Summer School on Informatics Education Research
Informatics and Other Disciplines
Best Practices in Education Award
2022 - Educating the Workforce for the Digital Transformation
2020 - Lifelong Education and Talent Gap in Informatics
2018 - Transforming Informatics Education
2017 - Informatics Education Available to All
2016 - Informatics Education in Primary and Secondary Schools
2015 - Informatics Education in Primary and Secondary Schools
2014 - Informatics Education in Primary and Secondary Schools
2013 - Informatics Education in Primary and Secondary Schools
Minerva Informatics Equality Award
2026 Minerva Informatics Equality Award
2025 Minerva Informatics Equality Award
2024 Minerva Informatics Equality Award
2023 Minerva Informatics Equality Award
2022 - Careers of Female Faculty
2021 - Recruiting and Supporting Female Students
2020 - Careers of Female PhD and Postdoc Researchers
2019 - Careers of Female Faculty
2018 - Recruiting and Supporting Female Students
2017 - Careers of Female PhD and Postdoc Researchers
ECSS 2026 Conference Chair
Chairs of the Strategy Workshop I
Chairs of the Strategy Workshop II
Chair of the Professional Development Workshop for Early Career Researchers
Chairs of the Informatics Europe Session
Chair of the Cybersecurity Workshop
Chair of the Ethics Workshop
Chairs of the Education Research Workshop
Chair of the Open Science Workshop
Conference Steering Committee
General Organising Committee
Local Organising & Logistics
General Communications
The ECSS 2026 Committees welcome you to Europe's flagship summit to address timely strategic and policy issues in Informatics research and education! Register early to ensure the best benefits and peace of mind.
It is important that you and your institution are present in ECSS. We will transfer your registration to another name where necessary. Please refer to the FAQs for requirements and procedures.
For enquiries and technical support, please contact the ECSS General Organising Committee's local team:
Refer and be rewarded! Serve as ambassador of Informatics Europe’s mission and receive complimentary registration for ECSS. Learn how here .
Please beware of email scams falsely claiming be from ECSS 2026 organisers/committees. Informatics Europe has not authorised any agency to handle travel or accommodation arrangements for attendees. All official communications regarding ECSS 2026 come only from "@informatics-europe.org", "@fe.up.pt", "@cplevents.pt" or "@inscreva-se.net" domains. If in doubt, please
The general registration fee for the ECSS 2026 (26-28 October) covers:
The registration for the Early Career Researchers Workshop ONLY covers the coffee break, lunch and Welcome Reception on Monday, 26 October.
Registration will close on 16 October.
Standard Registration:
EUR 625 (Members of Informatics Europe)
EUR 730 (Non-Members)
EUR 350 (PhD Students)
Early Career Researchers Workshop ONLY:
EUR 70 (PhD Students)
Spouse invitations for the Tuesday social event & official dinner are not included in the registration fee, but are available for purchase through the registration system (select YES for "spouse/companion ticket for Social Event (Cellars & Gala dinner)", with an additional cost of EUR 95).
* The registration fees include VAT. Please note that the amount of the bank transfer will have to include any bank fee related to the transfer and/or processing. General terms and conditions of the ECSS 2026 can be found here.
Only PhD candidates can register for either the Monday program or the entire ECSS 2026.
ECSS is Informatics Europe's annual three-day event devoted to crucial and timely strategic issues and trends in Informatics education and research in Europe. The summit program aims to broaden participants' understanding of the discipline by addressing topics that may not initially appear directly relevant or of interest to them. ECSS participants value this variety of topics and activities over the three days, which enables them to forge new connections and gain fresh insights and ideas for their current and future work.
We strongly encourage every current and emerging leader for full participation to gain the most from this unique opportunity.
Full registration provides access to all sessions and social events. One-day registration covers all sessions and events on Monday only. While most sessions run in parallel, you are free to move between sessions.
Depending on your nationality, you may need a visa to travel to Portugal. It is the sole responsibility of the ECSS 2026 attendee to take care of their visa requirements. Attendees who require an entry visa must allow sufficient time for the application procedure. Attendees should contact the nearest embassy or consulate to determine the appropriate timing of their visa applications.
The ECSS General Organising Committee (local logistics) can provide a letter of invitation to registered attendees for visa application purposes. If this option was not indicated during registration, you may email
Please allow up to 10 working days for letter processing, with requests handled in the order received. The letter of invitation does not financially obligate Informatics Europe or the University of Porto in any way. All expenses incurred in relation to the ECSS 2026 attendance are the sole responsibility of the attendee. The ECSS General Organising Committee will not directly contact embassies and consulates on behalf of visa applicants.
The paid ECSS registration fee minus an administration fee of EUR 30 will be refunded if cancellations are notified to the local logistics team of the ECSS General Organising Committee (
No refund request will be considered after the end of the early bird registration period. However, a request can be made to transfer a registration to another participant, who will take over the booked arrangements in full. Please send your request to the local logistics team of the ECSS General Organising Committee (
Refunds will not be given for unattended events or early termination of attendance. In cases of cancellations due to personal matters after the cancellation deadline, please consult your personal insurance.
A Certificate of Participation will be issued by Informatics Europe to all attendees who participated in ECSS 2026.
Each attendee will receive a soft copy of the Certificate via email around 10 working days after ECSS 2026. Only soft copies will be issued.
We believe in the strength of unity, which is why we have introduced an Informatics Europe Referral Program. Contribute to IE's growth and earn a complimentary registration for the next ECSS. Check here for more information.
The ECSS 2026 will be held in:
Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto (FEUP)
Main Building (Building B)
B Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, s/n
4200-465 Porto, Portugal
Located on the Asprela Campus in Porto, the Faculty of Engineering of University of Porto (FEUP) benefits from a strategic position within one of Portugal’s leading academic and research hubs, with excellent accessibility and close proximity to key services and transport links.
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Participants should enter through the main Faculty entrance and proceed to the ECSS venue, located inside Building B. The entrance and the ECSS venue are connected through the main corridor of the building, as indicated on the map below. Campus Map can be found here.

By Metro:
The nearest Metro stations are:
By Bus:
FEUP is served by several STCP bus lines. All buses stop at "FEUP", located 1-3 minutes walking distance from the faculty buildings.
Recommended routes:
09:00 - 10:00 Special Informatics Europe Introductory Session
10:00 - 10:30 Coffee break
10:30 - 11:00 ECSS 2026 Official Opening
Chairs: Ana C.R. Paiva, University of Porto (Portugal) and Jean-Marc Jézéquel, IRISA/University of Rennes (France)
11:00 - 12:30
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 16:00
16:00 - 16:30 Coffee break
Chair: Dimka Karastoyanova, University of Groningen (the Netherlands)
14:00-15:00
15:00-15:30
Moving to the Next Career Stage in Academia
Discussion chaired by Dimka Karastoyanova, University of Groningen (Netherlands)
15:30-16:00
Publications’ Process and Ethics Challenges and Guidelines
Elisabetta Di Nitto, Politecnico di Milano (Italy)
16:00 - 16:15 Coffee break
Further details will follow.
Two workshops will run in parallel between 14:00 and 16:00.
Coffee breaks on Monday are scheduled at 10:00 and 16:00, with lunch from 12:30 to 14:00.
Two workshops will run in parallel between 09:00 and 11:00.
Chair: Gert Jervan, Tallinn University of Technology (Estonia)
Featured Panellists
Chair: José Antonio Cruz, Universidad de Castilla - La Mancha (Spain)
Supported by IE's Ethics Working Group
Roundtable Speakers (featuring case studies from their universities)
11:00 - 11:30 Coffee Break
Chairs: Jean-Marc Jézéquel and Nuria Anguera, Informatics Europe
12:30 - 13:45 Lunch
Chair: Ana C.R. Paiva, University of Porto (Portugal)
Chairs: Jean-Marc Jézéquel and Nuria Anguera, Informatics Europe
16:00 - 16:30 Coffee break
Guided winery visit in Vila Nova de Gaia followed by dinner at Kopke Tivoli Hotel, with an elegant view of the Douro River and the historic centre of Porto.
Coffee break on Tuesday is scheduled at 11:00 and 16:00, with lunch from 12:30 to 13:45.
Two workshops will run in parallel throughout the day.
Supported by IE's Education Research Working Group
09:00 - 10:30 AI in Informatics Higher Education
Chair: Oana Andrei, University of Glasgow (United Kingdom)
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee break
11:00 - 12:30 Academia/Industry Collaboration in Informatics Higher Education
Chair: Jan Vahrenhold, University of Münster (Germany).
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 16:00 Higher Education Informatics in Europe: Readiness and Core Skills
Chairs: Andreas Bollin, University of Klagenfurt (Austria) and Agustín Yagüe, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain)
co-organised with the IE member National Informatics Associations (NIAs)
Chairs: Michel Chaudron, Eindhoven University of Technology (the Netherlands) & Giovanni Russello, University of Auckland (New Zealand)
09:00 - 10:30 Doing Strategy in Academia: From Plans to Impact - Part II
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee break
11:00 - 12:10 Doing Strategy in Academia: From Plans to Impact - Part II (cont'd)
12:10 - 12:30 Close & Next Steps
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
Chair: Michael Goedicke, University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany)
14:00-14:05 Welcome & Session Overview
14:05-14:35 Lightning Talks
14:35-15:20 World Café Rotation
15:20-15:30 Synthesis & Closing
Featured Speakers
Wednesday's coffee break is scheduled at 10:30, and lunch at 12:30-14:00.
Delegate Lounge (Room I-105): a space to relax, work, or connect informally between sessions.
Available throughout the conference.
Each year, Informatics Europe organizes the Strategy Workshop, a forum for those shaping the future of Informatics departments, faculties, research organisations and research teams across Europe. It brings together members of leadership teams, those preparing for such roles, and experienced academics involved in guiding their institutions through change.
Through inspiring talks, interactive discussions, and diverse perspectives – across roles, countries, and institutional contexts - participants explore topics ranging from day-to-day operational decisions to medium- and long-term strategic priorities.
In 2026, the workshop themed “Beyond Plans: Strategy and Impact in Academia” is co-chaired by Ana C.R. Paiva from the University of Porto (Portugal) and Jean-Marc Jézéquel from IRISA / University of Rennes (France). Open to all ECSS participants, it will take place on Monday, 26 October.
The workshop will explore how universities, departments, and research labs can translate strategic ambitions into meaningful and lasting impact in a rapidly evolving academic landscape. Through talks on the disruption and renewal of scientific publishing, human- and data-centric digital transformation through university digital twins, and practical approaches to strategy-making in academia, participants will examine how academic leaders can respond to emerging challenges, make better-informed decisions, engage their communities, and move beyond formal plans towards concrete actions that strengthen research, education, innovation, and societal contribution.
Workshop Rundown
Speaker bios and abstracts are available on the ECSS speakers page by clicking their photos.
11:00 - 12:30
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
Supported by IE's Education Research Working Group and open to all ECSS participants, the Workshop will be held on Wednesday morning, October 28 as part of the ECSS 2026 program.
Workshop Rundown
Speaker bios and abstracts are available on the ECSS speakers page by clicking their photos.
09:00 - 10:30 AI in Informatics Higher Education
chaired by Oana Andrei, University of Glasgow (UK)
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee break
11:00 - 12:30 Academia/Industry Collaboration in Informatics Higher Education
chaired by Jan Vahrenhold, University of Münster (Germany)
This session is a follow-up to the ECSS 2024 workshop, in which members of the Informatics Education Research Working Group initiated a structured conversation about best practices for collaboration between Academia and Industry in Informatics Higher Education. The Working Group has focused on three main areas: (1) Bachelor/Master Theses, (2) Doctorates, and (3) Capstone Projects. Through surveys and interviews with stakeholders in a variety of institutions across Europe, the Working Group has identified best practices as well as challenges associated with different aspects of such collaboration. The workshop will be used to present these findings and, in the spirit of the ECSS 2024 workshop, to present opportunities to compare and contrast them with the experiences of the workshop participants.
Featured speakers:
Ana-Belén Gil-González, University of Salamanca (Spain)
Kim Mens, UC Louvain (Belgium)
Simona Motogna, Babeş-Bolyai University (Romania)
Enrico Nardelli, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" (Italy)
Jan Vahrenhold, University of Münster (Germany)
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 16:00 Informatics Higher Education in Europe: Readiness and Core Skills
chaired by Andreas Bollin, University of Klagenfurt (Austria) & Agustín Yagüe, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain)
co-organised with the IE member National Informatics Associations (NIAs)
Structured around two complementary themes, “Pathways into HE: Readiness vs Early HE Reality” and “Informatics Skills as a Foundation for Multiple Disciplines”, this interactive session combines presentations and participatory activities to explore the alignment between school preparation, national initiatives, and Higher Education expectations in the first years of Informatics studies. It will also examine the transversal informatics competencies needed across engineering disciplines while identifying discipline-specific nuances that can inform communication and early HE practice.
The workshop, chaired by Gert Jervan, Tallinn University of Technology (Estonia) will be held on Tuesday morning, 27 October, with the theme "Hackers vs Universities: Who Trains Better Cyber Talent?"
This panel will explore how cybersecurity skills are developed and the role universities play compared with informal learning environments such as CTF competitions, online communities, and self-directed experimentation. At the core is the question of whether traditional education can keep pace with the rapidly evolving cyber domain, where practical skills, problem-solving, and creativity are often developed outside the classroom. The discussion will be supported by cross-country CTF data, highlighting which competencies truly distinguish top performers and how these differ from what is emphasised in formal curricula and from what are found in the Cyberhubs project (analysis and comparisons of the job market and skills development). The panel will also address the role of AI in cybersecurity learning: does it accelerate skill development or reduce deep understanding?
The goal is to identify how universities and informal learning can better complement each other to develop the next generation of cybersecurity professionals.
Featured Panellists
Panellist bios are available on the ECSS speakers page by clicking their photos.
ECSS brings together leading voices in Informatics to share insights on emerging trends, challenges, and strategic priorities in research and education. The 2026 edition continued this tradition, showcasing thought leaders driving change across Europe.
Click a speaker’s photo to learn more.
Artificial intelligence is transforming science, technology, and society at an unprecedented pace. At the same time, current AI systems raise fundamental questions concerning reliability, transparency, robustness, and sustainability. In this talk, I will discuss why these challenges call for a deeper mathematical and computational understanding of AI. I will highlight recent developments toward reliable AI, including questions of explainability and robustness, and discuss how the future of AI will also depend on new computing paradigms and the co-evolution of software and hardware. The talk will conclude with perspectives on how informatics can help shape the next generation of trustworthy and sustainable AI systems.
Short BioGitta Kutyniok is Chair for Mathematical Foundations of Artificial Intelligence at LMU Munich, with additional affiliations at the DLR German Aerospace Center and the University of Tromsø. Before joining LMU, she held professorships at the University of Osnabrück and the Technical University of Berlin, where she was an Einstein Chair. She has held visiting positions at various international institutions, including Princeton, Stanford, and Yale University. In 2023, she co-founded EcoLogic Computing GmbH.
Her current research focuses on the mathematical foundations of artificial intelligence, in particular reliable and sustainable AI and automated scientific discovery, with applications in medicine, robotics, and neuroscience.
She has received numerous honors, including a Heisenberg Fellowship, the von Kaven Prize of the DFG, SIAM Fellowship, IEEE Fellowship, and ELLIS Fellowship. She has delivered invited and plenary lectures at major international conferences, including ICM 2022 and ICIAM 2023. She is a member of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities and the European Academy of Sciences, Vice President for Science & Research Relations of Venture AI Germany, and LMU Director of the Konrad Zuse School of Excellence in Reliable AI.
In today’s world, we are witnessing several challenges to the traditional formats of scientific publishing as a mechanism for sharing, validating, and receiving feedback on new ideas. These disruptions include over-reliance on metrics, predatory practices in publication venues, and metrics gaming by authors. Some of these behaviours not only hurt the development of science and add noise to the system, but also can ruin the career development of researchers. A second-order effect is the overload of the classic peer-review system. With increasingly capable AI agents, it looks as though the overload is poised to intensify, but maybe the same tools can also help transform the evaluation mechanisms and offer a fresh approach to replicability of results.
Short BioCarlos Baquero is a Professor at the Department of Informatics Engineering of the University of Porto in the field of Distributed Systems. His work covers topics such as probabilistic data structures, causality tracking, CRDTs, and distributed algorithms in general. He tries to address fundamental problems that can have a practical impact on actual systems, and some of the resulting research has been applied in production systems worldwide. He writes regularly for the Blog@CACM.
European universities are facing an increasing number of challenges due to budget restrictions, reduced government and industry funding, high expectations for research and education to be up to date, increasing competition within academia, and decreasing interest in international cooperation. Digitalisation is expected to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of all processes and activities within university life, and is seen as a way of solving these challenges.
Currently, there are a number of individual activities, but a coherent concept and approach are lacking.
In this session, we will introduce the concept of a digital twin for universities. We will discuss whether such a digital twin could help leaders to monitor and manage a university more effectively. We will explore the concept of a digital twin with all participants by examining recent challenges and issues in their faculties. By the end of the session, participants should have a solid understanding of whether the concept of a digital twin is a promising way to solve current challenges in their faculties, and should have benefited from discussions and exchanges with colleagues.
Between 1991 and 1997, Gregor Engels held the position of Chair of Software Engineering and Information Systems at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. Since then, he has been a professor of Informatics at Paderborn University in Germany. Following his retirement in 2024, he became a senior professor at Bielefeld University in Germany, where he acts as a strategic advisor for the digital transformation of universities.
He was the chairperson of the Software Innovation Lab at Paderborn University, which is part of the technology transfer institute SICP – Software Innovation Campus Paderborn. He is a founding member of Informatics Europe, a network organization of computer science departments across Europe.
His research interests lie in socio-technical systems, model-driven software development, enterprise architecture, digital twins, and software quality assurance. He is involved in numerous initiatives examining the impact of computer science on the future of work, education, enterprises and society.
He has published over 320 peer-reviewed scientific contributions and supervised 50 PhD projects. He has taught for over 40 years at bachelor’s, master’s and PhD level, as well as in professional education programmes.
Short Bio
Professor Michel R. V. Chaudron is a Full Professor of the Software Engineering group at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), within the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.
With over two decades of academic experience, Professor Chaudron has previously held positions at the University of Gothenburg/Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden), Leiden University and at CMG (now CGI) as a professional software engineer.
His research interests encompass software architecture, software design, software modelling, and empirical studies in industrial software engineering practice. Recently, he has focused on the architecting digital twins of the human body and on integrating AI in software development processes. He also works towards increasing inclusiveness of academics from the ‘Global South’ in the software engineering community. He is an active supporter of the Euromicro Software Engineering and Advanced Applications conference.
Professor Giovanni Russello is a Cyber Security specialist and the Head of the School of Computer Science at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Giovanni previously served as the Director of the Cyber Security Research Programme, a multi-million-dollar project funded by the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment, aimed at enhancing New Zealand’s cyber security posture and fostering collaboration between New Zealand and Australian researchers.
Additionally, he is the founding Co-Director of the Cyber Security Foundry, the first multi-disciplinary center in New Zealand for Cyber Security, focused on strengthening collaboration between industry and academia. From 2013 to 2014, Giovanni held the position of founding CEO at a startup targeting the smartphone security market. His research interests include human-centered cyber security, policy-based security systems, privacy and confidentiality in cloud computing, smartphone security, and applied cryptography.
Letizia Jaccheri is a Professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway, specializing in Software Engineering. She earned her Ph.D. from Politecnico di Torino and a Master's from Università di Pisa. She has held several roles, including Department Head at NTNU and Adjunct Professor at UiT Tromsø.
Letizia has led numerous high-impact projects, such as the COST Action CA19122 EUGAIN with more than 150 participants from 40 different countries. She has supervised one hundred Master's and a dozen of Ph.D. students.
In 2022 she gets the Gender Equality Award at NTNU and ODA Award for her leadership in promoting gender equality in technology. As an ACM Distinguished Speaker and former board member of Informatics Europe, Letizia influences the field through her professional activities and international collaborations.
Dimka Karastoyanova is a full professor of Information Systems at the Computer Science Department of Bernoulli Institute (BI) for Mathematics, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands. She completed a six-year term on the BI Board, while acting in several roles: she was the head of the Computer Science Department from 2020 to 2024, vice-chair of the BI Board from 2024 to end of August 2025 and chair of the BI Board from June 2025 to May 2026. Since May 2025 Dimka is a member of the Board of IPN – the Dutch National Association for ICT Research.
She holds a doctoral degree in Computer Science (received from the TU Darmstadt, Germany). Her current research is in the areas of data-driven, service-based, process automation and performance improvement with focus on Processes for AI and AI for Processes finding application in fields like manufacturing, logistics, supply chain management, eScience, Data Science, healthcare and others. Her most prominent research topic is autonomic process performance improvement in the context of environmental and social sustainability.
Dimka is an Associated Editor of Transactions of Services Computing, an Associated Editor to Information Systems Journal and a member of the steering committee of EDOC. She is supporting the communities with organizing conferences, workshops and forums in different roles and is active as a reviewer for relevant conferences (e.g. BPM, CAiSE, EDOC, ICSOC, CoopIS), journals (TSC, JCC, TOSEM, Springer Computing, ACM TPDS, Information Systems, Computing Journal) and workshops. Dimka is leading the WG on Early Career Researchers of IE and is a co-organizer of the annual ECR workshop at ECSS.
Gabriella Pasi is Full Professor at the University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Informatics, Systems, and Communication, where she leads the Information and Knowledge Representation, Retrieval, and Reasoning (IKR3) Laboratory. Her research focuses on Natural Language Processing and Information Retrieval, with recent work on efficient language models, personal and context-aware Large and Small Language Models, and online disinformation. She received the 2023 Outstanding Research Contributions Award from the Web Intelligence Consortium. She is a Fellow of Academia Europaea, ELLIS (European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems), the Web Intelligence Academy, the International Academy of Artificial Intelligence Sciences (AAIS, formerly the Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association, AAIA), and the International Fuzzy Systems Association (IFSA). She has served as Program Chair and General Co-Chair of leading international conferences and is Associate Editor of several international journals.
Short Bio
Dr. Jonas Čeponis is the Dean and Associate Professor of the Faculty of Informatics of Kaunas University of Technology. He is a member of the Cybersecurity Research Group at the Faculty. Jonas Čeponis has many years of experience in academic and managerial activities as the former Vice-Dean for Studies of the Faculty of Informatics and the Vice-Rector for Studies of Kaunas University of Technology.
Short Bio
Birgy Lorenz is a Senior Research Fellow at Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) and Head of the IT Didactic Center. Her work focuses on cybersecurity, computer science education, AI in education, and digital society technologies. She leads cybersecurity projects, develops educational materials and games, supports young cyber talent development, promotes gender equality in IT, and teaches the ethical and social aspects of technology. She is also known for organising youth cybersecurity competitions, including the Cyber Olympics.
Short Bio
Dr. Muhammad Mudassar Yamin is an Associate Professor at the Department of Information Security and Communication Technology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), and a member of the System Security Research Group. His research focuses on system security, penetration testing, security assessment, cyber ranges, and intrusion detection. He has authored over 70 peer-reviewed research articles and presented his work at prominent conferences including DEF CON, Black Hat, SafeComp, and DefCamp. His contributions have been recognized by over 50 Fortune 500 companies and he holds a Ph.D. in Cyber Security from NTNU.
Short Bio
Jens Myrup Pedersen is professor at Aarhus University, coach for the Danish National Cybersecurity team, and co-founder of the company Campfire Security. He is an active voice in the Danish cybersecurity community, where he has been working with cybersecurity training and talent development for the last 15 years. He is particularly interested in how gamification and active learning can be used to engage and upskill more people in cybersecurity, and in creating communities around cybersecurity.
Ana Belén Gil González is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Automatics at the University of Salamanca (USAL), where she carries out her teaching and research activities in the fields of Computer Engineering and Applied Artificial Intelligence.
Holding a PhD in Computer Engineering with a European Mention and an Extraordinary Doctorate Award, her research specializes in Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) and personalization architectures. Her current work focuses on transferring technological solutions to the healthcare sector, efficiency in productive sectors, and social well-being, promoting AI applications that contribute to sustainable development.
She is currently the Director of USAL International Campuses in China and co-directs the ENIA International Chair in Reliable AI and Demographic Challenge, an initiative aimed at territorial cohesion through innovation. She represents the University of Salamanca in international academic forums such as Informatics Europe, the CRUSOE Group, and the Coimbra Group’s STEM working group.
Her research career includes authoring over 150 scientific publications and participating in more than 60 funded projects. Her work is closely linked to development with technology transfer, aiming to apply cutting-edge research to real-world solutions for both social and productive environments.
Her dedication and impactful contributions have earned her several prestigious recognitions, including being named an Honorary Member of the Professional Association of Computer Engineers of Castilla y León in 2025, serving as an Ambassador for the Salamanca Convention Bureau since 2024, and receiving the Gloria Begué Award for Teaching Excellence in 2022 and, recently in 2026, as Distinguished Professor at Ningbo Polytechnic University in China.
Dr Monica Landoni is a professor at the Faculty of Informatics where she leads the Laboratory of User Experience, Interaction & Accessibility (LUXIA). She holds a PhD in Computing and Information Sciences, University of Strathclyde and a Laurea in Scienze dell´Informazione from Università degli Studi of Milan.
She has been involved in a number of projects, including the JISC Project "EBONI", Electronic Books ON-screen Interface, EU Projects: STAMP, PENG, REVEAL-THIS and PuppyIR. Together with SNSF sponsored: TADAA, BEST, DEDUCE, HEBE, BEST and SOL, and Hasler funded PADS and COHRI. She was also member of the EUGAIN COST ACTION: European Network for gender balance in Informatics.
Her research interests lie mainly in the field of Human Computer Interaction with particular attention to understudied user groups as children and people with cognitive and intellectual disabilities.
Covadonga Rodrigo is a Spanish assistant professor at the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED) in Madrid, currently being Vice-Dean for Innovation and Institutional Affairs at the Computer Science Faculty. She holds a PhD in Telecommunications Engineering and specializes in technology-enhanced learning, inclusive human-computer interaction, accessibility, open educational resources, and e-learning quality.
She is also involved in academic leadership and research, contributing to projects that improve ethical and inclusion aspects in hybrid education. She is EDEN fellow, EADTU expert, IEEE Senior member and chairs the Ethics WG at Informatics Europe.
Disinformation is false or misleading information deliberately spread to deceive people, or to secure economic or political gain and which may cause public harm. Disinformation is an orchestrated adversarial activity in which actors employ strategic deception and media tactics to advance political, military, or commercial goals. Disinformation is implemented through coordinated campaigns that "weaponize multiple rhetorical strategies and forms of knowing—including not only falsehoods but also truths, half-truthis and value judgement to exploit and amplify culture wars and other identity-driven controversies.
We will focus on disinformation in connection with dark patterns and ethics also from the point of fake news. We will point out also intercultural dialog, emphasizing inclusion and diversity . All these principles govern the behavior of a person or group in a business environment and we have to be aware of them.
Keywords: Disinformation; Dark Patterns; Ethics; Fake news; Intercultural Dialogue
Short BioTatjana Welzer Družovec is a researcher and a full professor at the University of Maribor, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. She is the head of the Data Technology Laboratory. Her research interests include cybersecurity including ethics, cultural and human factors of IT and cybersecurity, and intercultural communication. She is the national delegate for IFIP TC 11 and a member of the executive board of Slovenian Society Informatika. She has participated in numerous national and international research projects. Most international projects have been funded by the EC through various Horizon 2020 and Erasmus+ programs. She was a coordinator of the European University Alliance ATHENA at the University of Maribor and is still involved in its activities.
Her bibliography contains over 800 bibliographic items published in various scientific journals, including top JCR IF publications. She has published chapters in several books and has participated in numerous international conferences.
She has been and is a member of the committees of many international conferences and steering committees. With her team, she has organized and co-organized over 20 international conferences in Slovenia, and many invited events at various conferences worldwide. For her work she received the title of Congress Ambassador of Slovenia in 2019.
Oana Andrei is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Computing Science at the University of Glasgow, UK. Her research spans formal methods, computing education research, and responsible AI in higher education. She has over 20 years of experience in formal modelling and analysis, with interests including stochastic model checking and rigorous reasoning about complex systems. More recently, her work has focused on professional competencies, reflective practice, AI literacy, and the social and ethical implications of AI in computing education. She is actively involved in initiatives on diversity and inclusion, widening participation, and work-based learning in computing.
What informatics competencies do students bring when entering Higher Education, and how can these be compared with what universities expect? This contribution presents a graph-based approach to collecting, structuring, and relating competencies across different educational contexts. Using GECKO, a competency mapping tool developed at the University of Klagenfurt, the presentation illustrates how heterogeneous competency descriptions can be represented and explored. The approach will serve as a starting point for the workshop discussion on overlaps and gaps between pre-HE preparation and early Higher Education expectations.
Short BioAndreas Bollin is Professor of Informatics Didactics at the University of Klagenfurt, Austria. His research focuses on informatics education, competency and curriculum development, and software engineering education. He served for many years as Steering Committee Chair of the International Conference on Informatics in Schools (ISSEP) and has been actively involved in shaping informatics education in Austria. Most recently, he contributed to the development of Austria’s new upper-secondary subject "Informatics and AI".
As artificial intelligence reshapes professional and educational landscapes across Europe, a critical gap persists between the rapid advancement of AI technologies and the capacity of institutions and individuals to adopt them meaningfully. AIM-PRO (AI Literacy for Multidisciplinary Professional Readiness and Outreach) is a 36-month Erasmus+ Alliance for Innovation project, funded by the European Union and co-supported by Movetia, that directly addresses this challenge. Bringing together 15 partner organisations across 9 European countries, AIM-PRO develops open, scalable frameworks and tools to embed AI literacy within higher education institutions, vocational education and training providers, and small and medium enterprises. The project is structured around three interconnected skill pillars: deep tech (AI literacy), green skills (Sustainable AI), and resilience and entrepreneurial skills (AI and EntreComp). This presentation introduces the vision, goals, and conceptual foundations of AIM-PRO. It outlines how the project integrates four technological approaches, Open Education Technology, Generative AI, Model-Driven Engineering, and Digital Twin Engineering, to produce validated, competency-aligned learning resources. It further describes how AIM-PRO synthesises major European frameworks (DigComp, GreenComp, EntreComp, and UNESCO AI competency guidelines) into a unified model aligned with EQF levels 5 and 6, supported by open badge certification and digital credentials. AIM-PRO represents a collaborative, research-grounded response to the urgent need for responsible, inclusive, and future-ready AI education across Europe.
Short Bio
Antonio Bucchiarone is an Associate Professor at the University of L’Aquila and a Visiting Fellow at Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) in Trento, Italy. His research focuses on software engineering for adaptive socio-technical systems, with a strong emphasis on the design and development of educational tools and AI-driven agents for learning. He specializes in adaptive and motivational digital systems, gamification, and applying Model-Driven Engineering to create models, languages, and platforms that foster engagement and adaptability.
He is the Coordinator of the Erasmus+ AIM-PRO project (AI Literacy for Multidisciplinary Professional Readiness and Outreach) and has been actively involved in numerous national and European R&D initiatives, including the Erasmus+ ENCORE project on open educational resources. He serves as Senior Member of the IEEE and as Associate Editor for several journals, including IEEE Software, Journal of Object Technology (JOT), IEEE Transactions on Education, IEEE Transactions on Games, IEEE Technology and Society, and the International Journal of Serious Games.
Ana Belén Gil González is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Automatics at the University of Salamanca (USAL), where she carries out her teaching and research activities in the fields of Computer Engineering and Applied Artificial Intelligence.
Holding a PhD in Computer Engineering with a European Mention and an Extraordinary Doctorate Award, her research specializes in Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) and personalization architectures. Her current work focuses on transferring technological solutions to the healthcare sector, efficiency in productive sectors, and social well-being, promoting AI applications that contribute to sustainable development.
She is currently the Director of USAL International Campuses in China and co-directs the ENIA International Chair in Reliable AI and Demographic Challenge, an initiative aimed at territorial cohesion through innovation. She represents the University of Salamanca in international academic forums such as Informatics Europe, the CRUSOE Group, and the Coimbra Group’s STEM working group.
Her research career includes authoring over 150 scientific publications and participating in more than 60 funded projects. Her work is closely linked to development with technology transfer, aiming to apply cutting-edge research to real-world solutions for both social and productive environments.
Her dedication and impactful contributions have earned her several prestigious recognitions, including being named an Honorary Member of the Professional Association of Computer Engineers of Castilla y León in 2025, serving as an Ambassador for the Salamanca Convention Bureau since 2024, and receiving the Gloria Begué Award for Teaching Excellence in 2022 and, recently in 2026, as Distinguished Professor at Ningbo Polytechnic University in China.
Simona Motogna is a professor of Computer Science at Babes Bolyai University, Cluj Napoca, Romania, and currently serves as the chair of the Diversity and Inclusion working group of Informatics Europe. Her research focuses on empirical methods in Software Engineering and Software Quality. Simona was also an active member in EUGAIN COST Action and dedicated to supporting women in academic careers in Computer Science.
Enrico Nardelli is a full professor of Informatics in the University of Roma "Tor Vergata", affiliated with the Department of Mathematics. Since April 2014 he is coordinating the project “Programma il Futuro“ for the introduction of basic concepts of informatics as a scientific subject in Italian schools, with emphasis on primary schools and on computational thinking. Programma il Futuro is a joint project bewteen the Italian Ministry of Education and CINI, the Italian national inter-university Consortium for Informatics. Since its inception, the project has led about three million Italian students (half of them in primary schools) to start learning the principle of informatics. He was the President of Informatics Europe from 2018-2023, the association of informatics departments and research laboratories in Europe and neighbouring areas and initiator of the Informatics for All Coalition.
Jan Vahrenhold has been Professor for Algorithms and Education at the University of Münster since 2012. His research focuses on algorithms and data structures for geometric problems, algorithm engineering with a focus on resource efficiency and computer science education.
Jan Vahrenhold is co-editor-in-chief of "Computer Science Education" and associate editor of "ACM Inroads". He has (co-)chaired several conferences in the field of computer science and computer science education, most recently the ACM International Computing Education Research Conference (ICER 2021/2022). He is a member of the national consortium for the "International Computer and Information Literacy Study" (ICILS 2028). He is also a current member of the Informatics Europe Board, and speaker of the "Computer Science and Education" section of the German Informatics Society. He was an instructor at SCHIER 2024 and 2025.
The workshop is structured around five thematic sections representing different engineering domains: Industrial Engineering, Telecommunications Engineering, Forestry & Agricultural Engineering, Civil Engineering & Architecture, and Other Engineering Fields. The session will begin with a presentation of the methodology and the main findings of a study conducted at the Technical University of Madrid (UPM) on the role and integration of computing competencies in engineering education. Particular attention will be given to the research design and data collection process, with the aim of providing a framework that can be adapted and replicated by other universities.
Building on this evidence, participants will engage in a series of guided discussions and interactive activities designed to explore how computing skills are perceived, taught, and applied across different engineering disciplines. Each thematic section will offer a disciplinary perspective while encouraging participants to share experiences, identify challenges, and discuss future needs.
Through this collaborative reflection, the workshop will identify both transversal and discipline-specific computing competencies, fostering interdisciplinary dialogue and knowledge exchange. The session will conclude with a plenary discussion in which the main insights are synthesized and translated into practical recommendations, both for the integration of computing competencies into engineering curricula and for the adoption of the proposed methodology in other institutional contexts.
Short BioAndreas Bollin is Professor of Informatics Didactics at the University of Klagenfurt, Austria. His research focuses on informatics education, competency and curriculum development, and software engineering education. He served for many years as Steering Committee Chair of the International Conference on Informatics in Schools (ISSEP) and has been actively involved in shaping informatics education in Austria. Most recently, he contributed to the development of Austria’s new upper-secondary subject "Informatics and AI".
Boris is a long time open source enthusiast and contributor. Previously a methods and tools consultant for the industry, then a software engineering researcher, he joined the Eclipse Foundation in 2021 to help people and organisations adopt, understand and apply open source principles and best practices to their own projects. He has also been a maintainer of the OSPO Alliance since 2021. He lives in Europe.
Ulrike Lucke has been the Professor of Complex and Applied Multimedial Architectures at the University of Potsdam since 2010. She studied computer science at the University of Rostock, where she also earned her doctorate and habilitation. Within the German Informatics Society (GI), she served as speaker of the SIG E-Learning from 2008 to 2014 and as a member of the presiding committe from 2014 to 2020. She has been Vice President of the GI since 2020. She served as CIO of the University of Potsdam from 2010 to 2018 and is the Vice Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences since 2020.
The 2026 edition of the European Informatics Leaders Summit will be held from 26 to 28 October in Porto, Portugal, and will be co-hosted by Informatics Europe and our member institution, the Department of Informatics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto.
ECSS is Europe's only forum for the Informatics community to address timely strategic and policy issues in research and education. Open to all, the Summit annually brings together some 150 academics, researchers, and industry representatives to exchange ideas, address shared challenges, and drive collective action at the institutional and policy levels.
Unlike a traditional scientific conference, ECSS focuses on the strategic challenges and opportunities facing Informatics as a discipline and as a community. Through high-level dialogue, thought-provoking keynotes, workshops, and networking, participants gain practical insights, build connections, and contribute to collective action across academia, industry, and public life.
Join the European Informatics community in turning shared challenges into collective progress.
Discuss the future of Informatics and its role in addressing scientific, technological, economic, and societal challenges.
Exchange experiences, perspectives, and leading practices on institutional development, leadership, and governance.
Build meaningful connections with academics, institutional decision-makers, policymakers, and industry representatives shaping Informatics across Europe.
Explore opportunities for collective action to advance Informatics research, education, and societal impact.
Contribute to informed policy discussions and strengthen the voice of the European Informatics community.
Be ready to explore the future of Informatics, discuss how institutions can respond, expand your professional network, identify opportunities for joint action, and help shape the future of the discipline.
The ECSS Story - From 2005 to Today
ECSS has been organised annually by Informatics Europe since 2005. Originally known as the European Computer Science Summit, its origins trace back to the first gathering of European deans and heads of Informatics departments at ETH Zurich. Participants recognised the need for a European forum to discuss shared challenges and opportunities facing the discipline, and the meeting ultimately led to the creation of Informatics Europe and established ECSS as its flagship annual event.
ECSS traces its origins to the first gathering of European deans and heads of Informatics departments at ETH Zurich, where participants recognised the need for a European forum to exchange experiences, strengthen connections across countries, discuss shared challenges and opportunities, and develop a stronger collective voice for Informatics at institutional, national, and European levels. That 2005 meeting ultimately led to the creation of Informatics Europe and established ECSS as its flagship annual event.
Through keynote talks and panels, community workshops, and peer exchange, participants explore topics ranging from funding, entrepreneurship, and institutional management to talent development, public policy, and the future of the discipline.
MIEA has been recognized as a Best Practice by Connecting Women in Digital, an initiative funded by the European Union. Discover the diverse contributions from past MIEA participants.
Informatics Europe brings together 200 institutions across 35 European countries to strengthen the Informatics research and education community, advance shared priorities and shape the future of the discipline.
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