INFORMATION PORTAL OF THE MARSHAL'S OFFICE OF THE KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE Region IN TORUŃ

University communities across the country are beginning the new academic year. In the region, ceremonial inaugurations took place today (October 1) in Toruń – at Nicolaus Copernicus University, attended by Marshal Piotr Całbecki – and in Bydgoszcz, where Vice-Marshal Zbigniew Ostrowski participated in the inauguration at the Jan and Jędrzej Śniadecki Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology, during which the institution was awarded the Unitas Durat Palatinatus Cuiaviano-Pomeraniensis medal.

– I am proud that in our region we have such a distinguished university – my Alma Mater, one of the best Polish universities, a center of science with international significance, an open and innovative place. I thank the entire academic community for its daily work full of dedication and humility, and I wish you a successful academic year. Vivat Academia, vivant Professores! – said Marshal Piotr Całbecki during the ceremony in Toruń.

The celebrations began with an address by Rector Prof. Andrzej Tretyn, followed by the inaugural lecture “The Black Death – a Selective Killer? Different Scenarios of the Greatest Plague Pandemic in Europe” delivered by Prof. Adam Izdebski, head of the Department of Vascular Surgery and Angiology at the Collegium Medicum.

Nicolaus Copernicus University, founded in 1945, is one of the leading academic centers in Poland. The university operates, among others, an astronomical observatory in Piwnice near Toruń and a research station in Spitsbergen. Since 2019, it has held the status of a research university.

The Bydgoszcz inauguration had a special character this year – the university is celebrating its 75th anniversary.

The inaugural lecture “Cybersecurity as a Key Element of State Security in the Context of Hybrid Threats” was delivered by Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Affairs Dr. Krzysztof Gawkowski.

– Today’s ceremony has a special character – we are inaugurating the new academic year and at the same time celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology, an institution of exceptional importance for Bydgoszcz, Kujawy and Pomorze, and also for the whole of Poland. (…) In times of dynamic technological change, it is precisely technical universities that are the places where solutions for the future are born, – emphasized Vice-Marshal Zbigniew Ostrowski. – Long live Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology – for the future of Poland!

Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology, formerly the University of Science and Technology, is the oldest public university in Bydgoszcz. It was established in 1951 as the Evening School of Engineering. Between 1974 and 2006 it operated as the Academy of Technology and Agriculture, and from 2006 functioned as UTP, later transforming into Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology.

Beata Krzemińska
Spokesperson of the Marshal’s Office

October 1, 2025