On September 9th and 10th, 2026, the Final Conference of the MSCA ESPERANTO Project will take place at the Vienna University of Technology, hosted by the 9th European Symposium of Photopolymer Science (ESPS2026).
The European Symposium of Photopolymer Science (ESPS) aims to bring together the brightest minds from both academia and industry to collectively present and discuss the fundamental issues within this still burgeoning field. The meeting consists of seminars from not just European but international leaders of photopolymer science with topics addressing critical issues such as photochemistry, reaction kinetics, analytical methods, photoinitiator and monomer synthesis, structure-property relations, polymer processing, as well as applications.
The presentations on the results of the Esperanto project will take place as part of a number of parallel sessions at the Symposium, which will focus on research into the sustainability of materials and processes.
Other topics that will be discussed at the meeting include:
The conference programme will be out soon...
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10TH, 2026
On June 10th, 2026, the Third ESPERANTO School on High-tech Entrepreneurship, Tech Transfer and EU Regulations will be held at Logitech’s premises in Lausanne.
Together with experts from the company, students will be able to explore practical approaches and real-life case studies, delving deeply into topics such as Product Design for Sustainability, the development processes of Sustainable Materials & Solutions, Innovation Management within Product Companies, and the concepts of Entrepreneurship and Intrapreneurship.
SCHOOL AGENDA
| WEDNESDAY | JUNE 10th, 2026 Logitech, EPFL CAMPUS, Lausanne |
|---|---|
| TIME SLOT | PROGRAMME |
| 9:00 | Welcome coffee and introduction by Dr. Hank Han |
| 9:30 - 10:00 | "Sustainability in Logitech" by Padraig Murphy, Principal Sustainability Design Engineer |
| 10:00 - 10:45 | "MX Keys" - Product Design for sustainability" by Alba Ollé Moreno, Senior Product Manager, MX |
| 10:45 - 11:00 | Coffee Break |
| 11:00 - 12:00 | "Sustainability Design" by Nick Jinkinson, Global Head of Industrial Design & Jasper Phua, Head of Global CMF |
| 12:00 - 12:30 | "Sustainable material & Solutions" by Hank Han |
| 12:30 - 13:00 | Q&A + Summary by Kathy Liu, Head of CMF & Sustainability Engineering |
13:00 - 14:30 | LUNCH BREAK |
| 14:30 - 15:15 | "Innovation Mgmt within Product company" by Benjamin Vullioud, Head of EE HID |
15:15 - 15:45 | "Entrepreneuership / Intrapreneurship" by Christophe Constantin, Gaming, Innovation Lead |
| 15:45 - 16:15 | "IPR" by Simon Moodie, Senior Patent Attorney |
| 16:15 - 16:30 | Coffee Break |
| 16:30 - 17:00 | Q&A + Summary by Kathy Liu, Head of CMF & Sustainability Engineering |
The Sustainability Champions Challenge is a spin-off initiative launched in the framework of the ESPERANTO project to enable its 13 Doctoral Candidates to explore, in collaboration with leading companies across various sectors, the opportunities offered by a sustainable approach to industrial production.
The challenge, launched in April 2025, will come to a close in June 2026 with a final workshop and an award ceremony for the best project, taking place June 11th in Lausanne, once again hosted at the EPFL CAMPUS.
Which team will the selection panel deem to be the best?
WORKSHOP AGENDA
| TIME SLOT | PROGRAMME |
|---|---|
| 9:00 | Welcome coffee and introduction by prof. Yves Leterrier and prof. Roberta Bongiovanni + Marie Curie 30th anniversary celebrations video |
| 9:30 - 9:55 | 25 ' Final presentations from group 1: "Development of sustainable custom earphones" - LOGITECH GROUP (Anthony Hoogmartens - Muhammad Ghifari - Mirac Dizman - Sándor Tilajka) Mentors: Hank Han for Logitech + Céline Croutxe-Barghorn for UHA |
| 20' Q&A from mentors and supervisors | |
| 10:15 - 10:40 | 25 ' Final presentations from group 2: "Development of Biobased Energy Curable Ink" - SICPA GROUP (Talha Mumtaz - Saverio Aliberti - Zizheng Zhang - John Vincent Tumaneng ) Mentors: Jessica Repp for SICPA + Sandra Schlogl and Thomas Griesser for PCCL |
| 20' Q&A from mentors and supervisors | |
| 11:00 - 11:25 | 25 ' Final presentations from group 3: "Photocatalytic-based self-cleaning paints for wood substrate" - KAYALAR GROUP (Samet Dalga - Szymon Gaca - Michele Bonacina - Thi Nhung Vu - Talha Genç ) Mentors: Ebru Erguven for KAYALAR + Yves Leterrier for EPFL |
| 20' Q&A from mentors and supervisors | |
11:45 - 12:30 | Evaluation committee meeting (students are free) |
| 12:30 - 14:00 | LUNCH BREAK |
14:00 - 15:00 | LECTURE - Prof. Martyn Wakeman ( LPAC ), invited speaker: " DYNAMIC MODELLING OF EMISSIONS, MASS FLOWS, AND CAPEX IN THE CARBON FIBER INDUSTRY IN THE TRANSITION TO NETZERO 2050 " |
| 15:00 - 16:00 | Sustainability Champions award ceremony and closure |
ABOUT THE INITIATIVE
Esperanto students have been working in 3 teams of 4 or 5 students on an industrial product, under the supervision of one industrial partner and one academic partner in the ESPERANTO project:
The objective for ESPERANTO DCs was to imagine, design and analyze those products according to sustainability metrics and identify actions to improve its sustainability. The initiative would enable DCs to get involved and apply the basics of circular economy, life cycle costing, LCA, product development and commercialization learnt during ESPERANTO training events.
According to the MSCA European project guidelines, the Esperanto project embraces and encourages a sustainability-conscious approach; but an ethical and socially responsible approach can be a competitive advantage for even the most forward-looking companies.
The SustainabilityChampions Initiative is an effective vehicle for demonstrating a stronger and more proactive industry commitment to sustainable development through the recognition of research as an added value and investment in the future.
WHAT DOES THE PROGRAMME CONSIST OF?
Esperanto students will work in 3 teams of 4 or 5 students on an industrial product, under the supervision of one industrial partner and one academic partner in the ESPERANTO project (detailed attached):
The objective for ESPERANTO DCs will be to imagine, design and analyze those products according to sustainability metrics and identify actions to improve its sustainability. In this phase, visits to the R&D departments and production facilities of the industrial mentors will be planned.
The initiative will enable DCs to get involved and apply the basics of sustainability and the circular economy, life cycle costing, LCA, product development and commercialization learnt during ESPERANTO training events.
SUSTAINABILITY CHAMPIONS EVENTS AND DEADLINES
The programme of the first workshop at EPFL will soon be available online, on this page.
November 19 + 20 2024 _ Austria
The school will be held in the PCCL Seminar Room / Sauraugasse 1
| TIME | LECTURES DAY ONE _ TUESDAY 19th | LECTURER |
|---|---|---|
| 09:00 – 10:30 | Using light to shape the world: from 2D to 4D manufacturing methods |
Dr. Elisabeth Rossegger (PCCL) |
| 10:30 – 11:00 | Coffee Break | — |
| 11:00 – 12:30 | Chemistry, properties and applications of dynamic polymer networks | Prof. Sandra Schlögl (PCCL) |
| 12:30 – 13:30 | Lunch Break | — |
| 13:30 – 14:30 | How to realize biocompatible photopolymers: from novel monomers to advanced post-processing | Prof. Thomas Griesser (MUL) |
| 14:30 – 14:50 | Covalently attachable photoacid generator in dynamic thiol-ene photopolymer | Roman Korotkov (PCCL) |
| 14:50 – 15:10 | Synthesis of thermally latent bases for applications in dynamic polymer networks | Matthias Kriehuber (PCCL) |
| 15:10 – 15:30 | Catalysts for reversible activation of dynamic exchange reactions in covalent polymer networks | David Reisinger (PCCL) |
| TIME | LECTURES AND ACTIVITIES DAY TWO _ WEDNESDAY 20th | LECTURER |
|---|---|---|
| 09:00 – 10:30 | Lab Tour PCCL and MUL | — |
| 10:30 – 11:00 | Coffee Break | — |
| 11:00 – 12:30 | ChemistryDevelopment of functional and sustainable coating systems | Dr. Simon Leimgruber (Adler Lacke) |
| 12:00 – 14:00 | Lunch Break | — |
| 14:00 – 18:00 | Pitch Challenge | — |
