Margins operates a collaborative, student-run editorial and production process, collecting submissions from members across the AAU community. Anyone and everyone is encouraged to submit their work, regardless of experience. They meet weekly to plan and create the zine, experiment, get to know each other, and share ideas.

The team launched their zine club and their first print edition this Spring 2026 semester. Each member brought their own experience and knowledge to the table from high school publication and club leadership expertise, writing and artistic prowess, to administration —not to mention all the amazing submissions from the AAU community.

Genevieve, co-founder and co-president in Spring 2026, emphasized how much support they received from peers, staff, and other clubs, like Lennon Wall and the Art Club. AAU provides a track for students to create their own clubs, but it is not easy: students must find five interested members, complete an with information about the club and its administration, and attend a Student Council vote to approve the club.

How can you get involved? Check out Margins’ updates on AAU’s Weekly Bulletin as well as on where you can also join the WhatsApp group. Look around campus for posters to stay in the loop. Two executive team members are graduating, so reach out by email if you think you have what it takes to help lead and grow this magazine! 

Lastly and most importantly: submit your work for the rewarding chance to see it in print and watch out for the new theme drop at the start of the new semester. Content accepted: Prose, Short Stories, Personal Essays, Poetry, Nonfiction, Commentaries, Recipes; Sketches, Paintings, Ceramics, Photography, Graphic design, Multi-media, Comics.

“Celebrating what’s created in the margins.”

Martina is a graduate of AAU’s 2005/06 Humanities, Society, and Culture program. She is an entrepreneur, NGO founder, author, and mother whose work focuses on leadership, philanthropy, and social impact. Over the years, she has received several recognitions for her charitable initiatives, including being awarded European Citizen of the Year.

As Alumni Council President, Martina will help strengthen engagement within AAU’s international alumni network and contribute to the continued development of the alumni community. The university looks forward to the new vision and direction she will bring to the role.

The Alumni Office also extends its appreciation to Simone Bertolone for his service as Alumni Council President and for his contributions to the AAU community. We wish him continued success in his future endeavors.

The Final Interactive Art Show, organized by the School of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (SAHSS), showcased student projects exploring themes of nostalgia, healing, identity, and emotional resilience. Led by Senior Lecturer Alena Foustková, the exhibition challenged students to create projects that were interactive and socially oriented while giving them significant creative freedom throughout the semester.

The exhibition also reflected AAU’s emphasis on hands-on learning and practical experience beyond the classroom, giving students the opportunity to develop and present original creative work in a public setting. Students first developed multiple concepts before refining and selecting final ideas through collaborative class discussions and critiques. 

Several projects focused on emotional storytelling and mental health through interactive formats. 

In “Mandible,” Andrew Swartz created a surreal game world inspired by anxiety, paranoia, and resilience, using hand-drawn visuals and pixel-art-inspired environments to externalize feelings of fear and uncertainty.

Other works explored comfort and emotional attachment. Sofia Situkho’s “Make Yellow Buddy Feel Comforted” invited visitors to interact with a small yellow character by selecting comforting objects and companions, turning participation itself into an act of care.

Memory and nostalgia became another major focus of the exhibition. In “Sounds of Childhood Nostalgia,” Michaelah Shellito combined mirrors, childhood photographs, music, and audience participation into an evolving installation centered on memory and emotional connection. 

Visitors were also invited to contribute songs and memories of their own, adding to a collaborative playlist that became part of the exhibition experience itself.

Themes of healing and recovery also appeared throughout the exhibition. Sofia Miroshnychenko’s “Non linear” reimagined the childhood game Snakes and Ladders as a metaphor for healing from trauma. “Positive new experiences” within the game allowed participants to move upward while setbacks represented emotional difficulties and instability during the healing process.

For Foustková, the exhibition reflected the broader value of creative experimentation and artistic expression within the university environment.

The exhibition ultimately transformed the studio into a collaborative and reflective space where visitors could engage directly with the students’ ideas, memories, and personal experiences through art. Photos from the exhibition can be viewed .

Learn more about the Visual Art Studies program at AAU here. For questions about the program, please contact admissions@aauni.edu.

This horror fiction centers around a couple in a failing marriage who discover their son missing one night after moving from Prague to a mysterious village in the hopes of resurrecting their marriage. This dark tale poetically explores human destiny and the animal in each of us.

She presented Playing Wolf in New York, Chicago, and Boston in the fall of 2025 as well as in London, Oxford, and Leipzig in March 2026. During the reading, Říhová discussed her writing process and contemporary literature.

Říhová is an experienced international lecturer, acclaimed scholar of avant-garde and modernism in a wider European context, as well as a published writer. She found a passion in teaching and combined it with her love for the UK and the US—where she worked as a lecturer—at AAU.

As dean, Říhová initiated the launch of three new programs to refresh the SAHSS, including Creative Writing and Storytelling, Art Therapy, and Graphic Design. AAU continues to strive for excellence through its faculty and students, highlighting and congratulating their many achievements.

Montessori education centers—named for Maria Montessori—have more respect for children and their learning needs in order to support and build the foundation of intrinsic motivation. For example, the kindergartens in mixed-age classes are encouraged to plan excursions, and teachers act only as shadows, making sure they are safe.

In her interview on , Vlčková talks about her own experiences in elementary and high school that led her to seek out a different path for herself in university—going to study in the US and also graduating from AAU—and then for her own children.

Gaining an international experience on exchange and then at AAU was important to understanding more of the world, she emphasized. Students who have Montessori education are in many cases more successful than children in regular classrooms because they learn to work independently and approach problems creatively.

Read the full interview in Czech on .

Bendl previously was the Head of Communications for 8 years during which he created communication strategies and advocacy in several countries where the MSF works. He studied international relations and diplomacy at the AAU where he has since been a guest lecturer in postcolonial theory of international relations and humanitarian practice.

Read the full article in Czech on the

Ambassador Emterud discussed her diplomatic career, including postings in Kyiv, Hanoi, Vietnam, Tokyo, and Moscow, as well as her current role representing Norway in the Czech Republic. 

The presentation introduced students to key aspects of Norway’s political and social landscape, including its welfare state, natural resources, energy policy, and relationship with the European Union. Although Norway is not an EU member, Ambassador Emterud explained the country’s close cooperation with Europe through the European Economic Area.

She also emphasized Norway’s strong commitment to international cooperation and international law.

A significant part of the discussion focused on Norway’s foreign policy priorities, including its support for Ukraine, NATO, human rights, and security in the Arctic region. Ambassador Emterud highlighted that Ukraine’s struggle is a struggle for key values in our Europe. Following the presentation, students asked questions on diplomacy, international development, energy, security, and Norway’s role in Europe. 

Reflecting on her academic background from Social Anthropology, she highlighted the importance of understanding different perspectives. 

The Meet the Ambassador series continues to offer the AAU community valuable insight into international relations through direct engagement with diplomats and global affairs professionals.

Find photos from the event on .

Outstanding Scholar: Jade Didier and Lyla Gent
Runners-up: Amelie Koníčková, Ananya Sateesha Shetty, Nina Fager

Student of the Year, SIRD: Gabriela Jacobs
Runner-up: Lyla Gent

Student of the Year SAHSS: Virginia Brunson
Runners-up: Oriana Cheney Corona, Tamar Tolordava

Student of the Year SBu: Alina Shepeliuk
Runner-up: David Němec

AAU Spirit Award: Poppy Mynard
Runner-up: Amelie Villagomez Arrona

Global Explorer Award: Rowan Simpson

Distinguished Artist Award: Clara MacPherson
Runner-up: Lev Wasiak

Rising Star Award: Sophie Mayfield
Runner-up: Niall McDermott

Student Council Member of the Year: Charlize Ocon
Runner-up: Margaret Leroux

Professor of the Year SIRD: Robert Warren
Runner-up: Ebru Akcasu

Professor of the Year SAHSS: Steve Borg
Runners-up: Angel Hoekstra, Anthony Marais

Professor of the Year SBu: Jeff Medeiros
Runner-up: Jan Vašenda

Most Helpful Staff Member of the Year: Drake Dewey
Runner-up: Kateřina Dudys

Best Course of the Year: Politics 1 – Ebru Akcasu
Runner-up: Political Geography – Robert Warren

Club of the Year: Lennon Wall
Runner-up: Football Club

Staff Department of the Year: Library
Runner-up: School of International Relations & Diplomacy

Event of the Year: Trivia Nights
Runner-up: AAU Gala 2025

Congratulations to all the winners and runners-up. Thank you for your contributions to the betterment of our community!

Photos of the ball are available on .

Organized by Senior Lecturer Alena Foustková who did a teaching exchange at IPVC, the workshop was designed to explore unexpected creative potential within a group where no special knowledge or experience with art was required. 

The origins of the Poem Factory Workshop are based in Portugal’s history with stamps which were designed for schooling during the 70s and 80s with a wide range of images and symbols across many subjects, and later they spread across more disciplines and in Portuguese life.

Groups of students were tasked to each write one word—either an animal, adjective, verb, colour, profession, or noun—hiding it from each other. Then, the words were revealed and ordered in any number of different combinations until the final poem was decided on and stamped.

The idea was to investigate how supposedly obsolete objects can be rescued and recovered from flea markets and vintage stores in present artistic practice. The method students followed during the Poem Factory Workshop comes from the idea of the Exquisite Corpse—a collaborative method to create spontaneous, often absurd art—within the Surrealist movement that often rejects the privilege of talent and genius.

In Foustková’s course Concept: Pursuing an Idea in the Art Process, she teaches various conceptual approaches, including examples of surrealism which was one of the art movements that developed from a greatly innovative and influential art movement in the early 20th century called DADA. It worked with the subconscious, chance, play, and also often practiced collective activity. 

Check out photos from the workshop on

Her new role at one of the country’s leading professional marketing organizations further strengthens the connection between AAU and the broader marketing community. It is expected to create new opportunities for collaboration benefiting both students and faculty.

This connection was also reflected in the professional seminar, Marketing Through the Lenses of Different Generations: Today and Tomorrow, which took place on April 17 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. As a partner of the event, AAU was part of a program featuring both Czech- and English-language sessions focused on generational diversity in marketing and its impact on higher education.

Along with her work with the Czech Marketing Association, Ladislava Knihová has also actively represented AAU internationally, including through her participation in an academic conference in Wrocław, Poland, where she represented the university and thus contributed to AAU’s internationalization efforts.