Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, online classes and novel learning spaces have been booming. This is why exchanging ideas and views between universities is even more important in promoting innovative and future-oriented educational formats. In February 2024, the ZHAW hosted the annual eduhub Days for the first time. The conference, organised by the SWITCH foundation, was held at Adeline Favre House in Winterthur, which provided an inspiring setting for participants from all over Switzerland. It was the first time that the eduhub Days were held at a university of applied sciences, which illustrates the ZHAW’s growing importance in the university landscape.

The event was an excellent opportunity for participants to discuss current developments in digital teaching and learn about hands-on insights into groundbreaking concepts. The EduSpace Challenge was a particular highlight. It allowed students from all over Switzerland to develop concepts for innovative learning spaces through design thinking. Their results proved that modern-day learning can be flexible, interactive and strongly collaborative. Extended reality (XR) also played an important role during the eduhub Days. Wolfgang Schäfer from the ZHAW School of Management and Law presented interesting approaches for the integration of XR in academic programmes, as they have the potential to fundamentally change the way we learn. Such projects emphasise the pioneering role of the ZHAW when it comes to developing future-proof educational formats.