The 7^th international conference Innovative (Eco)technology, Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, IECOTERD took place on 12 October. An important event for the scientific community organized by Kaunas University of Applied Sciences in collaboration with the Manufacturing Innovation Valley. Nearly 70 researchers and speakers were present with 150 attendees at the conference.

Keeping in mind that technology is really implemented into our daily lives the conference aimed at innovation in technology from a broad perspective: their implementation in business, manufacturing and public sectors. Special attention was given to green technologies, the sustainable development of regions. Speakers of the conferences’ plenary session: Manufacturing Innovation Valley director Gintaras Vilda, Kaunas University of Technology director of the Institute of Environmental Engineering prof. dr. Žaneta Stasiškienė, entrepreneur, researcher, PhD student in Signal Processing at the University of Sevilla Aleksandro Montanha, Joint Professor of Geography and Business at UNC-Greensboro prof. dr. Keith G. Debbage.

According to the dean of the Faculty of Technologies Dr. Giedrius Gecevičius the themes of the plenary session are different but highly relatable- oriented towards sustainable development. It was noticed that the COVID-19 pandemic had its toll on the decision making and implementation of some sustainable development aims that were previously assessed. Innovative aircraft and engine assembly technologies, passengers ecological footprint evaluation and etc. – examples from aviation on how innovative technological resolutions were made. In addition, the topics of Smart Cities, industry 4.0 revolution, evaluating the impact on the environment and using circular economy principles were also discussed. “We can come to the conclusion that a holistic point of view toward education, business, the social and environmental sectors will allow us to prosper to a society based on innovation,” says Dr. G. Gecevičius.

IECOTERD held six conferences omitting the plenary session and report session where masters of their field shared collective knowledge about the use of information technology (IT) in business, tourism and education, agricultural innovation and landscaping issues, food technologies, IT solutions for sustainable development, material engineering and others.

The conference was multi-national with attendees from: Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Georgia, Belgium, Spain and the United States of America. According to the Vice Dean of Faculty of Technologies Dr. Irma Spūdytė who was in charge of the organization committee of this conference, “The interests in IECOTERD conferences are growing each year with more and more business and manufacturing players joining our community, we develop connections with these institutions and enhance our participants geographical region.”