ECSS 2018 - 1st Call for Participation
The 1st call for participation has been released for the ECSS 2018. The 14th European Computer Science Summit will take place in Gothenburg, Sweden, Oct 8-10, dedicated this year to "Informatics Transforms and Renews".
14th European Computer Science Summit – ECSS 2018 
“Informatics Transforms and Renews”
8 – 10 October 2018, Gothenburg, Sweden
Pre-Summit Workshop for Deans and Department Heads
“Personal Development”
8 October 2018, Gothenburg, Sweden
The 14th European Computer Science Summit – ECSS 2018 – is the meeting place for anyone interested in issues of research, education and policy in Informatics. This is a unique opportunity to meet some of the prominent decision makers in the Informatics research and education and discuss critical issues for the discipline.
ECSS 2018 will be held in Gothenburg, Sweden, October 8-10, 2018 and will be hosted by the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, joint between Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg. The summit is co-chaired by Ivica Crnkovic and Gordana Dodig Crnkovic, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg, and Enrico Nardelli, Informatics Europe President, Università di Roma "Tor Vergata". The Program Chairs are Letizia Jaccheri, Department of Computer Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology and Pekka Orponen, Department of Computer Science, Aalto University.
The Summit is devoted to important and timely strategic issues and trends regarding all aspects of Informatics, including research, education, entrepreneurship, funding, career development, management and policies. The ECSS 2018 will bring together:
- Heads (deans, chairs) of academic Informatics / Computer Science / IT departments (schools, faculties, institutes);
- Research directors and managers of research centres, institutes and laboratories, both in public institutions and in industry;
- Faculty members and researchers from both academia and industry;
- Members of funding and governmental agencies at European, national regional and local level;
- Experts, advisors and thinkers of numerous key issues like ethics, the relation between Informatics and other sciences, the discipline’s future and its influence on the academic world and society
- Informatics transforms science and technology: What radical changes are being brought about by Informatics in other sciences, and even in the scientific process itself? How is Informatics transforming our fundamental technologies and industries, e.g. through digitalisation and artificial intelligence?
- Informatics transforms society and life: Is an open society ideal sustainable in a world of big data and social media? What is the effect of artificial intelligence on the future of work? The reciprocal relationship between art and Informatics. The technics and ethics of autonomous systems.
- Informatics in transformation: What are the radical Informatics ideas emerging now and impacting the future? How to maintain the momentum in Informatics research and education, especially in Europe?
Invited Speakers
ECSS 2018 will gather a selection of distinguished speakers to address the opportunities and challenges that the Informatics transformation brings about; it will feature talks on selected “hot” topics, panel discussions and examples of successful stories.
A list of speakers includes:
- Luca Cardelli, Microsoft Research and Oxford University
- Mark Coeckelbergh, University of Vienna
- Per Delsing, Chalmers University of Technology
- Georgi Dimitrov, European Commission, Directorate General Education and Culture
- Amy Loutfi, Örebro University
- Wendy Mackay, INRIA
- John Shawe-Taylor, University College London
- Klaus Tochtermann, ZBW – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics
- Hannu Toivonen, University of Helsinki.
Follow the ECSS 2018 website and our Twitter with hashtag #ecss_2018 for up to date information.
Pre-Summit Workshop for Deans and Department Heads
Every year, jointly with the ECSS main Summit, Informatics Europe organises a special Workshop for Deans and Heads of Informatics Departments to address specific challenges they encounter in their role. The workshop is a unique networking forum for leaders of Informatics institutions, and focuses on concrete issues and practical solutions.
The workshop will be held on Monday, October 8, co-chaired by Erika Abraham, Computer Science Department, RWTH Aachen University, Gregor Engels, Department of Computer Science, Paderborn University, and Mehdi Jazayeri, Faculty of Informatics, University of Lugano.
The theme of the 2018 Pre-Summit Workshop is Personal Development, with main focus on special skills and management training needed by deans and professors on the one hand; and PhD strategy and career training on the other hand.
Deans need a variety of special skills to lead and represent a Computer Science faculty or department, but they usually do not get any special training before they start their term. They must be able to unite and lead professors who are leaders themselves, students and other faculty/department members, and represent their opinions and interests within and outside their university. In the first half of the workshop we offer a platform for inspiration, exchange and discussion of problems and best practices, covering topics like:
- How to be a leader of leaders?
- How to organize management structures in faculties/departments? How to create a collaborative support culture? What environments enable people to do good work?
- How to represent Computer Science to the outside? How to strengthen it strategically inside the university?
- Which typical problems do deans face and which solutions exist?
- How to handle the multiple demands/stress of being a leader?
The contents and forms of PhD education in Europe are diverse. The second half of the workshop will be devoted to the discussion of different approaches and strategies:
- How to recruit good PhD students?
- What are the forms and contents of the PhD training? Do lectures need to be visited? Secondments and internships? English required? Paid or unpaid? Besides research, which skills should be trained, how and who pays for it? Thesis or cumulative dissertation? Exams at the defence? External examiners?
- How to train PhD students for different career paths?
- How to deal with increasing interdisciplinarity?
- What is the role of industry in doctoral training?
- How to organize and lead training networks (like the European Marie Curie Networks)?
Confirmed Speakers:
- Michel Chaudron, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
- Geraldine Fitzpatrick, Vienna University of Technology, Austria
- Manfred Nagl, RWTH Aachen University, Germany.
The workshop will be a mixture of talks, discussions/knowledge sharing/exchange in smaller groups and a consolidation and presentation of the results to all participants. A detailed program and more speakers will be announced soon.
Venue/travel
ECSS 2018 Venue Location
ECSS 2018 and the Pre-Summit Workshop for Deans and Department Heads will be held at Chalmers Conference Centre. Chalmers Conference Centre is a modern conference facility made for creative meetings in an inspiring venue. It is centrally located in Gothenburg within the Campus Johanneberg of the Chalmers University of Technology, just a few minutes away from the Avenue and Götaplatsen.
ECSS 2018 is hosted by the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, joint between Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg. With about 70 teachers/researchers and about as many PhD-students from 30 different countries, the Department has gained highest international recognition. It creates a dynamic research environment with several world renown research groups. Research spans the spectrum from theoretical underpinnings to applied systems development.
How to reach ECSS 2018 Venue
The nearest airport is Gothenburg Landvetter Airport which is conveniently located close to the center.
- By public transportation:
To reach the conference venue from the Airport, you can take the airport bus to "Nils Ericsson terminal" in the centre of Gothenburg. Then, take bus 16, destination Högsbohöjd, from the stop Nordstan, just outside the terminal, to stop Chalmers. From Drottningstorget, also just outside the central station, you can take tram 13, heading “Sahlgrenska”, to Chalmers. From Brunnsparken, approximately 500 meters from the central station there are additional tram lines that go to Chalmers. Please visit Västtrafik for details.
- By taxi:
The taxi costs approximately SEK 420 (around 40 EUR) to/from Landvetter Airport. It’s recommended to ask for a fixed price and avoid unlicensed taxis. The driver should have a taxi ID card clearly displayed in the vehicle. Service is included in the taximeter price.
Recommended taxi:
Taxi Göteborg: +46 (0)31 650 00
VIP Taxi: +46(0)31 27 16 11
Taxi Kurir: +46 (0)31 27 27 27
Accommodation
You can check the following hotels close to the conference venue recommended by the local organising committee:
Special Offer for Prospective Members
If your organisation is planning to join Informatics Europe, we have a special offer in combination with ECSS 2018: your conference registration fee(s) will be discounted from the annual membership fee of your institution when joining Informatics Europe.
The offer includes the discount of one individual registration fee per institution (ECSS main Summit and/or Pre-Summit Workshop) up to the value of maximum one annual membership.
For details about membership, please visit our Membership page.
For further information about this offer, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Registration to ECSS 2018 will open by end of June.
Join us in Gothenburg and connect to the community!