Interviews

Peter Mahler Opened his Exhibition “Mahler Malt Malher” in Vienna

On 17th of October 2024, Peter Mahler opened his exhibition “Mahler Malt Mahler” in Grand Hotel in the heart of Vienna. Some meters away stands the Vienna State Opera House (Wiener Staatsoper), where the cousin of his grandfather Gustav Mahler led the classic music world to its new era.   (Photo: Karla Mahler) Born in New York, however, Peter Mahler knew nothing of this until he travelled to Europe as a young man. Neither his father nor his Jewish grandparents, who had to flee from Waldviertel in Lower Austria in 1938, wanted to be reminded of their Austrian past in the new…


Reading with Wolfgang Kubin in the Café Museum, Vienna

On Friday, August 9, 2024, Bacopa Verlag organised a special literary event at Café Museum in Vienna. The renowned sinologist and author, Prof. Wolfgang Kubin, read from his latest works and had a conversation with the participants of the event. About the author: Wolfgang Kubin, a globally recognized expert in Chinese literature and culture, has made a name for himself with his translations and own literary works. His autobiography “Des Heiligen Urschrei. Mein Leben im Abriss. Band 4 ” illuminates the Bonn years from 1985 to 2010 and offers a relentless insight into his life and work. He also introduced…


Announcement of the Upcoming Forum on “ZOOM and EU Security”

We are proud to announce our next online forum on the topic of “ZOOM and EU Security”. A popular online video conference platform, Zoom has been widely used in Europe. It offers advanced features for hosting webinars and large meetings. In comparison to Cisco Webex Meetings or Microsoft Teams, Zoom has presumably much more power and scale in collecting personal and cooperate data, though. Based in the USA, Zoom is subject to the cloud act, the Patriot Act and the FISA Act, which means that it must pass on all data from non-US citizens to the US secret services. Therefore,…


The Strength of the Chinese Economy in 2024 and its Significance for the Future World

The Strength of the Chinese Economy in 2024 “China’s role in the world economy is substantial. It accounts for around 10% of world trade and stock market capitalization, around 18% of GDP (at market exchange rates), around 16% of world oil demand, and over a quarter of world broad money,” according to Oxford Economics. The robust growth in China is based on a cocktail of state-driven investment, supply-side stimulus, and a boost in “green” manufacturing, said its lead economist Sean Metcalfe. The continued government stimulus concentrated in green equipment and high-tech manufacturing is not only part of the economy’s shift…


In the Year of the Dragon – Hungarian Chinese Cooperation at its Peak

 (Written by Dr. László Benedek FLAMM, Historian, foreign policy expert)    Since the beginning of this year, a number of meetings took place in Budapest and Beijing, giving further impetus to the bilateral cooperation between Hungary and China. From May 8 to May 10,  Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, will visit Hungary. The highest-level event also marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of Hungarian-Chinese diplomatic relations.  This year there will be at least 17 direct flights between the two countries per week. This is the highest figure in the Central Europe that Hungary shows. Direct flights can…


PASCO’s In-Depth Discussion on GPT-like Artificial Intelligence

Since the release of the application ChatGPT, which is based on the Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) model, GPT-like generative artificial intelligence tools have become integrated into various aspects of our lives over the past year. This integration has synergized human intelligence with artificial intelligence, providing numerous conveniences. While benefiting from the advantages these AI tools bring, people are also contemplating and researching the future development of this technology, its impact on individuals and the society, as well as the coexistence of humans with artificial intelligence. (Fig.1:  Daily applications of ChatGPT – by courtesy of Dr. Shiyi Wang) Following the presentation and…


A Brief Review of the online Forum on EU-US Data Transfer

On 10. July 2023, the European Commission adopted its adequacy decision for the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. Based on this decision, personal data can flow freely from the EU to companies in the United States that participate in the Data Privacy Framework. The adequacy decision followed the adoption of Executive Order on ‘Enhancing Safeguards for United States Signals Intelligence Activities’. These instruments introduced new binding safeguards to address the points raised by Court of Justice of the European Union in its Schrems II decision of July 2020, ensuring that data can be accessed by U.S. intelligence agencies only to the…


Online Forum: Data Transfer Decision between EU and US – Is European Data Sufficiently Protected this Time?

Urban Forum and SINOPRESS proudly announce the upcoming online forum on “Data Transfer Decision between EU and US”. An open, insightful, and rewarding discussion with expertise on the topic is guaranteed. Save the date!  Time: 7pm-8.30pm (CET), 07, November 2023 Venue: ZOOM Conference (Meeting ID: 868 3301 7086, Passcode: 074595) Moderator: Marie Grüner, Communication Advisor Agenda: On 10. July 2023, the European Commission adopted its adequacy decision for the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. Based on this decision, personal data can flow freely from the EU to companies in the United States that participate in the Data Privacy Framework. The adequacy decision followed…


The World is “On the Tide” – Book Presentation in Blauer Salon

On the crystal-clear autumn evening of 28. September 2023, the book presentation for “On the Tide” took place in the Blauer Salon, Palais Niederoesterreich at the heart of Vienna. Focusing on current issues, the book is composed of a collection of the transcripts of the online forums organized by Urban Forum and SINOPRESS in the past two-three years, enriched by a dozen essays by experts of related fields. The Salon was fully occupied by guests from academia, diplomacy, politics, business, art and culture. Dr.Bernhard Mueller, Secretary General of Urban Forum, gave the opening speech and welcomed all the honored guests….


Austrian Politician Optimistic about Chinese Medicine Market

Austrian politician Dr. Peter Wittmann plans to establish a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) center to offer traditional Chinese medical therapies and herbal treatments to the Austrian public. Dr. Wittmann stated that TCM has a history of several thousand years and a rich theoretical system in China. By opening a TCM center, Austria can learn from the experience and wisdom of Chinese medical culture, and provide more economical, comprehensive, and diverse medical services for local people. In addition, with the global development and application of TCM, there will also be a wider market demand and commercial value for TCM in Austria….