Collider Courses at TalTech
Collider courses at TalTech are delivered in a problem-, project-, and challenge-based learning format, where students work in teams on concrete real-life challenges.
The courses take place during the spring semester and bring together students from different disciplines to develop interdisciplinary solutions in collaboration with companies and public sector partners.
BIP Course "Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures"
Tallinn University of Technology is pleased to introduce the interdisciplinary course “Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures”, which will be delivered as a Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) in January–February 2026.
This time, the course will be held in collaboration for the first time with two top technical universities from the EuroTeQ alliance: Eindhoven University of Technology and Technical University of Munich. It offers a truly multicultural experience – for example, last time’s participants came from 14 different European universities across 10 countries.
“Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures” (3 ECTS) is an interdisciplinary free-choice course based on challenge-based learning, designed to integrate general and domain-specific competencies. It also serves as a key EuroTeQ Collider output at TalTech. The course aims to empower organisations, educators, and students to promote science-based entrepreneurship, with the goal of creating technically feasible and economically viable products, services, and business models that contribute to Europe’s sustainable transformation.
The challenges tackled in the course are provided by municipalities and companies participating in the FinEst Centre for Smart Cities pilot projects, and supported by experts from TalTech’s various research groups.
If you're curious about how to integrate science, entrepreneurship, real-world challenges, and co-creation in a way that benefits all stakeholders, this is a great opportunity!
Main lecturers and mentors
From TalTech:
- Ergo Pikas, Associate Professor at the Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture. Ergo designs and teaches project- and challenge-based courses, such as “Simulation of Management Strategies in Construction”, where students face real-life scenarios in collaboration with industry mentors. His teaching philosophy emphasizes flexibility and guidance, encouraging students to take ownership of their learning and embrace failure as part of problem-solving.
- Kätlin Kangur, Programme Director of the “Design and Technology Futures” Master’s programme at the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. Kätlin focuses on shaping sustainability transitions and developing methods and approaches that support change for a better future.
From Eindhoven University of Technology:
- Gert Guri, Coordinator of Entrepreneurship Education and Lecturer at the Department of Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences. Gert has developed unique approaches and insights over more than a decade at EIT Digital, integrating real-life challenges and educational goals in entrepreneurship courses. Through challenge-based learning (CBL), he promotes entrepreneurial thinking both in curricula and extracurricular activities at TU/e.
From Technical University of Munich:
- Angela Wester, Diane Baumer, and Peter Finger from the TUM Junge Akademie. They have been organizing and delivering challenge-based Collider course and activities at TUM.
Target students
The course is primarily aimed at Master’s and PhD students from TalTech, EuroTeQ, and Erasmus+ partner universities. While students from technology, engineering, natural sciences, IT, and business fields are especially encouraged to apply, the course is open to students from all disciplines. Continuing education learners from the Open University are also welcome. Additionally, the course offers a great opportunity to continue working on the project as part of a thesis or to diversify your academic path.
Timescale and programme
The Blended Intensive Programme lasts 4 weeks: it begins with online sessions (January 19–20 in the afternoon), followed by a 6-day in-person session at TalTech (January 22–27), and ends with a virtual team-based learning period, during which teams finalize their challenge work and present results on February 12. For more information, please refer to the TwoPager!
Come co-create solutions that are technologically feasible, environmentally and financially sustainable, societally acceptable, legally doable, and ethically driven by AI applications!
Registration
- TalTech students – Register for the course via this link by December 22. Places are limited! NB! Official registration in ÕIS will take place in February.
- EuroTeQ partner university students (TU/e, TUM, DTU, CTU, l’X, HEC, EPFL, Technion) – Register via EuroTeQ course catalogue by December 7 and contact your university’s mobility coordinator/center for funding possibilities/support.
- Erasmus+ partner university students – Apply by contacting your university’s relevant mobility coordinator/center.
For further information
Course content inquiries: Ergo Pikas
Organizational inquiries: Ethel Praks
International student admission inquiries: Pillemari Lilleorg
Active Collider Courses
Below is the list of courses that are part of the Collider programme and the TalTech Sustainable Futures event in the Spring semester 2025/2026:
- MMJ5240 – Social Entrepreneurship
- MMJ3010 – Introduction to Entrepreneurship
- TMJ3300 – Entrepreneurship and Business Planning
- IHT1020 – Semester Project
- EPX5020 – Startup Entrepreneurship for Built Environment
- MET0330 – Internet of Things
- UTT0120 – Problem and Project Based Learning (in the School of Engineering construction curricula)
Previous Collider Courses
It has also been possible to participate in Collider in previous years through various problem- and project-based courses offered during the spring semester. Below is a list of courses that have been part of the Collider and TalTech Sustainable Futures initiatives:
- MMJ3060 - Venture Creation
- IHT1020 - Semester Project
- TMJ3300 - Entrepreneurship and Business Planning
- MMJ5240 - Social Entrepreneurship
- TMJ0140 - Introduction to Entrepreneurship
- MET0330 - Internet of Things
- UTT0120 - Problem- and Project-Based Learning
- EPX5020 - Startup Entrepreneurship for Built Environment
- EKE8260 - Environmental Management Systems (EMS)
- HHI0132 – techEstonia - Innovation Lab of an Entrepreneurial State
- UTT0110 - Mechatronics and Smart Systems project
- MNA5410 - Digital Transformations of Government
- XX1530 - Computer and Systems Engineering Project
Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) is pleased to introduce the course “Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures” which will be held as a Blended Intensive Programme.
It is particularly significant that the course content partner is Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), one of the flagships of challenge-based learning within EuroTeQ, and Riga Technical University, which saw a large turnout of student interest last year. This course offers truly multicultural experiences – for example, last year, participants came from 15 different European universities across 10 countries.
Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures is s an interdisciplinary elective course based on challenge-based learning and developing the integration of general and specialized competencies. It is also an important output of the EuroTeQ Collider at TalTech. The course is designed to empower organizations, academics, and students to advance research-driven entrepreneurship, with the goal of creating technically feasible and economically viable products, services, and business models that contribute to Europe’s sustainable transformation. Challenges and mentors come from FinEst Centre for Smart Cities pilotprojects.
The main lecturers are:
From TalTech:
- Ergo Pikas, Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture. Ergo designs and teaches project-based and challenge-based courses such as Construction Management Simulation, where students tackle real-world scenarios with industry mentors. His teaching emphasizes flexibility and mentorship, encouraging students to take ownership of their learning and embrace failure as part of problem-solving.
- Kätlin Kangur, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Lecturer and Programme Director of the Design and Technology Futures master's programme. Her primary focus is design for sustainability transitions and methods and approaches that help to facilitate the change for a better future.
From TU/e:
- Gert Guri (Department of Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences, Coordinator of Education on Entrepreneurial Learning). Gert has developed unique expertise in integrating real-life challenges with educational objectives in entrepreneurship courses over a decade at EIT Digital. Through the Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) approach, he fosters an entrepreneurial mindset in curricular and extracurricular settings in TU/e.
This course welcomes local and international students from TalTech, EuroTeQ partner universities, and institutions worldwide. It is designed primarily for graduate-level students across diverse departments and disciplines, with a preference for those in science, technology, engineering, or business-related fields. While doctoral and master's students are prioritized, students from all academic backgrounds, years, and experience levels are encouraged to apply. It is also a good opportunity for the student to continue with the project as part of the thesis and/or to diversify their own activity.
The intensive 3-week course includes a 5-day on-site session at TalTech Mektory in late January, followed by virtual and self-regulated teamwork, mentorship, and result finalization in February. (See the Twopager for details)
If you want to know how to integrate science, entrepreneurship, real-life challenges and co-creation in university and how to do this in such a way that the different parties can actually benefit from it – apply for the course! For details, please see the Twopager and vision document of the course.
The course is designed to empower organizations, academics, and students to advance research-driven entrepreneurship, with the goal of creating technically feasible and economically viable products, services, and business models that contribute to Europe’s sustainable transformation. Challenges and mentors come from FinEst Centre for Smart Cities pilotprojects.
Contact for academic/course related questions: Ergo Pikas, ergo.pikas@taltech.ee, organizational: Ethel Praks, ethel.praks@taltech.ee, foreign students admission related questions: Pillemari Lilleorg, pillemari.lilleorg@taltech.ee.
Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) is thrilled to launch a new Blended Intensive Programme (BIP): Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures, 2023, together with the University of Lorraine (France), Aalto University (Finland) and Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands).
We'd like to invite you to forward the information on this BIP to any students who might be interested.
- 15 Aug: online pre-event
- 21-25 Aug: physical at TalTech Mektory
- 28 Aug - 29 Sep: virtual teamwork, online feedback session and final presentations
How to integrate science, entrepreneurship, real-life challenges and co-creation in university? How to do this in such a way that the different parties can actually benefit from it?
"Green Deal Collider: Sustainable Futures" (3 ECTS) is based on problem-based and project-based learning principles and is an essential output of EuroTeQ Collider at TalTech. The BIP course aims to support university students and employees in promoting science-based entrepreneurship and developing technically feasible and economically viable products, services and business models for implementing the European Green Deal.
The main lecturers are Ergo Pikas (Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture, tenured assistant professor) and Kätlin Kangur (Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Programme Director of the master’s programme Design and Technology Futures). Research groups from TalTech and partner universities are involved as mentors for projects/challenges to be solved in the course. Sustainable enrichment of mineral resources, smart cities, circular economy and data science-related projects are represented.
The course is aimed primarily at master’s and doctoral students from TalTech, Erasmus and EuroTeQ partner universities and is not limited to any specific curriculum/field. Open university students are also welcome to join. It is also a good opportunity for the student to continue with the project as part of the thesis and/or to diversify their own activity.
Lecturers prepare students for different stages during the physical part of workshops (21-25 Aug), by the end of physical part student teams should reach at the point where they can first go on with testing and validating their solution and then finalizing their project. There is an online feedback session between the validation and finalization weeks, and they will have some online meetings with mentors, but specific times can be different for teams and mentors. Students need to organize their online work as a team by themselves. Developing organizational, communicative, and self-regulation skills play an important role in achieving learning outcomes.
28/08-10/09 Test & Validate (online team work organized by teams and supported by mentors, specific time-slots for mentors support will be confirmed during the physical session at the latest)
between 11-15/09 Feedback Session (will be one specific time-slot during this week, ca 2,5h)
18-24/09 Finalize (online team work organized by teams and supported by mentors, specific time-slots for mentors support will be confirmed during the physical session at the latest)
between 25-29/09 Final Presentation (will be one specific time-slot during this week, ca 2h)
Please find the OnePager and vision document attached to this call for further details of the programme and applying.
TalTech student! Register your interest for participation via this link by 9th of August the latest! NB The official registration to the course is via Study Information System in September.
Contact for academic/course related questions: Ergo Pikas, ergo.pikas@taltech.ee Contact for admission related questions: Kerti Sönmez, kerti.sonmez@taltech.ee
Contacts
EuroTeQ Collider is a joint, challenge-based interdisciplinary course developed by European technical universities, first held in spring 2022. The aim of Collider is for student teams (4–6 members) to develop solutions that are economically sustainable, environmentally responsible, and responsive to societal needs. Interdisciplinarity plays a key role in solving real-life problems, combining knowledge from different fields and connecting it to the needs of society and industry. Collider also serves as a platform for developing methodologies that support co-creation, innovation, and the integration of research into the learning process.
EuroTeQ Engineering University is a collaboration project between European universities aimed at establishing systematic and sustainable cooperation in education. The project promotes joint courses and programmes across different study levels, countries, disciplines, and academic fields.
The EuroTeQ Engineering University project is co-funded by the European Union’s Erasmus+ programme.