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Call for proposals: Education & Knowledge 2023

Context of the Call for Proposals

The digital revolution has drastically changed the landscape of industries, paving the way the for Industry of the Future. With the emergence of advanced technologies and increased automation, it has become imperative for higher education institutions to incorporate up-to-date learning formats to meet the skill-set demands of current industrial needs. Alongside traditional classroom teaching, innovative learning methodologies such as workshops, hackathons and PhD schools are gaining importance. Hackathons are commonly used to cultivate problem-solving and brainstorming abilities in students. Workshops and PhD schools provide students with hands-on experience and exposure to real-world challenges. Networking with experts from the industry and the academic field is also a major asset. These formats enable students to stay abreast of cutting-edge technologies and develop competencies needed for careers in the Industry of the Future. Consequently, the integration of such modern learning formats can be a game-changer for higher education institutions looking to prepare students for the latest developments in the industry.

Objectives of the Call for Proposals

The call is addressed to researchers from TUM and IMT or to researchers that want to team up with researchers of these institutions. (In the second case the GFA can help you find collaborators from these institutions. Please contact us beforehand.) It is obligatory to have minimum one founding member of the GFA (IMT or TUM) involved in your proposal. As it is one of our core missions to foster the French-German relations, it is very important to us that the project takes place on a French-German scale.

The GFA supports:

  • High quality events, such as:
    • Hackathons
    • PhD Schools
    • Scientific Workshops and scientific symposia
    • Other innovative event-like formats
  • Initiation of Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degrees or Doctoral Colleges,
  • Executive educational programs for professionals
  • Projects regarding education and life-long learning aspects for students, young graduates and companies, especially new and creative formats.

Please note: The production of new online courses (MOOCs) will not be supported in this CfP.

Expected Outcomes

Expected outcomes of the CfP “Education & Knowledge” include increased French-German and European collaboration in higher education through initiatives such as Erasmus Mundus and the French-German organization of scientific events. With this call the GFA wants to promote innovation in teaching and learning formats, including new approaches for digital campuses, digital exams, and hybrid formats.

We also expect the development and exchange of good practices in higher education. This could include sharing successful strategies for student engagement, enhancing diversity and inclusion, and improving academic outcomes in our French-German network and beyond.

Through the call informal learning formats beyond universities’ walls, such as workshops, hackathons, and PhD schools are supported. This would help foster collaboration and skill-sharing between students, young entrepreneurs, and industrial experts.

To ensure participants are equipped with interdisciplinary capabilities, career competencies, and technological skills, the call could promote the delivery of such capabilities and encourage knowledge exchange between graduate or PhD students and industry experts.

Overall, we expect our call for proposals to help strengthen the quality and relevance of higher education across French-German and European universities, while also preparing participants for success in their future careers. More generally, the GFA is also strongly interested in German-French collaborations.

Time frame

  • Launch of the call: Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023
  • Deadline for submission: Wednesday, May 31st, 2023, EOB
  • Evaluation Committee: Week 26, 2023 (exact date tbc)
  • Notification of the selected projects: Monday, July 10th, 2023
  • Kick-off of the project: September 2023 (the latest)

Please find the full CfP and the application template here!

We look forward to receiving your proposals and working together.

If you have any questions or need further clarification, please feel free to contact Olivia Pahl (olivia.pahl@imt.fr) or Diane Baumer (diane.baumer@tum.de).

GreenHack~IT 2022 – A great first edition with IMT, TUM and ArianeGroup


That was our hackathon GreenHack~IT last December in Munich. Around 50 French and German students accepted the challenge of ArianeGroup to find ways to decrease the energy consumption in their productions sites. Check our News Article for more info & pictures.

[#WisdomWednesday] GFA Winter School on Reconfigurable Production 2020: Interdisciplinary research on transition towards sustainability, Nadège Troussier (University of Troyes)

On November 19th, 2020 Prof. Dr.-Ing. Nadège Troussier (University of Troyes, France) gave the keynote “Interdisciplinary research on transition towards sustainability” at our Winter School on Reconfigurable Production. You are cordially invited to watch the recording on Youtube.

About Nadège Troussier

Nadège Troussier is a university professor at Art et Métiers ParisTech in Paris. Before she was a professor at the University of Troyes. Her research activities focus on Integrated Design, robust design, preliminary design, decision-making, virtual prototyping, PDM, PLM, and Simulation.

About the GFA Video Series and the #WisdomWednesday

Education is one of the core missions of the GFA. Therefore we have wonderful education projects in the field of industry 4.0, such as summer schools, hackathons and online courses that we organise together with leading universities in Europe. To present our education efforts to a bigger audience and share it with people all over the world, we created the GFA Video Series. Under the hashtag #WisdomWednesday we present interesting talks and keynotes every Wednesday on our website and in our social media. Stay tuned and check also our YouTube Channel.

About the German-French Academy for the Industry of the Future (GFA)

The German-French Academy for the Industry of the Future is a strategic vehicle to promote close collaboration between leading European research institutions and industrial companies. It was founded by the French Institut Mines-Télécom (IMT) and the German Technical University of Munich (TUM). Focused on joint research, education and innovation, the Academy’s mission is to master the challenges accompanying the increasing digitalization of industry processes. Read more…

[Recording] GFA Winter School on Reconfigurable Production 2020: Keynote Reconfigurable Production – Dominique Maisonneuve (Lacroix Electronics)

On November 19th, 2020 Dominique Maisonneuve gave a keynote at our Winter School on Reconfigurable Production. You are cordially invited to watch the recording on Youtube.

About Dominique Maisonneuve

Trained as a production engineer, he began his career in the automotive industry at Magneti Marelli. In 2005, he joined the Electronics activity of LACROIX where he led transfer projects between the French, Polish and Tunisian plants. In 2017, he took on the role of Smart Industry Manager to ensure the deployment of the 4.0 program in the company, support continuous improvement and encourage the exploration of new technologies. (found on Lacroix’ website)

About the GFA Video Series

Education is one of the core missions of the GFA. Therefore we have wonderful education projects in the field of industry 4.0, such as summer schools, hackathons and online courses that we organise together with leading universities in Europe. To present our education efforts to a bigger audience and share it with people all over the world, we created the GFA Video Series. Under the hashtag #WisdomWednesday we present interesting talks and keynotes every Wednesday on our website and in our social media. Stay tuned and check also our YouTube Channel.

About the German-French Academy for the Industry of the Future (GFA)

The German-French Academy for the Industry of the Future is a strategic vehicle to promote close collaboration between leading European research institutions and industrial companies. It was founded by the French Institut Mines-Télécom (IMT) and the German Technical University of Munich (TUM). Focused on joint research, education and innovation, the Academy’s mission is to master the challenges accompanying the increasing digitalization of industry processes. Read more…

2020 in review

2019 in review