On October 17 and 18, 2025, Salzburg University of Applied Sciences hosted the 17th edition of its interdisciplinary Ethics & Sustainability Symposium, marking the start of the winter semester for around 400 Master's students across all programs.
This year’s theme, “Enlightenment 2.0 – The Scientific Approach in Times of Skepticism”, addressed the growing challenges faced by scientific discourse in an era shaped by artificial intelligence and increasing public skepticism. With AI now capable of generating realistic yet artificial data, images, and arguments, the line between truth and fabrication is becoming increasingly blurred. This not only threatens scientific integrity but also complicates the communication of credible research.
Through German and English tracks and exclusive workshops led by FH Salzburg supervisors, students gained a comprehensive overview of ethical and sustainability-related issues and explored them in an interdisciplinary context.
The symposium concluded with a joint panel discussion on Saturday, offering reflections and future perspectives on the topics addressed.
The event powerfully demonstrated the importance of ethical orientation and sustainable thinking in today’s complex world – and how FH Salzburg actively supports its students in navigating these challenges.
The “Ethics & Sustainability” format is an interdisciplinary symposium for students at Salzburg University of Applied Sciences. For the past 17 years, this annual event has been organised by the Rectorate and the various degree programmes, with the aim of fostering cross-disciplinary dialogue on societal issues and encouraging networking among students across departments and fields of study. In 2021, the format “Change.Climate.Resilience” was introduced, specifically designed for undergraduate students.