We are working on the second edition of the International Vocational Education Conference VET Bridge 2026!

VET Bridge

2026

DK Poklad, Ostrava-Poruba

November 3–4, 2026

Don’t miss out on the latest news and join us for the next edition!

The conference is organized by the Moravian-Silesian Technology Academy in cooperation with the Moravian-Silesian Region.

International speakers

Paolo Nardi

Executive Director of the European Forum for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (EfVET)

Aitor Orbegozo

Executive Director of Tknika, the Basque VET Applied Research Centre

Witold Kołodziejczyk

Lecturer at the Academy of Justice in Poland and Coordinator of the Smart School HUB Concept

Musa Kirkar

Director General, CEIPES ETS

Alejandra Martinez

Director of Basque VET school CIFP Santurtzi LHII

Imanol Urreisti

Director of Basque VET school CIFP Armeria Eskola LHII

Rosana Uribe

Director of Basque VET school CIFP Tartanga LHII

Sergio Perosanz

Director of Basque VET school CIFP Emilio Campuzano LHII

Local speakers

Anna Nellar Otáhalová

Project Developer at the Moravian-Silesian Innovation Center Ostrava (MSIC)

Jan Dittrich

Coordinator of Activities Supporting Entrepreneurship, Enterprise, and Innovation at Černá kostka

Zuzana Andrýsková

Senior Entrepreneurship and Economy Specialist at the Moravian-Silesian Technological Academy

Jan Rosenthaler

Non-equity partner at the Legitas law firm

Pavel König

Founder of nvias.org

Bohumil Kartous

Vice-Rector at the University of Economics and Management in Prague

Michaela Badurová

HR Director at Brembo Czech

Kateřina Kupková

CEO and Chair of the Board of Directors of Lenzing Biocel Paskov a.s.

Monika Tomečková

Head of the Future Shapers Initiative

Milan Zdvyhal

Chief Technology and Product Officer at the Moravian-Silesian Technological Academy

Jan Meca

CEO of the Moravian-Silesian Technological Academy

Hosts

Michael Rozsypal

Host

Anna Bangoura

Host

Jiří Kratochvíl

Host

Local speakers

Tuesday, November 3, 2026
8:00–9:00
Registration and networking
Theatre Hall:

9:00 – 9:30

Opening and introduction
  • Josef Bělica, Governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region
  • Jan Veřmiřovský, Deputy Governor of the Region for Education, Youth and Sport
  • Jan Meca, Executive Director of the Moravian-Silesian Technological Academy

9:30 – 10:00

Presentation
  • Paolo Nardi, Executive Director of the European Forum of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (EfVET) 

10:00 – 10:30

Presentation
  • Aitor Orbegozo, Executive Director of Tknika, the Basque VET Applied Research Centre
10:30–11:00
Presentation
  • The Story from the Basque Country presented by four directors of VET schools:
    • Sergio Perosanz, CIFP Emilio Campuzano LHII
    • Alejandra Martinez, CIFP Santurtzi LHII
    • Rosana Uribe, CIFP Tartanga LHII
    • Imanol Urreisti, CIFP Armeria Eskola LHII
11:00–11:30
Coffee break
11:30–12:00
Presentation
  • Witold Kołodziejczyk, Lecturer at the Academy of Justice in Poland and Coordinator of the Smart School HUB Concept 

12:00–13:00

Panel discussion
  • Michaela Badurová, HR Director at Brembo Czech
  • Kateřina Kupková, Vice President of the Confederation of Industry and Transport 
  • Monika Tomečková, Head of the Future Shapers Initiative
  • Bohumil Kartous, Vice-Rector at the University of Economics and Management in Prague

13:00–13:45

Lunch

13:45–14:15

Presentation
  • Musa Kirkar, President at International center for promotion of education and development (CEIPES)
14:15–14:45
Presentation
  • Milan Zdvyhal, Chief Technology and Product Officer at the Moravian-Silesian Technological Academy
14:45–15:00
Coffee break
15:00–15:30
Presentation
  • Jan Rosenthaler, Non-equity partner at the Legitas law firm which co-founded the Czech Artificial Intelligence Association
15:30–16:00
Presentation
  • Pavel König, Founder of NVIAS
8:00–16:00

Presentation of School Companies and the ABB Robotics Learning Lab

8:00–10:00

Registration and networking

8:30–9:30

Banquet Hall

  • Breakfast and Q&A with Jan Meca,
    CEO of the Moravian-Silesian Technological Academy

14:00–14:30

Theatre Hall

  • Giveaway announcement and closing

The organizer reserves the right to change the program.

Prize Draw for Conference Participants

Enter the prize draw for a chance to win two four-day passes to Colours of Ostrava. Alongside new insights and connections, you could take home a festival experience for two.

How to enter

  • Register at www.edubox.cz.

  • Attend the conference on both 3 and 4 November 2026.

Entry deadline: 4 November at 11:00 a.m.
Winners announced: Wednesday, 4 November at 2:00 p.m.

Where will the confernece take place

Photo of the building

All days of the conference will take place at the Poklad Cultural Centre

Adress

Matěje Kopeckého 675/21, 708 00 Ostrava 8

Parking note

Free parking is available in surrounding streets, or you can use the two multi-storey car parks – Poklad I. on the corner of Matěje Kopeckého and Komenského streets, and Poklad II. on the corner of Matěje Kopeckého and Čs. exilu streets. Parking is subject to a charge; the system is ticketless and accepts cashless payments. Detailed information on parking can be found on the DK Poklad website.

Take a look at VET Bridge 2025

Foto © Petr Gavel 

Press coverage

“The conference was established with the clear goal of creating a prestigious international platform for sharing examples of best practices, innovative teaching approaches, and models of cooperation between schools and businesses. The stories shared at the conference demonstrated that modern vocational education is not only possible but, above all, necessary.”

Tomáš Tikal

Polar.cz

“W trakcie październikowej konferencji VETBridge 2025 w Ostrawie, której organizatorem była Moravskoslezská technologická akademie (MTA) – Morawsko-Śląska Akademia Technologiczna, zaprezentowano wizję modelu Next-Generation Makerspace jako przestrzeni współpracy szkół, przedsiębiorstw i centrów innowacji. Koncepcja ta zainspirowała mnie do rozwinięcia tej idei, wzbogacając ją o elementy metody Challenge Based Learning (CBL) oraz refleksyjnego uczenia się w dzisiejszej szkole.”

Witold Kołodziejczyk 

Edukacja przyszłości