Give Shape To Planet B: Apply Now For Festival University 2022

A unique opportunity for young students from around the globe

A joint initiative by Ars Electronica, a “festival for art, technology and society”, and Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU), the Festival University is inviting students worldwide to participate in its second edition, which will be held from 18 August to 14 September 2022 in Linz, Austria. The 2022 edition of Ars Electronica is centred on the theme Welcome to Planet B. It revolves around climate change and the actions to be taken by a global community. The Festival University programme, in turn, calls on students to “jointly develop planetary strategies for change and transformation.” A total of 200 spots are up for grabs for students aged between 16 and 25 years, from different cultural and educational backgrounds.

What exactly is Festival University?
It is not, as the name might imply, an institute where you’ll learn how to organise arts and cultural festivals. (Fortunately, there’s already a place you can do just that on Festivals From India.) This particular Festival University, its creators say, is “exciting and colourful like a festival and rooted in science and research like a university”. Described as a “prototype of a next-gen university”, it is “a think tank and do tank for a new type of university, focused on the skills and knowledge necessary to deal with transformation and transformational change on a planetary scale.”

Selected students will be enrolled in a four-week programme during which they will be taught by a faculty of 40 experts with diverse backgrounds. They include scientists, researchers, academics, artists, designers, biologists, physicists, neuroscientists, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, among others.

It’s free to attend!
Here’s the best part. Attending Festival University, which is supported by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Education, Science and Research, involves no tuition fee. Additionally, selected students’ flight tickets, visa, accommodation and main meals on site will all be taken care of by the organisers. The participants will also be part of community events, excursions and social activities, have full access to all the events of the Ars Electronica festival such as exhibitions, concerts, screenings, conferences, open labs and workshops, and get a certificate of participation from JKU.  

That’s not all. Students of the programme will have the opportunity to present ideas and outcomes at the Ars Electronica Festival, which will take place from 07 to 11 September 2022 in Linz.

Know before you apply
– Participants need not be enrolled in a formal education programme.
– Those below 18 years of age must present their parents’ permission and a consent sheet.
– A valid travel insurance that includes health coverage is a must.

If interested, we suggest you get cracking as the last date to apply is 30 June 2022. Find the application form here. For more information, email [email protected].

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