European Science Journalists Visit the HUN-REN Biological Research Centre in Szeged

16.04.2025

On 29 March, the European Union of Science Journalists' Associations (EUSJA) held its General Assembly and leadership election in Budapest. In connection with the event, a group of EUSJA members travelled to Szeged on 27 March for a study tour, accompanied by several leaders of the Hungarian affiliate, the Club of Hungarian Science Journalists.

Following their visit to the ELI-ALPS Laser Research Institute, the guests also toured the HUN-REN Biological Research Centre in Szeged. Alongside their Hungarian colleagues, the delegation included science journalists from Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Spain, the Czech Republic, and Serbia.

During the visit, participants first received an overview of the research network and the HUN-REN Biological Research Centre in Szeged. This was followed by presentations from László Nagy, Mária Deli, Gábor Juhász, and Gergely Maróti, representing the Centre’s four research institutes, who shared the latest scientific results with the guests. The visit concluded with a tour of two laboratories of the National Laboratory of Biotechnology.

HUN-REN aims to become one of the most effective research organisations in Europe and to contribute significantly to Hungary's social and economic success. The HUN-REN Act, effective from 1 January 2025, provides the necessary framework for HUN-REN to transform into a more responsive, collaborative, performance-oriented, and well-functioning network, ensuring the freedom of scientific research and the continuation of exploratory research, while providing multidisciplinary solutions to complex challenges affecting both national and international communities. Employees within the modernising HUN-REN can look forward to a long-term, consistent, value-driven, and performance-focused funding system, mutually reinforcing structure and operation, competitive salaries, and a predictable research career.