What will the coffeehouse of the future look like? About 60 students from four European universities explored this question in May at FHWien der WKW as part of the Erasmus+ Blended Intensive Program (BIP) “Innovation Challenge – The Future of Coffee Culture.”
The BIP brought together students from FHWien der WKW in Austria, Avans University in the Netherlands, Kozminski University in Poland and Karelia University in Finland in Vienna. Together, they developed innovative ideas and concepts centered on a product that connects people worldwide while simultaneously facing a wide range of environmental, economic and social challenges: coffee.
International Cooperation for New Perspectives
The event built on a long-standing collaboration between the partner universities and offered participants the opportunity to gain international experience and discover new perspectives. The students worked in intercultural and interdisciplinary teams and benefited from the exchange of diverse academic and cultural backgrounds.
Coffee as a Starting Point for Innovation
The challenge focused on the question of how coffee culture might evolve in the future. To this end, the students explored various aspects of the value chain — from the coffee plant and sustainable cultivation to global transportation routes, roasting methods and current consumption trends.
Vienna, a city renowned worldwide for its coffeehouse culture, provided the ideal setting for the challenge. The students analyzed different ways of enjoying coffee — from traditional Viennese coffeehouses to modern coffee bars — and used these insights to develop future concepts for the industry.
In addition to the challenge and working in international teams, sightseeing was, of course, also a priority: the itinerary included visits to the Parliament, the Kunsthistorisches Museum and the Wien Museum. During a guided tour of the United Nations Vienna International Centre, the students discussed, among other things, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their significance for their project assignment.
Experiencing Entrepreneurship in an International Context
The Erasmus+ program combined a virtual preparatory phase with a project week at FHWien der WKW. The focus was not only on innovative solutions but also on international exchange and cross-border collaboration. At the end of the program, the teams presented their results to a professional audience.
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