Cultural, Social and Sports Life

In this field of the TUZVO life, even in the evaluated decade, the work of the University folk ensemble Poľana, special interest clubs, dormitory radio, and sports club Slávia dominated.

The Folk Ensemble Poľana can be considered a permanent representative of cultural activity at the TUZVO throughout its history. The documents underline its irreplaceable place in most official and ceremonial events of a professional and social nature on the one hand, as well as spontaneous action at cultural and entertainment events, such as matriculation ceremonies and theatres, annual entertainments, maypoles, balls, etc.

Over the years of its existence, the WORLD club has become a favourite place to unwind from study duties, a place to make new friends and spend pleasant evenings among friends enriched with valuable cultural experiences. After periods of specific programming in the past, the WORLD club became known to students mainly through discos, where all genres of music were played. Friday evenings were usually dedicated to concerts and performances by live bands. An event called “Hronozvod“ was regularly held, where several groups performed simultaneously. A new tradition of the WORLD club fest was created as a symbolic farewell for students at the end of the academic year.

The daily student life in the student dormitories included the broadcasting of the Dorms Radio (INRO), extremely popular among students. Not only did it celebrate important milestones since its foundation in that decade, but it also did extremely well. In addition, in the years 2005 –2007, its premises and equipment were completely renovated. The technical equipment was also modernised, which enabled high-quality studio work, as well as the production of programmes. The programme structure was really varied (Oldies and Inro hit parade, KONAŽE – concert on request, interactive session Hot Seat, etc.).

INRO was a regular participant in the Rádiorallye event, a nationwide competition of dorms and amateur radios. From this competition held in 2004, INRO Zvolen advanced to the CIMES 2004 European competition, and Pavel Fecík’s recording “Elephants“ won first place. The French judges even included it in regular radio broadcasts in France. INRO Zvolen also became the most successful dorms radio studio at Rádiorallye 2005 and Rádiorallye 2006.

Sports club Slávia operated under the conditions of the TUZVO for a long time. It offered students and employees the opportunity to relax and renew their strength in the form of active movement. At the same time, it organized several sports events in various sports. In 2007 or 2012, the sports club had 350 / 309 members organised in 12 / 13 sports sections, including those that are traditional and successful for the TUZVO (volleyball, badminton, canoeing).

As Time Passed – Important Events, Anniversaries, Events, Visits

In addition to the traditional events annually repeated in academic life – such as matriculation, examination periods, or graduations –several exceptional events were completed. The years 2002, 2007, and 2012 were significant jubilees for the TUZVO. The 50th, 55th and 60th anniversaries of the founding of the University of Forestry and Wood Technology and its move to Zvolen was commemorated. At the same time, 195, 200, and 205 years passed since the beginning of the history of university forestry studies in Slovakia, the 240th,

245th, and 250th anniversary of the first technical university studies at the Mining Academy in Banská Štiavnica was also commemorated.

In 2002, the celebrations kept the traditional approach from previous periods characterised by combining the most important events of the year from May to November until the so-called accompanying events. In 2002, we counted 33 of them in the Calendar of Events published in the University Newspaper, and they included most of the more important celebrations and events in the given year.

During the celebrations in 2007, the original concept was already changed. The focus of the university celebrations was mainly at the social and information level and was only associated with celebrations of significant anniversaries. In September, two exhibitions were opened: ''Technical University in Zvolen - present and future (on the premises of the Ľ. Štúr Student Dormitory in Zvolen) and ''Universitas Technica Veterosolii 1807 – 1952 – 2007 (in the Museum in St. Anton). Ceremonial assembly and presentation of commemorative medals and the awards were held in the J. G. Tajovský Theatre in Zvolen in connection with a theatre performance of the Radošina Naive Theatre with the characteristic title Creation of the World.

Several events were also held as part of the celebrations in 2012, such as an exhibition entitled Six Stops in the Life of František Papánek, the unveiling of a memorial plaque to Professor František Papánek or the unveiling of a monument to Professor Miroslav Stolin.

In all cases, the essential part of the celebrations was the academic celebration with an exceptional programme and atmosphere in the TUZVO hall in September. The academic ceremony was enriched by the awarding of the Prize of the

Technical University in Zvolen, the honorary title of Doctor honoris causa TUZVO, and the awarding of awards to TUZVO employees and its partners and was also connected with a cultural programme and the visit of important guests. In 2002, the essential part of the ceremony was the awarding of honorary doctorates to Professor Grantner and Professor Petr, in 2007, the performance of violin virtuoso Petar Michalica, and in 2012, the participation of the President of the Slovak Republic, Ivan Gašparovič.

The anniversaries of individual parts of the university were also celebrated. Among the more significant, the 50th anniversary of the founding of the University Forest Enterprise in 2008, the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Borová Hora Arboretum in 2005, the 40th anniversary of the founding of the University Publishing House in 2009, the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Slovak Library of Forestry and Wood Sciences in 2012, 55th anniversary of the founding of the Folk Ensemble Poľana in 2011 and the 40th anniversary of the founding of the student dormitory radio station INRO in 2009 can be concluded. The Faculty of Environmental and Manufacturing Technology first celebrated its 5th anniversary in 2001, its 10th anniversary in 2006, and its 15th anniversary in 2011. Similarly, the Faculty of Ecology and Environmental Studies celebrated its 15th anniversary in 2006 and its 20th anniversary in 2011. As usual, in all cases, it was again celebrated with a series of professional and social events.

The academic dimension of university life was highlighted by events every year, such as the Week of Slovak Libraries in March, the ceremonial opening of academic years in September, enriched with special events (e.g., the announcement of the result of comprehensive accreditation in 2009 or several “doctor honoris causa“ graduations of the Technical University in Zvolen), presenting the Rector’s Award to outstanding students on the occasion of the Student Day and the Day of the Fight for Freedom and Democracy in November, or also in the years 2006 – 2012, the observed tradition of meetings of university employees at the beginning of the calendar year, combined with a theatre performance in the J. G. Tajovský Theatre in Zvolen.

Every year, the University prepared a schedule of scientific and professional events with rich content, including dozens of events. Among the most important professional events, large international events sometimes organised at the level of symposia, often in cooperation with IUFRO working groups or COST committees, must certainly be included. As their examples, we can mention the IUFRO symposium “Population and Evolutionary Genetics“ organised in 2002 in Stará Lesná, the IUFRO conference “Wood Science – Education and Research Programmes in 2004 again in Stará Lesná, the international IUFRO symposium “Wood Structure and Properties“ in 2006 at Kaskády in Sielnica, the IUFRO conference “Legal Aspects of European Forest Sustainable Development“ in 2009 in Zvolen or COST “Implementation of DSS tools into the Forestry Practice 2012“ in Zvolen or the annual meeting of IAWS and “Interaction of Wood with Various Forms of Energy“ in Zvolen in 2012. Three editions of the international conference “Fire Engineering“ organized in Lučenec and Zvolen in 2002, 2006, and 2010 can also be included in the highest category.

The Enviro–I–Forum conferences were held every year between 2005 and 2013 in June or October, the Financing of Forests – Wood conference every year in June or November, exhibition, and competition of works of design students Awarded by Professor Halabala also in November in 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011. Several important professional conferences organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic, the Ministry of the Environment and/or the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic were also held at the university. After the disaster in the High Tatras in 2004, there were three events in 2005 (Forests in the Tatras after the Wind Disaster –As Follows in January, High Tatras – Consequences of the Wind Disaster in Protected Areas and their Solutions in May, and the High Tatras a Year After in November). In 2009, there were two more events focused on rural development. In March, a conference was held on the breeding of The Norik of Muran, and in April, a conference on mitigating the consequences of the global crisis Wood as a Strategic Raw Material. All events were held in the presence of many representatives of the involved ministries, the government, and the parliament, as well as other professionals and public.

Cultural, sports, and social events also illustrated the high diversity of university life in that period. For all of them, we should mention at least the international environmental film festival Envirofilm, held annually in Banská Bystrica, Zvolen, and Banská Štiavnica in the month of May, the festival of university folk ensembles Akademický Zvolen, held in July in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2011, Football tournament of three universities held every year in September, maypole building every year in May, Železný Hasič – competition for firefighters organised by the Department of Fire Protection, held every year in December, Hron river rafting every year in June or the Student and Valentine's blood drive event, held annually in November, or in February.

Significant enrichment and expansion of public awareness were represented by the activities connected with the construction of the monument to the Park of Noble Souls in Zvolen. The ceremonial unveiling of its foundation stone took place in 2008 with the participation of the Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic Robert Fico. The unveiling of the glass dominant of the monument in 2009 was extraordinary and attended by the Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic, Robert Fico, accompanied by the Ambassador of the State of Israel, nine Ministers of the Government of the Slovak Republic, and twelve ambassadors and representatives of foreign embassies in the Slovak Republic. The end of the whole process was the unveiling of the installation called the Path of Humility as part of the monument in 2010, again with the personal participation of the ambassador of the State of Israel in Slovakia. Since 2009, the Park of Noble Souls monument has been included in the Slovak Route of Jewish Cultural Heritage project within the European Route of Jewish Cultural Heritage, while the entire project bears the designation Great Cultural Route of the Council of Europe.

In the course of the evaluated years, we welcomed several important guests at the university, including the President of the Slovak Republic Ivan Gašparovič (2004, 2008, 2012), Prime Minister Robert Fico (2008, 2009), Prime Minister Iveta Radičová (2008), Deputy Prime Minister Pavel Ruska ( 2004), the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Zsolt Simon (2005, 2006), the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Stanislav Becík (2009), the Minister of the Environment Lázló Miklós

On 13th November 2005, Ing. Ulrika Cimplová graduated from the Faculty of Ecology and Environmental Sciences and was awarded the prize of “Grand Prix (Ľudová banka) for Education 2005“. The prize was awarded every year in cooperation with the Slovak Rector's Conference to the best graduates of Slovak universities. For the academic year 2004 – 2005, there were 22 excellent graduates, including our representative.

In the academic year 2007 – 2008, Assoc. Prof. Marek Fabrika, PhD. from the Department of Forest Management and Geodesy of the Faculty of Forestry, TUZVO was awarded the prestigious Werner Siemens Excellence Award for the scientific project SIBYLA – a virtual simulator of forest biodynamics – a mathematical simulation of the behaviour of forest biotopes.

On 26th May 2008, the Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic received the certificate on the inclusion of the Carpathian beech forests in the World Heritage List confirmed by the Director General of UNESCO. The record was the result of the work of a Slovak team of experts –foresters and natural scientists, including TUZVO workers.

(2005 – 2006), the Minister of Education Ján Mikolaj (2008), the deputies of the National Council of the Slovak Republic Ivan Mikloš and Mikuláš Dzurinda (2007 ), member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic Dušan Čaplovič (2012), as well as other representatives of the state administration and local government, important institutions, enterprises and companies or ambassadors of several countries.

The Minister of the Environment of the Slovak Republic praised this act of the team of national experts around Prof. Ivan Vološčuk, Assoc Prof. Viliam Pichler and RNDr. Jozef Klinda. They were awarded the Prize of the Minister of the Environment 2008 for extraordinary results and long-term contribution to the care of the environment.

The absolute victory of our student of the Faculty of Wood Sciences and Technology Lukáš Prieček in the prestigious international competition International Design Award 2009 announced by the firm Hettich was an extraordinary success. His voice-controlled interactive Transformer chair designed under the guidance of Mgr. Art. Marian Ihring, ArtD. won in the competition of 1,600 works from participants from all over the world.

As an expression of appreciation for the achieved results and cooperation with the city of Zvolen, the Technical University received the Mayor of Zvolen Award for 2009.

The nomination of a Bc. student Jozef Maják to the international Erasmus conference in Sweden, which took place in October 2009 at the University of Lund was a major success for the University in the Erasmus programme. Bc. Jozef Maják was nominated following his essay “Self-discovery in an Oslo Kaleidoscope“ among more than two dozen applicants from Slovakia, whereby he represented the Slovak Republic at the conference and received the award “2millionth Erasmus student“ from the European Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič.

The TUZVO entered the academic year 2009 – 2010 with the confirmed status of an elite university. Based on a comprehensive evaluation and proposal of the Accreditation Commission of the Slovak Republic, it was included among the university-type universities along with five other Slovak universities.

In October 2010, the TUZVO received the Ján Bahýľ Award for an extremely valuable technical solution protected by industrial law, the result of which was a set of patents in the field of recuperative rope devices. The originators of the solution were the staff of the Department of Forestry and Mechanization of the Faculty of Forestry TUZVO Assoc. Prof. Ing. Vladimír Štollman, PhD., Assoc. Prof. Ing. Jozef Suchomel, CSc., and Ing Štefan Ilčík, PhD. The results of the creative activity of Prof. Ing. Štefan Schneider, PhD., who received four design registration certificates registered by the Industrial Property Office of the Slovak Republic in 2011 can be considered a significant contribution.

Conclusion

In the conclusion of certainly not comprehensive overview, it can be mentioned that the decade of 2002 – 2012 was a successful period for the TUZVO. The period resulting from the complex and demanding stage of the comprehensive transformation of higher education in Slovakia, the period of implementation of the three-level model of study, the transition to multi-source and project financing, the period of unprecedented growth in competition between universities, as well as the integration of the university into the European Research and Education Space, completed by a successful comprehensive accreditation. The management of the University and the Faculties started the development of the University even in difficult social and economic conditions. The importance of continuity of development and capitalization of the efforts and results of several generations of teachers, researchers, but also other workers of the University throughout its history in achieving these results must be pointed out.

It can be stated that the TUZVO entered the next period of its development with a clearly defined direction in the form of the Long-Term Plan for the period 2011 – 2016. It was accompanied by success in drawing resources from Operational programmes and had several economically stable years. Success in the field of international cooperation was added to the traditionally good results in the field of science and research. In a broader context, the shortcomings and problems included mainly the persistent, even deepening imbalance in the performance of the individual faculties of the University, the resistance of some workplaces to stimuli from the external environment, especially in financing, slow and inconsistent adaptation to project finance and management of an increasingly great range of activities, as well as the promotion of particular interests often at the expense of others or the whole. However, the institution’s high potential for positive change was quite clear, the main guarantee of which was the initiative, interest, and determination of the TUZVO academic community.