SalfordOnline

by Mark Bright

The town of Telc in the Czech Republic has promised to take on the earthquake recovery recommendations of a group of Salford students.

Students from the University of Salford’s School of the Built Environment will have their ideas officially adopted by the mayor of the town.

30 postgraduate students from Salford joined 30 others from across Europe for a two week stay in Telc, which lies on a fault plane, to create disaster recovery plans for the historic city – which the local mayor has promised to adopt.

Telc, is famed for its fairytale castle and renaissance architecture, and the surrounding areas have clay soils and large lakes which could cause mudslides. So, the students – as part of their studies – suggested practical solutions such as safe areas for homeless citizens and changes to the electricity and water grids.

The students came from a range of courses including IT, structural engineering and surveying, along with senior academics from Salford, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and Turkey.

Salford’s Professor David Eaton led the trip: “The mayor of Telč was only scheduled to attend for half an hour, but he was so interested that he stayed for the whole day. He even got Czech national television to cover the visit.

“For the students to have the chance to visit such a beautiful town and then to be involved in protecting it, gives them real inspiration for their studies and shows how their qualifications can be used. They had the chance to meet people from different countries and lasting friendships were made.”

As well as the disaster plan, the students also did other research projects with the academics and, courtesy of the Chartered Institute of Building, enjoyed a steam train ride through the region.

Due to the success of the fortnight, plans are now being made to visit other countries in future years to conduct similar projects – meaning more experience for the students and better job prospects as a result.