In 2024, a record number of training sessions were held for business and public sector representatives under the Cyber4AllSTAR project coordinated by the UPEE. However, the Trakia EDIH team did not limit itself to training provided to the Hub’s clients as free services upon request. We present a brief overview of the good practices built during the fall-winter semester of 2024-2025, which will be continued in the spring semester of 2025.
BAC Scholarship Program
At the end of December, during the forum “European Digital Innovation Days in Local Government,” the Bulgarian Cybersecurity Association (BAC) scholarship recipients were announced. This pilot initiative supports young experts from various academic fields and levels of professional development, united by shared interests in cybersecurity.
In partnership with the European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) “Trakia,” named scholarships are awarded in memory of Associate Professor Dr. Alexey Petrov, Executive Director of the Union for Private Economic Enterprise and Head of the Department of Political Science and National Security at the University of Plovdiv “Paisii Hilendarski” (2019–2023), and Mr. Svetlin Iliev, Chairman of the “EDIH Trakia” Association (2021–2023).
The initiative has received the support of the European Cybersecurity Organisation (ECSO) and the European Digital Innovation Hub Network of the European Commission (EDIH Network).
Scholarship Recipients for the Academic Year 2024–2025
- Martin Rusinov – Graduate of the National Trade High School, Plovdiv, specializing in “Economic Informatics.” Currently studying at the National Military University “Vasil Levski.”
- Alek Kalinov – Graduate of the High School of High Technologies “Alexander S. Popov,” Sofia, specializing in “Applied Programming.”
- Stefani Todorova – Graduate of the Technical University of Sofia, specializing in “Cybersecurity.”
- Atanas Atanasov – Graduate of the University of Plovdiv “Paisii Hilendarski,” specializing in “Cybersecurity.”
- Yoan Ivanov – Graduate of the Technical University of Varna, specializing in “Software Technologies.”
- Simeon Argirov – Graduate of the University of Plovdiv “Paisii Hilendarski,” specializing in “National Security.”
The training of the scholarship recipients begins on January 21, 2025, and will last for one calendar year. During this period, they will have free access to over 200 courses and 60 specializations in the field of cybersecurity, carefully selected by the BCA team. Additionally, they will gain access to more than 10,000 training resources provided by leading universities and companies through the “Coursera” platform.
WORK WITH HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
During both the “European Digital Innovation Days in Local Government” and the “European Digital Innovation Days in Security and Defense,” a demo version of the educational computer game Stealth Sec was presented. The game was developed with the mentorship of Peter Kunchev, head of the Youth Program at the European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) Trakia.
Students Galya Markova, Nicholas Lefterov, and Pavel Katsarov from Secondary School “St. Paisii Hilendarski” are mastering the profession of “AI Programmer” with additional training in the newly introduced subject “Cybersecurity.” This subject has been part of the curriculum at their school for the past two years, supported by EDIH Thrace. Their team also includes Alexander Staikov from the Language School “Ivan Vazov.”
“The collaboration between Secondary School ‘St. Paisii Hilendarski’ and the European Digital Innovation Hub ‘Trakia’ over the past two years have resulted in the first student startup concept for cybersecurity. The knowledge gained in cybersecurity and AI programming classes, combined with practical applications in the hub’s simulator, has paid off—a team of knowledgeable and ambitious students now making strides toward the corporate world,” commented school principal Irena Dushkova for the “Study in Plovdiv” portal.
Initiatives for European Cybersecurity Month
For the first time, an online video lesson for parents was organized in collaboration with TV Eurocom to mark the European “Cybersecurity Month.” Additionally, through partnerships with the EDIH Trakia initiative “Protect the Child Online,” the tradition of holding open lessons in schools was continued.
For instance, the National Music School “Lyubomir Pipkov” welcomed the “Protect the Child Online” team into its classrooms. At the invitation of the school, Yavor Kolev, the driving force behind the social campaign and director of the “Cyber 360 Academy”—a founding member of EDIH Trakia—conducted a training session on safe internet use for students in grades 3 to 8.
University Initiatives and Partnerships
In November 2024, the team from EDIH Trakia participated in the selection and awarding of the most promising university startup projects at the University of Plovdiv (PU), at the invitation of the university’s Technology Transfer Office—a unique entity within the Bulgarian academic system dedicated to the development and transfer of innovations.
The final round of the competition for the best startup project took place on November 21, 2025, under the patronage of the Rector of the University of Plovdiv, Prof. Dr. Rumen Mladenov. Dr. Hristiyan Daskalov, a member of the EDIH Trakia team, awarded the project of chemist Petar Slavov, which focuses on developing a new generation of sodium-ion batteries with improved efficiency, thermal resistance, and durability.
The project will have access to EDIH Trakia’s innovation and digitalization support services, including consultations for accessing national and European funding opportunities.
Student Events and Engagements
Student-focused events continued both on-site and within the university environment. In mid-November 2024, Kiril Grigorov, a member of the leadership of the Bulgarian Cybersecurity Association (BCA), participated in the opening of the academic year for master’s students in “Cybersecurity” at the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences.
In early January 2025, Denis Petkov from the EDIH Trakia team delivered a public lecture to students in Plovdiv at the invitation of the “Europe Direct” network and its local coordinator, Mr. Krasimir Loykov. During the lecture, Petkov presented the “Cyber4AllSTAR” project by the Digital Innovation Hub “Thrace,” which is financially supported by the European Commission’s Digital Europe Program and the Scientific Research, Innovations, and Digitalization for Smart Transformation Program (PNIIDIT 2021–2027).
Seminars at the Hub’s Training Center
The Training Center of the European Digital Innovation Hub “Trakia,” located at Drava Street 2 in Plovdiv, hosted numerous events during the semester to support young researchers, entrepreneurs, and students in management, entrepreneurship, and cybersecurity programs.
At the end of October 2024, Denis Petkov, responsible for academic partnerships at the Hub, hosted the “Cyber Research Exercise 2024” (CyReX), an annual event held under the auspices of Associate Professor Zlatogor Minchev from the leadership of EDIH Trakia and the Institute of Information and Communication Technologies at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (IICT-BAS).
The Hub also hosted a gathering of social entrepreneurs from the region, organized in collaboration with the Regional Focal Point of the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy (MLSP) and innovators from “Holistic.” Regular informational and consulting meetings with groups of students from secondary and higher education institutions in Plovdiv have also become a well-established tradition.
Scientific Forums for Knowledge Dissemination
A summary of the past winter semester would be incomplete without highlighting the participation of the European Digital Innovation Hub “Trakia” team in key events within the research ecosystem. These include the jubilee scientific conference of the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences (FESN) at the University of Plovdiv, forums organized by the Federation of Scientific and Technical Unions (FSTS) and its House of Science and Technology, as well as sector-specific partner events like the annual “Smart Tourism“ conference held in late November 2024 in Sofia.
The team also actively participated in international forums from the calendar of the Institute of Information and Communication Technologies (IICT) at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, such as “HPC 2024.” For the first time, collaboration was established with Plovdiv Tech Park, where Denis Petkov represented EDIH Trakia by presenting a report at their international scientific conference on Artificial Intelligence and E-Leadership.
EDIH Trakia’s Participation in Research Forums
EDIH Trakia’s involvement in research forums resulted in the publication of at least five scientific articles and papers dedicated to the Cyber4AllSTAR project. These were published in reputable Bulgarian and English-language journals and are available to the general public on the EDIH Trakia website.
The publications are as follows:
- Daskalov, H., Atanasov, S. The Cyber Polygon of EDIH Trakia within the Cyber4AllSTAR Project as an Environment for Developing Experts in Network and Information Security in the South Central Region. Scientific and Technical Conference “Science, Technology, Security,” July 2024.
- Daskalov, H. European Digital Innovation Hub Trakia and the Right to (Self) Defense in the Digital Space. Scientific and Technical Unions with the House of Science and Technology – Plovdiv, November 2024.
- Petkov, D., Kaleeva, T., Staribratov, P. Model for Cybersecurity Exploration in Educational Institutions in Plovdiv through IICT-BAS Branch. International Hybrid Workshop: Transformational Challenges to Security, Defense & Innovations in the New Digital Age, July 2024.
- Petkov, D. Cybersecurity Brokers in Public-Private Partnerships as Part of the Digital Economy. Institute of Informatics and Innovative Technologies at Plovdiv Tech Park, November 2024.
- Petkov, D. The Monetization of Threat Intelligence as Part of the Digital Economy. Plovdiv University “Paisii Hilendarski,” November 2024.
Joint Training with Partners from the Innovation Ecosystem
In 2024, EDIH Trakia collaborated with the China-CEEC Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Center (CNCSSS) to conduct three joint workshops on cybersecurity and artificial intelligence in the cities of Varna, Burgas, and Plovdiv, as part of the CNSSS CEE Academy for Entrepreneurship in Agriculture. This collaboration will continue into 2025, with the intensive four-day academy hosted in Stara Zagora, Vratsa, and Dobrich. Applications for participation from individuals and legal entities are now open and can be submitted through the organizers’ website.
Opportunities for Free Training for Students and Initiatives for Equal Inclusion
In 2025, the teams behind the digital library Safer.bg (within the framework of the “Smarter than a Hacker” project) and the Bulgarian Cybersecurity Association (within the “Youth Cyber Power” project) will continue to offer free training opportunities for students. Details about upcoming training dates can be found on the Facebook pages of both projects, which are supported by the Erasmus+ program.
Initiatives for Gender Equality and Inclusion
A key focus of EDIH Trakia’s educational and broader academic and research activities in 2025 will be gender equality. To this end, the Hub will rely on the initiative of the Bulgarian branch of the pan-European foundation Women 4 Cyber (W4C), established in 2024 with the support of the Digital Hub “Trakia.” The W4C mentorship program is currently recruiting mentors, regardless of gender, to share their expertise and knowledge with women who are starting or developing careers in cybersecurity.
