On March 10, the Faculty of Journalism hosted the first Topical Seminar of 2026. It was devoted to examining the pressing issues of higher education and professional development in the digital era.

The first presentation, entitled Open Education and Open Science for Media Professionals, was delivered by María Soledad Ramírez-Montoya, a Senior Research Professor and Level 3 member of the National System of Researchers of Mexico. Dr. María Soledad Ramírez-Montoya serves as UNESCO and ICDE Chair of the Open Education Movement for Latin America, where she coordinates training and research networks dedicated to promoting equitable access to learning and strengthening capacities for quality education worldwide. Her talk explored how open education and open science frameworks can be leveraged to benefit media professionals in today's rapidly evolving information landscape. María Soledad Ramírez-Montoya spoke about the functioning of open education platforms in Latin America and suggested ways to develop similar ecosystems in other countries.

The second speech was delivered by Dr. Alexandra Akchurina, an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Journalism, Lomonosov Moscow State University, where she also holds the position of Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs. In her presentation Challenges for Higher Education in the Digital Age, she addressed the evolving demands and obstacles facing universities as they adapt to technological transformation and shifting educational paradigms. Dr. Alexandra Akchurina also spoke about such challenges as working with students from Generation Z, the destructive influence of AI, and the evolution of the role of the teacher.

With this discussion, we welcome the new season of our Topical Seminars. We invite our colleagues and students to join the next session, which will be held online on April 20, 2026.

Topical Seminars are of utmost importance both for the integration of national research studies into the international academic environment, and for the conceptualization of distinctive features of Russian media studies. The Faculty of Journalism hopes that the issues raised during the seminars will make a significant contribution to the further scientific discussion.