Tag: AIF 2026

Student mobility has always been a backbone of the internationalization of European Higher Education and a driver of innovation through the exchange of good practices and the conceptualization of solutions to challenges related to inter-university collaboration, teaching and skills development.

This session

• will explore innovative initiatives that have been already introduced, like the digitalization of processes and learning environments,
• take stock of the improvements that have been made in terms of inclusion and
• provide a floor for discussion on the current financial, socio-economic and equality challenges universities face when implementing student mobilities.

Panel Chair:

Professor Alexandros Triantafyllidis, Chair of the European Educational Programmes Committee, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh)

The process of creating innovation in general (and in the Transport sector) is a complex interaction between different “actors” that exist in a given area. The conventional models of technology transfer (which have been around in one form or another since the 1950s) invariably fail the task to adequately describe today’s innovation systems and processes. This paper will present a more complex and comprehensive model of innovation based on the “ecosystems” concept that has definite advantages in describing and explaining the process of innovation creation including innovation on a transformational or revolutionary scale. This part of the presentation will be based on the author’s recent book titled “The Accelerating Transport Innovation Revolution”, published by Elsevier.

In the field of Transportation, there are many, incredibly dynamic and innovating sub-sectors that are moving rapidly towards new technological horizons.  These subsectors embrace electric and autonomous vehicles, shared mobility services, connected transport services, smart infrastructure and many others. Undeniably Transportation is in a unique position to become one of the truly dynamic sectors of a national economy. To a significant degree, Transportation and Information Systems have transmuted into a single innovation sector transforming through advances in hard and soft information-related technologies that depend on the manipulation of electrons rather than energizing carbon fuels.

After presenting the most critical aspects of innovation creation concepts, the paper will focus on Greece and its emerging innovation ecosystem in the field of Transportation. The existing legal and regulatory regime will be presented together with the innovation financing opportunities that are available today for financing Greece’s innovatory fields. It is to be shown that the Transport sector in Greece is still lagging other economic sectors who seem to profit more from the available innovation financing sources and several suggestions as to what needs to be done will be made.

In the age of Artificial Intelligence, we are surrounded by data, speed, and limitless options. Yet one fundamental human question remains unchanged: How do we make good decisions? And how do those decisions shape a good life?

As an architect, I was trained to read the ground before designing, to respect structure, and to understand that every mistake in planning eventually appears in reality. Over time, I realized that life requires the same discipline. This realization led me to a practical encounter with Aristotle — not as an academic exercise, but as a method for living and deciding.

In this talk, I will speak through personal examples — from my professional work as an architect, from my experience as a mother, from traveling to forty-five countries, and from my ten-year study and practical application of Aristotelian philosophy — about three interconnected foundations: critical thinking, ethos, and paideia. According to Aristotle, these three are inseparable. I will explain why they are essential and why today we often invoke these terms without clearly defining them, creating deep confusion about what we truly mean.

I define critical thinking not as a vague intellectual skill, but as a structured process: carefully reading the data, imagining multiple alternatives, evaluating them, allowing judgment to mature, seeking counsel from practically wise individuals, making a conscious choice, and implementing it through disciplined, step-by-step action.

Yet critical thinking alone is not sufficient. Without ethos — character shaped by habit and grounded in self-knowledge — decisions risk becoming merely strategic rather than meaningful. Aristotle reminds us that ethos is cultivated through repeated action. Good decisions require good character.

Equally essential is paideia — education in its deeper sense. Aristotle defines it as learning to take pleasure and feel pain in the right things. This means educating not only the intellect, but also the emotions. Without this inner compass, technology amplifies confusion rather than clarity.

Artificial Intelligence can enhance analysis and expand possibilities. But it cannot define purpose. To live well in a technological era, we must integrate intelligent systems with critical thinking, ethos, and paideia. These three elements are deeply interconnected and cannot be separated.

Because good decisions are the foundation of a happy life.

The “Mediterranean Diet” is #1 worldwide again. Where did it come from? Based on the timeless wisdom of all things in moderation, the “Ευ Ζην” philosophy of our ancient forebears, and essential elements our homeland: wine, wheat and olive oil, the core of the Mediterranean Lifestyle was defined and present long ago. Those elements were incorporated into Greek Orthodox Christianity. Fast forward, and despite the terrible impacts of Germany’s World War II invasion and occupation, then followed by a devastating civil war, international researchers steadily began to document beneficial effects on nutrition, health and longevity in the post-war Greece of the 1950’s and 1960’s. Underlying these outcomes were a diet and lifestyle based on the traditional products and practices available to and sustainable by the rural agrarian communities of Greece. During these times, the majority of the population closely followed the Greek Orthodox Calendar and its timeless fasting practices. The diet was based on local and seasonal – mainly plant products (greens- cultivated and wild, vegetables, legumes, whole-grain cereals and fruits) with a plurality (up to 40%) of calories derived from olives and extra virgin olive oil. Physical activity was an essential practice through chores and walking many kilometers daily as required by the rural lifestyle. They drank local wine at most meals in moderation, and an afternoon siesta was the norm. When they consumed animal products, nothing was wasted. The same was true of tins, barrels and bottles that they recycled and used countless times long before it was a modern fashion. These frugal practices birthed what is now called the “Mediterranean Diet & Lifestyle”. Ironically, those traditional habits of poor farmers are now practiced more commonly by wealthier and more highly educated persons, including in non-Mediterranean countries. The presentation will share the efforts of the Hellenic Center of Excellence whose programs in Greece combine state of the art science presented by the world’s leading experts with unforgettable, hands-on immersion experiences (e.g. harvesting and milling olives, visiting wineries, monasteries & historical sites). All of these while staying in some of GRECOTEL’s best 5-star properties in breathtaking seaside locations.