Thursday, 22 May 2025 International Spring
In May, we welcomed several international visitors from foreign universities. You are kindly invited to view the article where we learned more about the visiting professors and researchers who visited us in May.
At the beginning of the month, Kristina Vidrich from UNICAMP (Universidade Estadual de Campinas) visited us. During her visit, she shared her initial impressions of Slovenia and highlighted the main differences between Slovenia and Brazil.
“I work for the Graduate Study Office, and I am here because I applied for a project related to international mobility. This is my second time in Slovenia, and I also have Slovenian roots. It is a very nice country where people are friendly, ready to help, and communicate well. It's also very safe,” she summarised her experience and mentioning the main differences between Slovenia and Brazil.
“When I think about university opportunities here and in Brazil, considering that Brazil is another developing country, I also consider that we offer scholarships to all students from both public and private institutions. The biggest difference is that we are willing to increase collaborations with as many countries as possible because we are growing globally. We believe that increased exchange will help, so we try to send students to many countries. I think this is not so common here in Slovenia; maybe you are more likely to send students within the EU than outside of it, with fewer students going outside the EU. After visiting many institutions and learning about your role and goals, I feel that we have many things in common and many opportunities. The result of this visit, in terms of outgoing and incoming students and possibly visiting researchers, is largely due to your very good internationalisation process. This could help us think about ways to increase our own level. I believe that by learning from your experiences, we can improve certain areas and elevate our status in the future.”
In May, Visiting Professor Sándor Jenei from the University of Pécs visited Prof. Dr. István Kovács from the Department of Mathematics and shared his thoughts about his experience.
"I was warmly welcomed at FAMNIT and impressed by its vibrant academic environment and dedicated faculty. My visit was both inspiring and productive, opening doors to exciting research topics and promising results. I had engaging, in-depth discussions on various algebraic themes and open problems. Additionally, I found Koper to be a charming and hospitable coastal town, offering a beautiful blend of history, culture, and stunning seaside views."
Jana Radzijevskaja and Aligmantas Paulauskas from a university in Lithuania visited Prof. Dr. Elena Bužan as part of an Erasmus exchange and attended the 14th European Conference on Vertebrate Management in Ankaran.
Prof. Radzijevskaja mentioned that the visit was inspiring for the exchange of ideas and highlighted the faculty’s hospitality. "I truly appreciated the hospitality, the encouraging academic environment, and the opportunity to exchange ideas with both faculty representatives and students. During the visit, I had the chance to learn more about the scientific activities and research directions pursued by the university's staff and students. "
In addition to the academic environment, she was also impressed by the city of Koper. "My first impressions of the university and the city of Koper were extremely positive. The campus fosters dynamism and connectivity; I was especially impressed by its openness to international collaboration. I look forward to future cooperation and joint initiatives that will further strengthen our academic ties," she added, also emphasising further opportunities for collaboration.
"Together with colleagues, we also had promising discussions during the visit with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Elena Bužan from the Department of Biodiversity at UP FAMNIT regarding potential collaboration in the fields of vertebrate ecology and genomics."
Dario di Dario is currently on a research visit to Associate Professors Dr. Matjaž Kljun and Dr. Klen Čopič Puihar at the Department of Information Sciences and Technologies at UP FAMNIT.
“I am here as a Ph.D. student focusing on metaverse and metaverse engineering. Matjaž and Klen have been incredibly helpful during my research period. My work centers on virtual reality and the use of context in applications, particularly for educational purposes. The aim is to enhance the quality of the experience for students. The city is very peaceful, and the people are generally very friendly. I really enjoy my time here.”
Prof. Dr. Elvira Hadžiahmetović Jurida from the University of Tuzla visited Prof. Dr. Elena Bužan as part of the Erasmus exchange program and attended the 14th European Conference on Vertebrate Management, which took place from May 12th to 16th in Ankaran.
“At the 14th EVCM conference in Ankaran, I met several colleagues from my field or related fields from around the world and had the opportunity to discuss issues of common interest. I am also convinced that the visit significantly strengthened the ties between the institutions,” describes her visit Dr. Hadžiahmetović.”
Wednesday, 21 May 2025 Second meeting of PhD mentors at the UP
On Wednesday, 21 May 2025, the Second meeting of PhD mentors was held at UP, organized by the Department for Research, Development and Artistic Activities. The event was attended by mentors (as well as co-mentors) of doctoral students who are pursuing their studies at UP.
The central themes of today's event were two important areas, namely the assessment of research work and the current situation regarding predatory publishing. The opening speech by the Rector of UP, Prof. Klavdija Kutnar, PhD, was followed by two presentations. First, the Rector of the University of Ljubljana, Prof. Gregor Majdič, PhD, presented the process of introducing qualitative evaluation of scientific research work at the University of Ljubljana (UL), which began in 2023. The new approach prioritizes qualitative assessment of the research achievements of researchers and research groups and their social impact, gradually moving away from the currently dominant quantitative criteria. Qualitative evaluation will gradually become a unified framework for the assessment of existing and new research programs at UL. Prof. Tomaž Pisanski, PhD (UP FAMNIT), entitled his presentation "Is it worth publishing in predatory journals?", in which he presented the field of predatory practices in scientific publishing and pointed out reasons for and against publishing in predatory media. He highlighted that the number of predatory publishers, journals, and conferences is still on the rise, with publishing results in them becoming more widely accepted. A discussion followed the presentations.
The event was organized as part of HRS4R (Human Resources Strategy for Researchers) activities to support PhD mentors at UP. The first Meeting for PhD Mentors at UP took place in November 2024 and addressed the question, "What does it mean to be a good mentor?". Assoc. Prof. Klen Čopič Pucihar, PhD, and Prof. Štefan Bojnec, PhD, shared their insights, experience, and challenges related to this topic. You can access the recording of the event, here. Futhermore, UP has established an intranet website titled "Mentorstva" on the O365 SharePoint application. The purpose of this website is to support the development of quality mentoring practices at UP. It provides essential information and resources related to mentoring, covering various aspects of the mentoring process. Topics include the candidate selection process, the roles and relationships of different stakeholders, managing expectations, the importance of the research environment and culture, effective science communication, and academic writing etc.
Wednesday, 21 May 2025 The UP Senate approves the accreditation application for the higher professional study programme Wood Innovation for Sustainability
As part of the GDI UP project – Green, Digital and Inclusive University of Primorska – the UP has developed a new higher education study programme, Wood Innovation for Sustainability. At its 20th regular meeting (May 21, 2025), the UP Senate approved the application for accreditation of the degree program, which will be forwarded to the Council of the Slovenian Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (NAKVIS) for further examination and decision-making.
The study program comprises six areas: Core Subjects, Foundation Subjects, Digital Woodworking Skills, Business and Economics Skills and Sustainability, Built Wood Environments, Practical Education and a Mobility Window (International Experience).
(Photo by: Miran Kambič)
When designing the study program, we pursued the following goals:
- Interdisciplinarity, as we recognized the need to integrate knowledge from different disciplines to solve complex problems in the wood industry.
- Innovative teaching methods (e.g. brainstorming, case studies, collaborative learning, discussions, group research, problem-based learning, project work) to make the courses attractive and prepare students to meet the challenges of the industry after graduation.
Practical training accounts for 24 of the 180 credits of the degree program, or 13% of the total course requirements. This is intended to close the gap between theory and practical experience. Direct work in companies in the woodworking industry enables students to enter the direct work process, where they can apply and reflect on the specialist knowledge they have acquired.
The higher professional study programme Innovations in Wood Science for Sustainable Development includes a mandatory "mobility window", through which UP also fulfils Objective 12.1 – “The volume of international and intercultural content in UP study programmes will be increased, namely through the implementation of mobility windows and other elements of the ‘internationalisation at home’ concept” – from the University of Primorska’s Medium-Term Development Strategy 2025 –2030 (https://www.hippocampus.si/ISBN/978-961-293-406-4.pdf). Students will be able to complete the mobility window at partner universities or in the form of practical training in numerous leading European organisations or companies across Europe.
The study programme was developed in accordance with the guidelines set out in the 2024 Policy Document of the European Wood Policy Platform WoodPoP “Wood-Based Circular Bioeconomy for a Sustainable Europe” (https://woodpop.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/WoodPoP-Position-Paper_slo.pdf).
The project Green, Digital & Inclusive University of Primorska (GDI UP) is co-financed by the Republic of Slovenia, the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation and the European Union – NextGenerationEU. The project is implemented in accordance with the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) under the development area Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Growth, component Strengthening competencies, in particular digital competencies and those required by the new professions and the green transition (C3 K5), for the investment measure Investment F. Implementation of pilot projects, the results of which will serve as a basis for the preparation of a roadmap for the reform of higher education for a green and resilient transition to a Society 5.0: project Pilot Projects for the Reform of Higher Education for a Green and Resilient Transition.
Friday, 16 May 2025 The successful conclusion of the 14th European Conference on Vertebrate Management (EVMC 2025)
More than 230 Researchers from 28 Countries Present Latest Findings on Vertebrate Management
Ankaran, 16 May 2025 – The 14th European Vertebrate Management Conference (EVMC 2025) successfully concluded today in Ankaran. Held from 12 to 16 May 2025, the event welcomed over 230 researchers from 28 countries. A total of 167 contributions were presented as part of a rich scientific program, prepared by authors from 45 countries around the world.
The conference featured 7 plenary lectures, 88 oral presentations, and 72 poster presentations. The event brought together 806 authors from across all continents.
A broad consortium of partners organized the event, including the Faculty of Environmental Protection, the University of Primorska (Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies), the University of Ljubljana (Biotechnical Faculty), the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, the Julius Kühn Institute, the Hunting Association of Slovenia, the Hunting Association of Koper, and the Slovenian Forestry Institute.
Researchers presented scientific findings from a wide range of topics related to vertebrate management. Special focus was given to ecology, genetics, wildlife health, human-wildlife conflicts, invasive species, and modern approaches to population management. The research covered all vertebrate groups – from fish, amphibians, and reptiles to birds and both small and large mammals.
In addition to the scientific program, conference participants also explored the natural, cultural, and culinary features of Slovenia.
The conference represents an important milestone for the Slovenian scientific community, highlighting its contribution to the development of natural resource management and strengthening cooperation among researchers, managers, and policy-makers. As the EU adopts key measures for nature conservation, such as the Nature Restoration Law and the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, events like this play a crucial role in translating scientific knowledge into practice.
We sincerely thank the sponsors and supporters of EVMC 2025, whose support made the event possible and contributed to the success and growth of our community.
We are pleased to announce that the 15th European Vertebrate Management Conference will be held in Croatia in 2027.
For more information about EVMC2025, visit: www.evmc.online
Tuesday, 13 May 2025 Presentation of the topic of the doctoral dissertation - Uroš Sergaš
We invite you to the presentation of the topic of the doctoral dissertation News Recommender System for Political Depolarization of the student Uroš Sergaš, enrolled in the doctoral study programme Computer Science.
The presentation will take place on Monday, 19 May 2025 at 10.30 via Zoom on link:
https://upr-si.zoom.us/j/9657140246?pwd=U2FxZnFuSC9lV2VTTTNRMC94SExLQT09
You are warmly invited!
Tuesday, 13 May 2025 Researchers from UP FAMNIT presented studies on Immortelle at the international MESMAP symposium in Rimini
Researchers from the Department of Applied Natural Sciences at UP FAMNIT participated in the 11th International Mediterranean Symposium on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MESMAP), held from 6 to 8 May 2025, as part of the international MACFRUT2025 exhibition for fruits and vegetables, in Rimini, Italy. The fair brought together producers, distributors, experts, and researchers from the agriculture and food industry. This year, a special exhibition was held, dedicated to spices, medicinal, and aromatic plants, alongside the international MESMAP symposium. During the event, Assist. Prof. Alenka Baruca Arbeiter and Petra Gabrovšek presented their research on the Mediterranean plant Helichrysum italicum (Immortelle) with a poster.
The main organizer of MESMAP is Prof. Dr. Nazım Şekeroğlu from Gaziantep University (Turkey), who is also the president of AMAPMED (Association of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the Mediterranean) and the coordinator of GOFMAP (Global Organization for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants), along with participating organizations and industry sponsors.
Tuesday, 13 May 2025 Call for papers for the conference MATCOS-25
The Middle-European Conference on Applied Theoretical Computer Science (MATCOS-25) will be held October 9-10, 2025, in Koper, Slovenia. The conference is organised by the University of Primorska, Andrej Marušič Institute (UP IAM), and the Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies (UP Famnit) in cooperation with InnoRenew CoE.
MATCOS-25 will be held in conjunction with the 28th Multi-Conference on Information Society, October 6th - 10th, 2025, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
During the past years, other fields have used several subjects, methods and approaches of Theoretical Computer Science, and several results have been integrated into practical applications. Solutions for NP-hard problems, algorithmic-oriented AI and data science, new models and methods in system biology and bioinformatics, automata theory approaches in software and hardware verification, practical quantum computing solutions and the development of other prospective new models of computation are good examples to buttress the above statement.
Keynote speaker: Michel Bierlaire, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland
We set double aims as the scope of this conference: on one hand side we expect ideas and solutions from the field of Theoretical Computer Science which have been directly applied in real world applications. On the other side we want to collect theoretical results based on some fruitful idea that may be useful to adopt for practical problems.
Suggested, but not exclusive, topics of interest include:
- Automata and formal languages, computability,
- Algorithms and data structures,
- Computational complexity,
- Artificial intelligence, machine learning,
- Optimisation, approximation methods, NP-hard problems,
- Graph theory,
- Computational geometry.
There is a special emphasis on use of AI approaches and also on applications such as simulation, bioinformatics, digital signal and image processing, data science, digital forensics, logistics, smart homes/cities and IoT, computational social science etc.
Important dates:
- Regular paper submission: August 17th, 2025
- Short paper submission: August 24th, 2025
- Notification: September 7th, 2025
Papers must be in English and provide sufficient details to allow the program committee to assess their merits. The submissions of regular papers, as well as their final versions, are limited to 4 pages sharp and will be published in an Information Society multi-conference proceeding.
Revised and extended versions of selected papers will appear in a special issue of the journal Informatica (http://www.informatica.si/). Only electronic submissions will be accepted (in pdf format), via EasyChair (in a submission, indicate whether you are submitting a regular or short paper): HERE.
For more detailed information on paper submission, travel and accommodation information, and general info regarding the conference, please visit http://matcos.iam.upr.si.
All personal inquiries must be sent to matcos@iam.upr.si.
Monday, 12 May 2025 Prof. Dr. Maria Chudnovsky (Princeton University) presented new research in the field of graph theory
On May 12, 2025, Prof. Maria Chudnovsky from Princeton University, a globally renowned expert in graph theory, delivered a lecture at the UP FAMNIT Mathematical Research Seminar. Her lecture, titled "Induced Subgraphs and Pathwidth", explored recent advances in understanding the structure of graphs through path decompositions and the role of induced subgraph obstructions in characterizing bounded pathwidth. This talk presented joint work with Sepehr Hajebi and Sophie Spirkl, part of the wider series "Induced Subgraphs and Tree Decompositions", currently comprising 18 papers.
We were especially pleased to welcome Prof. Chudnovsky on May 12, which is celebrated worldwide as the International Day of Women in Mathematics. This date commemorates the birthday of Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman to win the Fields Medal, and aims to inspire women and girls in mathematics. Around the globe, universities and organizations mark the occasion with lectures, exhibitions, and community events that highlight the achievements and contributions of women in mathematics.
Monday, 12 May 2025 Opening of the 14th European Conference on Vertebrate Management (EVMC 2025)
The 14th European Conference on Vertebrate Management (EVMC 2025) is taking place in Ankaran from 12 to 16 May 2025, organised by the Faculty of Environmental Protection in collaboration with partner organisations: UP FAMNIT, UL Biotechnical Faculty, the Julius Kühn Institute, the Hunting Association of Slovenia and Koper and the Forestry Institute of Slovenia.
The conference is a continuation of previous meetings with an additional focus on the involvement of all vertebrate species and different management approaches, including ecology, monitoring and conservation. At the same time, EVMC 2025 is a platform for presenting the latest scientific knowledge on vertebrate ecology, the ecosystem role and value of different species, hunting, behaviour, interspecific and intraspecific interactions, human-animal coexistence, conflicts and population management.
The conference focuses on the latest and most interesting topics in a wide range of disciplines and taxa, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, small mammals, lagomorphs, ungulates, small and large carnivores.
The 230 participants from 28 countries (all continents except South America) were also welcomed by the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food of the Republic of Slovenia, Mateja Čalušić, with an address emphasizing the importance of such events.
Thursday, 8 May 2025 UP FAMNIT hosted a meeting within the LILY COST project
From May 8 to 9, the Molecular group of the Department of Biodiversity UP FAMNIT, hosted a meeting in the Livade building as part of the LILY COST project. This project aims to enhance methods for integrating Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) and to improve various systems, frameworks, models, and approaches for mitigating the impacts of climate change.
With the help of participatory approaches, LILY will co-develop a conceptual framework, guidelines for best practices, monitoring recommendations, and a data-sharing platform over four years. It will also support young scientists and promote excellence through transdisciplinarity and the "One Health" concept, alongside inclusive, gender-balanced governance.
Official website of the project: https://hei-planet.com/cost-lily/
Wednesday, 7 May 2025 Invitation to the defense of the diploma thesis – Patricija Kostanjšek (Conservation Biology, 1st cycle)
Patricija Kostanjšek, a student of the study program of Conservation Biology, 1st cycle, will present the diploma thesis entitled Community responses of dragonfly (Odonata: Zygoptera, Anisoptera) larvae to invasive goldfish (Cyprinidae: Carassius auratus) exposure in sub-Mediterranean ponds: Exploring diversity and morphological adaptations on Tuesday, 27 May 2025 at 10:00 in the classroom Livade-EPSILON.
You are all kindly invited!
Tuesday, 6 May 2025 Upcoming Event: Famnit Hackathon 4.0
GDG on Campus University of Primorska - Koper, Slovenia, once again bringing together programming and coding enthusiasts for the fourth year in a row at Famnit Hackathon 4.0!
This three-day event, scheduled from May 16 to 18, 2025, at the UP FAMNIT premises, will bring together UP FAMNIT students and other tech enthusiasts who will form teams, tackle real-world challenges, and compete for exciting prizes.
The event includes:
- Real-world challenges from tech companies
- Workshops and mentorship sessions
- Meals are provided throughout the event
- Prizes for the winning teams
- A meet-and-greet with a Google representative
- A special guest from HTW Dresden University
Registration is open – spots are limited.
REGISTER HERE.
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Google Developer Student Clubs are groups of undergraduate and graduate students at universities worldwide who are active in the field of Google technologies.
We also encourage you to explore GDG Primorska's Instagram profile and official website.
