Welcome and Opening Words

Christoph Neumayer, Vice-Director General, Federation of Austrian Industries

Alfred Harl, Chairman of the Austrian Professional Association of Management Consultancy, Accounting and IT (UBIT), Austrian Federal Economic Chamber

David Ungar-Klein, Initiator, Vienna Congress com·sult

Michela Magas, “European Women Innovator of the Year 2017” and Founder of Music Tech Fest (MTF)

in conversation with

Dan Shechtman, Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry and professor at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology

Moderation: Mathias Del Campo, Associate Professor, Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Michigan, USA

Brexit, elections, nationalist trends – 2019 will be a pivotal year for the EU. Which political trends will prevail? Should we aim for “more” or for “less” European integration? Who will be the central figures shaping the continent? What can and must they do to increase competitiveness and security? How should they approach partner countries like Israel and Turkey? In this panel, political experts gather to evaluate the EU’s priorities after Brexit and elections. In addition, they will attempt to develop a 2019 agenda for Europe based on a survey among participants of the 16th Vienna Congress com.sult.

Moderation: Hedvig Morvai, Manager European Strategies, ERSTE Stiftung

Panelists:

Barbara Kappel, Member of the European Parliament

Václav Klaus, former President of the Czech Republic

Lukas Mandl, Member of the European Parliament

Martin Meyer, former Deputy Prime Minister of Liechtenstein; CEO ITW Group, Liechtenstein

Ron Prosor, Head of the Abba Eban Institute of International Diplomacy at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya (IDC); former Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations

With the economies of countries like China and India on the rise, global competition for knowledge, technological innovation and human resources becomes fiercer. Achievements in education, science and research are important but insufficient factors for developing attractive business locations. In an increasingly interconnected world, prosperity can only be achieved through excellence. In this panel, Nobel laureates and other leading experts discuss the central characteristics of excellence, political pre-conditions and areas, in which excellence is vital in order to stay competitive and prosperous.

Moderation: Sierd Cloetingh, President Academia Europaea; President COST Association

Panelists:

Yair Engel, CEO of Kayama, Center for Sustainable Design in Israel

Rolf Heuer, Experimental Particle Physicist ; former Director General of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)

Eva Kondorosi, Vice-President European Research Council

Michela Magas, European Women Innovator of the Year 2017; Founder and Creative Director of the Music Tech Fest (MTF)

Kurt Wüthrich, Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry

Ada Yonath, Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry

Kleiner Festsaal (1.Floor) | (in English language)

How to sell my own hard work? How to draw people’s attention to my achievements? Whether you are an entrepreneur, political figure or researcher – strategic self-branding and self-promotion are necessary in any career development. In this workshop, internationally successful innovators and scientists discuss the best strategies for building a public image and promoting your own work.

Moderation: Mathias Del Campo – Associate Professor, Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Michigan, USA

Panelists:

Yair Engel, CEO of Kayama, Center for Sustainable Design in Israel

Michela Magas, European Women Innovator of the Year 2017; Founder and Creative Director of the Music Tech Fest (MTF)

Howard Moskowitz, Market Researcher and Psychophysicist; Chief Scientist, Mind Genomics Advisors, LLC; Recipient of the Charles Coolidge Parlin Marketing Research Award

Daniel Oppenheimer, Professor of Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University, Winner of the Ig Nobel Prize in Literature

Dan Shechtman, Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry

Ludwig Urban-Saal (1.Floor) | (in English language)

In light of the rapidly progressing digitalization of our lives, cyber security has become a focal issue. Without sufficient protection of our critical infrastructures, our measures for digital transformation may not succeed or could even backfire. Meeting security threats in the cyber space has become a major driver of competition. This workshop shows what can make our infrastructures less vulnerable to respective cyber threats.

Moderation: Bernd Winter – Editor-in-Chief, International Weekly Magazine „VERKEHR“

Panelists:

Alexander Klimburg, Director of Global Commission on Stability of Cyberspace Initiative and Secretariat

Tibor Szanyi, Member of the European Parliament

Erion Veliaj, Lord Mayor of the City of Tirana

Gerhard Wanek, Certified Digital Consultant, Austrian Professional Association of Management Consultancy, Accounting and IT (UBIT)

Howard Moskowitz, decorated market researcher and psychophysicist, Recipient of the Charles Coolidge Parlin Marketing Research Award

in conversation with

Daniel Oppenheimer, Professor of decision sciences and psychology at Carnegie Mellon University and winner of the Ig Nobel Prize in literature

Moderation: Mathias Del Campo – Associate Professor, Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Michigan, USA

Ada Yonath, Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry

Moderation: David Ungar-Klein – Initiator of the “Vienna Congress com.sult”