Greetings from the Austrian Vice Chancellor
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen!
The 15th Conference of the European Council for High Ability (ECHA) will take place in Vienna and Krems in spring 2016 – twenty years after it was first hosted in Austria. This is a distinction for those being committed to promoting the gifted and to promoting excellence in education and research. Young people, their talents and potentials are the most important resource of our society. The challenge is to raise them and to develop them as successfully as possible.
On the part of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science, Research and Economy, numerous initiatives to promote excellence in research and education are supported.
Since winter term 2014/2015, for example, a professorship for research in the field of giftedness and excellence at the University of Graz is financed, which is supposed to contribute to a further incorporation of these issues at universities and colleges.
“Talents in Motion” is the key topic of the 15th ECHA Conference. With this event ECHA for the first time tries to encourage active exchange between people coming from the fields of science, art, society and economy with regard to the topic giftedness and migration. Let me wish all participants an exciting exchange of experiences and an excellent event.
Dr. Reinhold Mitterlehner
Federal Minister of Science, Research and Economy
Welcome
Dear Conference Participants!
Creativity requires new and new challenges.
In the 21st century the world became small, and we have intercultural experiences in almost every second. The hosts of the 15th ECHA Conference found an excellent environment to feel this excitement.
Vienna amalgamates history, tradition and multicultural novelties, and shows the efficiency of all these challenges on talent support.
Talent is always a minority. Migration creates both novel challenges and novel minorities. All these may support the growth of talents – if we use them well.
How to accomplish this difficult task? We may learn this at the Conference.
Besides the major topics colleagues from all areas of research and best practices in the field of high ability are warmly encouraged to share their knowledge and experiences at this meeting.
The Conference will also be the first forum of the growing European Talent Support Network enabling participants to find new friends and collaborators.
I hope to welcome you at this memorable meeting!
Prof. Peter Csermely
President of ECHA
