ChallengeEU students join the first FHNW Exploration Week
Students from UWM, UEV, HSO and FHNW took part in the ChallengeEU module “Team Collaboration – Working Together Efficiently”, organised as part of the first FHNW Exploration Week. The one-week programme in Switzerland combined Challenge-Based Learning, intercultural exchange and teamwork focused on a real-world regional challenge. The first FHNW Exploration Week, held from 31 August to 4 September 2026, was launched as a pilot initiative marking the 20th anniversary of FHNW. It brought together more than 400 participants across 22 modules and four events, creating a new interdisciplinary learning format focused on collaboration, exchange and future-oriented skills. The programme explored FHNW’s key future fields: New Work, Zero Emission and Future Health, and offered students, lecturers and staff the opportunity to work across schools, disciplines and perspectives. As part of the FHNW Exploration Week 2026, the ChallengeEU module “Team Collaboration – Working Together Efficiently” brought together students from University of Warmia and Mazury, Universidad Europea de Valencia, Hochschule Offenburg and FHNW for a one-week international learning experience in Switzerland. The week also welcomed teaching staff from ChallengeEU partner university, who took part in short-term mobility activities and contributed to the broader exchange of knowledge, perspectives and good practices. The module, hosted by FHNW within Exploration Week, applied a Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) approach, enabling students to work in interdisciplinary and international teams on a real-world challenge. Throughout the week, participants explored topics such as team formation, effective collaboration, diversity in teams, conflict management, feedback culture, project organisation and self-reflection. Working alongside students from different academic and cultural backgrounds, they developed practical solutions to a challenge set by a regional gardening company, focusing on the attractiveness of vocational education for young people. At the end of the week, the students presented their ideas to an expert jury. Beyond the academic programme, the mobility fostered intercultural exchange through social and cultural activities, including a Swiss yodelling workshop, joint excursions and collaborative team-building exercises. The module was funded by Movetia.
