ayca Yaren Yavuzer, BEST Ankara - Content Director Joao Filipe, BEST Almada - Proofreader Andrei Baltes, BEST Madrid Carlos III - Proofreader Eva Caballero Carbajo, BEST Madrid Carlos III - Design Responsible Apostolia Gatsiou, BEST Thessaloniki - Design Responsible Eystathios Vezyris, BEST Chania - Partners Responsible Claudia Andreea Cojan, BEST Cluj-Napoca - Services Responsible

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