As part of an official visit to the Republic of Croatia, a delegation from the European Space Agency (ESA) visited the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing (FER) on October 14, 2025.

The ESA delegation consisted of Stephen Airey, Head of New, Associate and Cooperating States Section, and Karol Brzostowski, Country Officer, Engineering support for Croatia. Representing the Ministry of Science, Education, and Youth was Doris Jozić, accompanied by Marko Rajković, ESA’s Industrial Coordinator for Croatia. FER was represented by members of the Faculty Management, led by Dean Vedran Bilas, as well as representatives of FER’s Department of Communication and Space Technologies (ZKIST).

The meeting aimed to explore opportunities for cooperation in research and education related to space technologies. The ESA delegation emphasized the importance of Croatia’s deeper involvement in the European space technology ecosystem and the need to encourage domestic companies to further develop their capacities and innovations in order to remain competitive in the global market.

Dubravko Babić, PhD and Assist. Prof. Josip Vuković, PhD from ZKIST presented FER’s courses related to space technologies and its ongoing development activities. The meeting was also joined by Assoc. Prof. Matko Orsag, PhD, who presented FER’s research in the field of robotics.

Following the presentations, Mr. Airey highlighted ESA’s particular interest in the development of autonomous rovers. He also emphasized the importance of the ESA project “Light Pollution Characterization Module II (LPCM-II)” coordinated by FER, as it opens opportunities for the development of domestic suppliers qualified to work with ESA.
 

The development of high technologies in the field of space requires strong collaboration between high-quality academic institutions and companies successfully engaged in space technologies. The success of every company depends on highly educated and professionally trained employees, and such expertise can best be provided by scientists actively involved in research in the same field. In line with this principle, the European Space Agency (ESA) supports and funds educational projects aimed at advancing knowledge and skills in space technologies, helping future engineers enter the space industry more quickly and effectively.

It is worth mentioning that during the ESA delegation’s visit to Croatia, an Information Day was held on October 15, dedicated to announcing the third national ESA call under the European Cooperating State Agreement. The event was intended for scientific organizations and Croatian companies to submit project proposals focused on strengthening capacities in the field of space science and technology. Such activities significantly contribute to strengthening cooperation between Croatia and ESA in technical support and expert knowledge exchange.