The APPEAR project ‘Digitally Connecting Real and Virtual Environments’ (DE Division) shows a possibility. Under the leadership of Ainura Nazarkulova and Josef Strobl from the Department of Geoinformatics of the University of Salzburg and with partner universities from Armenia and Kyrgyzstan digital learning modules were developed. The modules developed in the project use satellite images, real-time data and geo-based applications to make complex global relationships understandable – and they systematically promote the training of digital earth citizens.
The completed project clearly shows that it is necessary to invest in optimising the use of AI tools in academic teaching, for example, across borders and disciplines. On a positive note, gender equality within the discipline is continuously improving despite the existing cultural challenges.
How is the subject taught in Vienna? Thomas Schaupenlehner and Florian Wiesenhofer from the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) provide an insight into their everyday research and teaching. They talk about the role of geoinformation systems, data visualisation and virtual reality – and how these technologies can help to make planning processes more transparent and democratic.
Last November the OeAD organised a higher education conference on ‘Internationalisation and Artificial Intelligence’ at the University of Applied Sciences St. Pölten. The focus was on the wide range of possible applications in the context of internationalisation in higher education. Welt im Ohr asked around on site and captured a few opinions.
The conversations impressively show that digital education is more than just an online course. It is a bridge – between science and social participation, between regions and realities, between data, data protection and (educational) policy decisions.
Dr Ainura Nazarkulova, OeAD alumna, University of Salzburg, APPEAR project leader
Ao. Univ.-Prof.Dr Josef Strobl, University of Salzburg, APPEAR project partner
DI Dr Thomas Schaupenlehner, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna
Florian Wiesenhofer, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna
Survey participants at the OeAD higher education conference 2024 on ‘Internationalisation and Artificial Intelligence’, 13 and 14 November University of Applied Sciences St. Pölten
