RTU Rector Tālis Juhna on How Latvia Can Keep Pace with Technology
In a video interview with the portal nra.lv, Riga Technical University rector Tālis Juhna discusses how Latvia and its companies can keep up with technological change. The talk also covers hydrogen production, CO2 reduction and RTU research.
The news portal nra.lv has published a video interview with Tālis Juhna, rector of Riga Technical University (RTU), academician and professor. The conversation focuses on whether Latvia can stay afloat in a fast-changing environment of technology and innovation. It took place during a break at the strategic forum 2035 of the state-owned energy company Latvenergo.
Topics discussed
The interview opens with the question of whether it is true that countries and companies that do not invest in the latest technologies soon face an end. It also looks at how Latvia and its businesses can keep up with the pace of technological development. Juhna explains why one should not wait for technologies to reach Latvia, and why Latvians themselves need to take bold steps in creating new technologies and commercialising them.
The discussion names innovative hydrogen production and CO2 reduction methods as promising technologies. It also covers RTU's achievements in research and experiments in these fields, and explains why the university cooperates not only with large companies but also creates new ones. Another topic is whether attitudes toward new technologies are changing in Latvia's business environment.
About the interviewee
Juhna works in numerous research councils and in industry and academic clusters in climate technologies, biotechnology and materials science. He is a member of a UN high-level expert group on science, technology and innovation and an ambassador of the European Innovation Council. He also chairs the advisory council of the Latvian Council of Science and its Engineering and Technology expert commission, and is deputy chair of the supervisory council of Rīgas ūdens.
