Practical informations
Transport airport – centre
The most comfortable possibility is to take a taxi. The costs should be around 20 €.
You can also take the bus at the airport, exit at Jakominiplatz and from there you have the whole connections via bus or tram.
The time schedule of the bus from the airport is available under
www.flughafen-graz.at/home/an_abreise_uebersicht/fahrplan1.php
Price: 1,90 €
Another possibility it to take the train till Graz Main Station (1,90 €) and from there you take tram number 6.
Conference Place
To come to the conference place at TU Graz Campus Inffeldgasse 25 D take tram number 6 and exit at station "Schulzentrum St. Peter" (marked in red in the folder "3 Day Ticket GVB"). The station is directly at Inffeldgasse, which you follow until the main entrance, where the registration is located.
At the registration you will receive a ticket for the public transport for the duration of the conference.
Gala Dinner
The Gala Dinner on 11.5.2010 will take place at Schlossberg Restaurant. It starts at 19:30 o'clock with an aperitif.
You can use either the elevator or the mountain railway to come to the restaurant. Both are included with the ticket you received at the registration. The mountain railway starts every 15 minutes.
A Short History of the City
5000 years ago, the city of Graz was nothing but a steep, rocky hill by the river Mur. In the years since that Neolithic era, the hill has become today's "Schlossberg", and many events have formed the vibrant city that we know. The first significant date in Graz’s history is the year 1128, marking the first documented reference to the city. 250 years later, in 1379, Graz had grown enough to be designated capital of "Inner Austria", an area which comprised Styria and Carinthia, along with Krain, Inner Istria and Trieste (now in present-day Slovenia, Croatia and Italy). As capital, Graz was residence to the Hapsburg dynasty until 1619.
In the subsequent decades, Italian architects and craftsmen came and literally shaped the city with their building skills. Graz served as a mighty stronghold of the Holy Roman Empire against threats from the southeast. Then, during the Napoleonic Wars, the last walls of the castle fell without even being stormed. The citizens of Graz, however, paid the invaders to spare both the Glockenturm and the Uhrturm, the clock tower and bell tower that crown the Schlossberg. This "insurance" cost the citizens 2987 gulden and 11 kreutzer, around 87,000 euros in today's money. It seems a fair price to have paid for two buildings which are now famous Graz landmarks.
Since then, the city has distinguished itself primarily in the worlds of science, culture and technology. Graz is today the capital of the province of Styria. With about a quarter of a million inhabitants, Graz is Austria’s second largest city.
Graz as Melting Pot
The city lies at the crossroads of many European cultures. Romanic, Slavic, Magyar and Alpine-Germanic influences have all mingled here and formed a uniquely distinctive character. Wandering through the old town, you experience one of the biggest historically intact architectural ensembles of the German-speaking world. Moreover, this varied character of different cultures can be seen in buildings ranging in style from Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Historicism up to Art Nouveau. On December 1, 1999, this exceptional city centre, which to this day has but a few corners of modern architecture, became a UNESCO world cultural heritage site. The award was a great honour for Graz, but it also poses a great challenge and a mandate to continue efforts to further preserve the old town. Graz's multicultural tradition has characterized the city for decades, and continues to form the base of its cultural and political identity. To this day, Graz is a place of international encounter and intercultural and inter-religious dialogue.
Looking to the Future
The Styrian capital is increasingly renowned for its exemplary efforts for sustainability. The Ökoprofit and Thermoprofit partnerships, for example, successfully guide businesses to be more environmentally friendly, conserve energy and also thereby save money. These innovative projects have already been adopted by many other international cities.
Graz also continues to flourish culturally. 2003 was one of the most significant years in our history. The city was named "Cultural Capital of Europe" by the EU Ministries of Culture, and a colourful cultural program attracted visitors from all over the world. The city has sustained this success and is fast regaining a significant place on the map such that, once again, it is mentioned in the same breath as Vienna and Salzburg.
Universities and Higher Education
Graz is a major centre of research and learning: the Karl Franzens University is the largest higher education institution in the city, with five faculties and about 20,000 students; the Technical University has seven faculties and approximately 10,000 students; the Medical University has about 5,300 students; and the University of Music and Dramatic Arts has around 2,000 students. Thus in total, Graz is home to over 36,000 students from about 100 countries who study at 195 university departments. In addition, business and vocational programmes are on offer at the Fachhochschule Joanneum (with 1,500 students) and the Fachhochschule Campus 02 (800 students).
Links
www.graz.at/cms/ziel/232752/EN/