Fast proliferation of information and communication technologies (ICT) caused certain negative side effects for society (e.g., increased energy usage or CO2 emissions). However, “innovation in ICT” and especially “innovation with ICT” offer potential solutions for some of the biggest societal challenges. These are reasons why it is of great importance that students understand how ICT can be utilized to tackle societal challenges. The “Innovative ICT Solutions for the Societal Challenges (INNOSOC)” project, co-funded with €200,000 through the EU supported ERASMUS+ Strategic Partnerships, is step forward in that direction taken by consortium of 11 universities from 8 EU countries. The INNOSOC curricula, which will be available as multilingual open educational resource (OER) as well, consist of four main topic groups: - “innovation” as a core topic; - intercultural topics, with focus on “Multicultural teams”; - ICT topics, with focus on “Innovative engineering based on ICT”; - student projects, with focus on “Case studies on how ICT can contribute to innovative societal development”. Student projects will be based on the “blended” mobility approach and organized in two phases: (i) preparatory (virtual mobility); and (ii) execution phase (physical mobility). Physical mobility will be implemented through two two-week workshops hosted by partner universities in 2016 (Zagreb) and 2017 (Valencia). Workshop participants will be lecturers (16 professors from 11 universities from 8 countries) and students (100 students from 11 universities from 8 countries) from partner universities. Multilingual open course materials on innovation and entrepreneurship including case studies on how ICT can contribute to innovative societal development will be made free to access through the project web site (http://sociallab.education/innosoc). In that way INNOSOC project will have significant impact on national and EU level through serving on the long-term benefit of all citizens, academia and industry.

1. Building Good Practices in Higher Education through ERASMUS+
Strategic Partnerships:
The Case of the INNOSOC Project
Vedran Podobnik
sociallab.fer.hr/vedran.podobnik
University of Zagreb
Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing
Croatia

2. Content
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 2
• University of Zagreb
• Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing
• INNOSOC project
• ERASMUS+ programme
• Consortium
• Project goal
• Project outputs
• Activity plan
• Additional examples of university-business cooperation at the
University of Zagreb

3. University of Zagreb
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 3

4. CROATIA Osijek
Pula
Zadar
Split
Dubrovnik
Zagreb
Rijeka
University of Zagreb
Where is Zagreb?
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 4

5. Higher education in Croatia
• Area land: 56,594 km2
• Area sea: 31,067 km2
• Population: ~ 4.44 million
• Population density: 78.5 /km2
• Labour force: ~ 1.9 million
• Higher education students: ~ 135,000
• Capital: Zagreb
• population: 779,145 (2001)
• 7 (+2) Universities by size: Zagreb, Split, Rijeka, Osijek, Zadar, Dubrovnik, Pula
• 4 Technology centres: Zagreb, Split, Rijeka, Osijek
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University of Zagreb

6. … in numbers
• University of Zagreb was officially founded in 1669
• 30 Faculties + 3 Art Academies
• 70,000+ students (55% females)
• around 50% of all students in Croatia
• Teaching and administrative full time staff: about 8,000
• Study programs
• 140 BA
• 170 MA
• 100 PhD programs
• Postgraduate students: 5,500
• Foreign students: about 300
• http://www.unizg.hr
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University of Zagreb

7. Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing in numbers
• Professors: 175
• Assistants and researchers: 200
• Staff: 125
• 12 departments
• Undergraduate students: ~ 4300
• Postgraduate students: ~ 450
• Freshmen each year: ~ 650
• Graduating students each year: ~ 550
• Graduated since 1956 (Dipl.Ing.): ~ 16,000
• Graduated since 1956 (M.Sc.): ~ 2,100
• Graduated since 1956 (Ph.D.): ~ 630
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University of Zagreb

8. More CUBCEE presentations from Croatia
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 8

9. INNOSOC project
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10. ERASMUS+
EU programme for Education, Training, Youth and Sport for 2014-2020
• aims to boost skills and employability,
as well as modernizing Education,
Training, and Youth work
• supports transnational partnerships
among Education, Training, and
Youth institutions and organizations
to foster cooperation and bridge the
worlds of education and work in
order to tackle the skills gaps we are
facing in Europe
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 10

11. ERASMUS+ Key Action 2
Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices
• organisations from different participating countries to work
together, to develop, share and transfer best practices and
innovative approaches in the fields of education, training and youth
• priorities
• improve achievement in relevant and high-level basic and transversal
competences
• open and innovative education, training and youth work, embedded in the
digital era
• cooperation with businesses
• companies and higher education institutions work together to share
knowledge
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 11

12. General info
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• Project title
• Innovative ICT Solutions for the Societal Challenges
• Project acronym
• INNOSOC
• Duration
• 2 years
• 1/9/2015-30/8/2017
• Budget
• 203,389.00 EUR

13. Consortium
• 11 universities from 8 EU countries
• Bulgaria (Sofia COLLEGE, Sofia TU)
• Croatia (Zagreb)
• France (Brest)
• Germany (Leipzig)
• Hungary (Gyor, Debrecen)
• Romania (Oradea)
• Slovakia (Kosice, Zilina)
• Spain (Valencia)
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14. INNOSOC CONSORTIUM
STEERING COMMITTEE
Zagreb
(COORDINATOR)
Valencia Leipzig Gyor
Sofia
COLLEGE
Sofia
TU
Zilina Brest
Kosice Oradea
Debrecen
Consortium structure
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 14

15. Project Goal
• Set up a transnational multidisciplinary intensive study program in the field of
innovations based on ICT targeting societal challenges defined by Europe 2020
and Horizon 2020 programs
Health, demographic
change and wellbeing
Food security,
sustainable agriculture
and forestry, marine,
maritime and inland
water research, and
the bioeconomy
Secure, clean and
efficient energy
Smart, green and
integrated transport
Climate action,
environment, resource
efficiency and raw
materials
Inclusive, innovative
and reflective
societies
Secure & innovative
societies
INNOVATION
ICT
INTERCULTURAL
CASE STUDIES

16. INNOSOC curricula
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• multilingual open educational resource (OER) consisting of four main topic
groups:
• ͞innovation͟ as a core topic
• intercultural topiĐs, ǁ i th foĐus oŶ ͞MultiĐultural teaŵs͟
• ICT topiĐs, ǁ i th foĐus oŶ ͞IŶŶoǀ atiǀ e eŶgiŶeeriŶg ďased oŶ ICT͟
• student projects, ǁ i th foĐus oŶ ͞Case studies oŶ hoǁ ICT ĐaŶ ĐoŶtriďute to
iŶŶoǀ atiǀ e soĐietal deǀ elopŵeŶt͟
• student projects will be based on the ͞ďleŶded͟ ŵoďility approaĐh and
organized in two phases
• preparatory (virtual mobility)
• execution phase (physical mobility)
• two two-week workshops hosted by partner universities in 2016 (Zagreb) and 2017 (Valencia)

17. Project Outputs (1): Intellectual Outputs
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• Consortium partners + their business collaborators
• (O1) Analyses of emerging ICT trends: "innovation in ICT" and "innovation with ICT͟
• (O2) Analyses of major societal challenges
• (O3) INNOSOC lectures
• Consortium partners
• (O4) Open educational resources - Multilingual lectures
• (O5) Open educational resources - Multilingual case studies
• All intellectual outputs (O1)-(O5) have 2 editions
• (Ox).2015-2016
• (Ox).2016-2017

18. Zagreb 2016 Case Studies
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• 2 professors and 5 students develop case studies
• Innovative Application of Electric Vehicles in Sustainable Energy Systems of
the Future
• Promoting STEM studies among young students
• Issues and Challenges of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability in
the ICT Sector
• Intelligent Transport Systems and Vehicular Ad hoc Networks
• Seamless Connectivity for a Digital Life
• Innovative solutions for assistance of active daily life at home
• Microwave sintering
• Recognition of patterns of maleficent objects on medical images

19. Project Outputs (2): Multiplier Events
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• (E1) Pre-INNOSOC 2016 conference
• 18-19/2/2016 in Zagreb
• (E2) Pre-INNOSOC 2017 conference
• 2/2017 in Valencia

20. Project Outputs (3):
Learning/Teaching/Training Activities
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• Students
• 10 partners x 3 students + 5 domestic students
• Teaching staff
• 1-2 lecturers per INNOSOC partner
• Industry experts from workshop hosting country
• INNOSOC 2016 workshop: 19-28/4/2016 in Zagreb
• INNOSOC 2017 workshop: 4/2017 in Valencia
Activity type Number of participants Duration (days)
Blended mobility of higher
education students
30 (+ 5 domestic) 12
Intensive programmes for teaching
staff
15 (+ 5 domestic) 5

21. Activity plan (project year 1)
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PROJECT TIMETABLE
9-15 10-15 11-15 12-15 1-16 2-16 3-16 4-16 5-16 6-16 7-16 8-16 9-16
MONTHS M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9 M10 M11 M12 M13
Project activity*
INNOSOC 2016 preparation
O1/A1: Analysis of emerging ICT trends in 2015
O2/A1: Analysis of societal challenges in 2015
M1: Steering Committee kick-off meeting (Zagreb)
M2: INNOSOC 2015 Steering Committee preparation meeting (Zagreb)
E1: Pre-INNOSOC 2016 conference (Zagreb)
INNOSOC 2016 implementation
O3/A1: Creation of INNOSOC 2016 lectures
C1: INNOSOC 2016 blended mobility
C2: INNOSOC 2016 Intensive Programme Workshop (Zagreb)
INNOSOC 2015 follow-up
O4/A1: Open educational resources - Multilingual lectures 2016
O5/A1: Open educational resources - Multilingual case studies 2016
M3: INNOSOC 2016 follow up Steering Committee meeting (Leipzig)

22. Activity plan (project year 2)
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PROJECT TIMETABLE
9-16 10-16 11-16 12-16 1-17 2-17 3-17 4-17 5-17 6-17 7-17 8-17
MONTHS M13 M14 M15 M16 M17 M18 M19 M20 M21 M22 M23 M24
Project activity*
INNOSOC 2017 preparation
O1/A2: Analysis of emerging ICT trends in 2016
O2/A2: Analysis of societal challenges in 2016
M4: INNOSOC 2017 Steering Committee preparation meeting (Valencia)
E2: Pre-INNOSOC 2017 conference (Valencia)
INNOSOC 2017 implementation
O3/A2: Creation of INNOSOC 2017 lectures
C3: INNOSOC 2017 blended mobility
C4: INNOSOC 2017 Intensive Programme Workshop (Valencia)
INNOSOC 2017 follow-up
O4/A2: Open educational resources - Multilingual lectures 2017
O5/A2: Open educational resources - Multilingual case studies 2017
M5: INNOSOC closing Steering Committee meeting (Gyor)

23. Activity plan (visibility & management)
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PROJECT TIMETABLE
9-15 10-15 11-15 12-15 1-16 2-16 3-16 4-16 5-16 6-16 7-16 8-16 9-16 10-16 11-16 12-16 1-17 2-17 3-17 4-17 5-17 6-17 7-17 8-17
MONTHS M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9 M10 M11 M12 M13 M14 M15 M16 M17 M18 M19 M20 M21 M22 M23 M24
Project activity*
O6/A1: Project visibility infrastructure: web page set-up and maintenance
O6/A2: Project visibility infrastructure: administering social media sites
A: Project management

24. Project visibility: Internet presence
• Website
• sociallab.education/innosoc
• Social media
• Facebook (name: innosoc)
• facebook.com/innosoc
• Twitter (name: innosoc)
• twitter.com/innosoc
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 24

25. Additional examples of university
and business cooperation
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 25

26. App Start Contest (ASC)
• 8-year long project to establish the major Croatian
web & mobile application start-up contest
• started in 2008 with 30 students from one higher education
institution
• evolved to be the largest national competition in the field of
ICT consisting of 400 students coming from 20 different
higher education institutions
• students get 4 ECTS
• joint activity of student association and university
• opportunity for further improvement
• university-supported incubator/accelerator for best teams
• student start-ups/spin-offs
www.estudent.hr/category/natjecanja/app-start-contest
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 26

27. we teach students to
speak the language of
social network analysis
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 27
what do we learn behind
the curves and graphs of
social networks?
social technologies make a
consumer the centre of a
social network universe
Social Networking and Computing Laboratory
exploring the power of connectedness
Laboratories: beyond science only

28. Developing a new bachelor and master
programme
• currently a programme lifecycle is around 10 years
• UNIZG-FER-1 programme (1995-2005)
• UNIZG-FER-2 programme (2005-2017?)
• in line with the Bologna process
• internationally accredited
• UNIZG-FER-3 programme (2017?- )
• internships as a integral part of the programme ???
• position of transversal skills in the programme
• 0-10% of ECTS ???
• Transition from ex-cathedra teaching to project-based learning
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 28

29. Intro to discussion
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 29

30. Do miracles happen
today?
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 30

31. Accept the challenges
so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory.
January 2016 CUBCCE 2016 31
George S. Patton
Tihomir Oreskovic, new Croatian Prime Minister