With an official invitation from Dr. Andrea Gal, rector of the Edutus University in Budapest, EAR-AER Board member Louis Delcart made a presentation at the University on Thursday, 30/4/2026, as part of a joint lecture with EAR-AER Faculty member, PhD. Ilona Miklós.
Louis Delcart made a presentation on “Local and Regional Entrepreneurship: the challenges for the next quarter of the 21st century” during which he tackled his favoured subjects: regional development, the younger-generation backed trend on Circular Economy and the advantages and dangers of the digital (r)evolution.
Although he knew that his audience would be almost exclusively composed by 30 students of Chinese origine, some of the born in Hungary, he had decided not to discuss entrepreneurship with them based on their specificity, but rather to examine whether the challenges local and/or regional enterprises are experiencing in Europe (and also China) marketing-based, this is from the needs of the customer side, as they enter the second quarter of the twenty-first century also apply to them.
In his view, with my starting point lying not with the company but with the customers it serves, both B2B and B2C, there are 4 major groups of challenges: 1. The health challenge 2. The quality challenge 3. The individualization challenge 4. The energy challenge. These general challenges for the business community are elements of socio-economic pressure that entrepreneurs/future entrepreneurs are currently facing and for which they are seeking solutions. In the company context he referred to companies that focus primarily on the community or on the province/geographical region surrounding their establishment. In doing so, they are also intertwined with local administrators, business organizations, and knowledge centres. The full text of his presentation can be found in the EAR-AER news site.
In the discussion afterwards, the students confirmed to recognise the challenges for health and quality also in their own context.
Phd. Ilona Miklos made a presentation on the possibilities of the creative industry in Hungary for the Chinese community in the country. With multiple examples of the presence of Chinese-origin Hungarian influencers on social media, she showed the audience the possibilities of the creative industry for an young generation and employment source.
In the 2024-2025 academic year, nearly 2,800 Chinese students began their studies at Hungarian universities. The growth is largely driven by Hungary’s “Eastern Opening” policy and cooperation within China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
The Stipendium Hungaricum, a Hungarian scholarship program, is a crucial instrument; in 2024, 295 Chinese students were enrolled through this program. Chinese students often choose Hungary due to the relatively low tuition fees and cost of living compared to Western Europe or the US, while the quality of education (especially in medicine) is considered equivalent.