The 2025 Department Retreat brought together our researchers and administrative staff for two days of serious thinking, deep discussion, and some social networking that led to unexpected fun facts about our colleagues. We now all know that one staff member used to have a bird called Anders Møller (and no, it wasn’t Anders Møller himself).

The programme was packed with engaging sessions on:

🧠 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐈 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 – and what that means for us as educators. It’s a powerful tool for student support and creativity, but it also challenges how we design assessments and ensure real learning takes place.

🗣️ 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐝𝐞𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐞 – and how to get started. As guest speaker Roger Buch reminded us: journalists 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 experts, and we all have something valuable to contribute.

🤝 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐤𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 – and what it takes to build strong, lasting partnerships.

Huge thanks to our inspiring guest speakers: Professor Paul Denny (Faculty of Science, University of Auckland), Niels Lauritzen (Department of Mathematics, Aarhus University), Peter Gorm Larsen (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Aarhus University), Anne Birgitte Lindgren (AU Research Support Office), and Roger Buch (Danmarks Medie- og Journalisthøjskole)

And a big shout-out to Mette Sørensen, Lene Hjøllund and Kaj Grønbæk for making it all happen!

Now, we’re back with new ideas, fresh energy, and renewed appreciation for what we can achieve when we come together.