Safety in a Dangerous World

Professor Jiří Hanuš

The theme of this year's Masaryk Days is Safety in a Dangerous World. One might ask whether the world has ever been a safe place – and the answer would clearly be no, if we look at the life of Tomáš G. Masaryk. On the other hand, it is impossible to ignore the fact that many certainties we would have bet on until recently are now being shaken. The certainty that pandemics do not affect us has been shaken, we are facing the uncertainties caused by a horrific war near our borders, and on top of that, the world order and trust in partnerships that have been built since World War II are beginning to change.

In the university environment, it is also possible to experience other changes associated with the rapid and ever-accelerating advent of artificial intelligence, which is changing the stereotypes of teachers and students alike. All of this gives us cause for reflection, which is why we have created a specific and, to a certain extent, special program.

Masaryk Days will begin in an unusual way, with an exhibition of photographs by Ladislav Sitenský at the Technical Museum with an accompanying program (March 3), and will continue the following day (March 4) with a block of lectures and discussions in the Roger Scruton Hall at Komenského náměstí 2. The program will be made even more special by the presence of an extraordinary foreign guest – Nicholas Winton Jr., who will describe the situation in wartime England and reminisce about his famous father.

Jiří Hanuš
Vice-Rector for Personnel Policy, Academic and Cultural Affairs