The 9th EOD WS 2022, Hybrid Event, Trencin, Slovakia, 04-06 MAY 2022

The 9th EOD WS was held in the period of 04-06 May 2022 in Trencin, Slovakia, as a hybrid event (in-person and online participation) in such a broad scale for the first time. The workshop was an indirect continuum of the EOD LL seminars and workshops organized regularly by the EOD COE since 2012. This year, the event was primary focused on introduction of the ongoing XR/VR project for the EOD Community of Interest, and also getting more comprehensive picture on the particular national training processes. 

The hybrid EOD WS provided in-person and online participants with views and lessons in the following topics/projects:
•    Lessons Learned, Threats and Other Challenges (Block 1)
•    Technologies as a Driver for EOD Training (Block 2)
•    Current EOD Training – National Overview (Block 3)
•    Progress in Extended Reality (XR) for EOD (Block 4)

As confirmed during the WS, there were active participants (in person 73 and online 54) from 26 NATO nations, 4 Interoperability Platform Countries and other international entities from academies and industry. 
The given presentations and subsequent syndicate works were well received and appreciated as inspirations for benefit of the EOD community of Interest. In addition, this WS proved to be a viable tool for sharing views, ideas, and lessons also beyond the EOD community of Interests. What is more, it provided a great number of motives to organise such kind of hybrid events by the EOD COE in the future. 
The EOD COE will further analyse provided contributions and syndicate outcomes from the WS. After these COE internal analyses, a kind of WS summary and consolidated further considerations in the light of WS will be distributed to the all participants (scheduled in the end of June 2022). 

Text: MAJ Peter MRAZIK (SVK-A)

Photo: Mr Jaroslav LACKO