On Thursday, June 26, 2025, the Supply Chain Resilience Center hosted its second research conference titled “Semiconductors in a Shifting World: Resilience, Education, Geopolitics.” The event brought together scholars and experts from Taiwan (NCCU) and the Czech Republic (CUNI) to present the center’s current research on the critical role of semiconductors in today’s rapidly changing global environment.
The conference opened with welcoming remarks from prominent representatives, including H.E. Liang-Ruey Ke, Representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Prague, Prof. Eva Voldřichová Beránková, Vice-Rector of Charles University; Prof. Hsien-Ming Lien, the Principal Investigator of SCRC from National Chengchi University; and Dr. David Emler, the director of SCRC from Charles University.
Throughout the day, participants engaged in three panels. The first, focusing on resilience, addressed strategic vulnerabilities in global semiconductor supply chains and examined opportunities for deeper Taiwan–Czech cooperation in the electronics export sector. The second panel focusing on education highlighted Taiwan’s robust talent development pipeline and further presented new research mapping the educational infrastructure for semiconductor-related fields in the Czech Republic. The final panel on geopolitics delved into the broader international context—discussing how shifting U.S. and EU trade policies, particularly during the Trump administration, are shaping semiconductor strategies in Central Europe and East Asia.
The program concluded with a final discussion and a lightning talk on mapping the Czech semiconductor industry and identifying key areas for policy attention and academic research.
As semiconductors increasingly underpin not only technological innovation but also global economic and political competition, this conference provided a timely platform for cross-border dialogue and collaboration. SCRC continues to connect academic research with strategic decision-making on issues of supply chain resilience, talent development, and international partnerships.
All photographs courtesy of Kristýna Sluková. You can view more of the photos from the event here: https://eu.zonerama.com/tynkaslukova/Album/13481035#check-duplicates
