Aktivni ugalj je valuta budućnosti? - Milan Kusmuk / Activated charcoal as the currency of the future? - Milan Kusmuk

Aktivni ugalj je valuta budućnosti? - Milan Kusmuk

Poznato je da članovi naše Fondacije često učestvuju na raznim konferencijama koje predstavljaju izvrsnu priliku za njihov profesionalni razvoj i stjecanje neophodnog iskustva.  Upravo jednoj takoj konferenciji, koja je 26. i 27. februara održana u gradu Baden Baden u Njemačkoj na temu biomasa, njihovoj održivosti i značaju za ekonomiju i tržište, prisustvovao je član naše Fondacije, Milan Kusmuk.

Milan je članom Fondacije Budućnosti Bosne i Hercegovine postao u martu 2017. godine, a njegovo znanje, umijeće, trud i rad nisu prošli nezapaženo, te je od početka ove godine također član Komiteta Studenata i Mladih Profesionalaca (SYPLC), u kojem obavlja fuknciju identifikacije i konceptualizacije projektnih prijedloga i grantova, o čemu smo pisali ranije. Trenutno se nalazi na praksi u Oslu u Norveškoj, gdje u firmi AFS Norge Internasjonal Utveksling radi projektu koji se odnosi na volonterski razvoj, kompentencije, treninge i volonterski put od ulaska u organizaciju.

Milane, otkud interesovanje za biomase i kako se ukazala prilika za odlazak na konferenciju o tome?

Za biomase sam se zainteresovao kroz razgovor sa profesorom tokom studijske posjete na Univerzitetu u Essenu u Njemačkoj, gdje sam zajedno sa desetinama studenata radio na razvijanju naših start-up priča i ideja. Profesor Tim Scholze je na odsjecima za preduzetništvo i edukaciju i vrlo je interesantna osoba, jer je tokom svog rada dosta vremena posvetio analizi ljudskih kompentencija. Pored toga je proteklih 20 godina radio na razvoju i realizaciji EU projekata iz oblasti korištenja biomase za proizvodnju alternativnih proizvoda. Imali smo priliku da razgovaramo o našim iskustvima, planovima i idejama. Kroz moju priču o StartUp-ima i problemima sa zagađenošću vazduha, došli smo na ideju da bi možda sami aktivni ugalj mogao biti interesantna priča za mene. Profesor me pozvao kao gosta na konferenciju, te odlučio da pokrije sve troškove vezane za moj put i boravak u Njemačkoj. Tema konferencije je bila «Pametno koristenje biomase za alternativne karbonske proizvode».

Možeš li nam nešto više reći iz vlastite perspektive o važnosti ove konferencije i njene teme?

Samu temu nisam dovoljno poznavao, ali sam se pokušao informisati putem interneta. Kada sam tamo otišao, tek tada sam shvatio pravu vrijednost iste. Na konferenciji smo imali priliku da vidimo postrojenje, koje je profesor razvio sa ostalim članovima projektnog tima. Radi se o postrojenju, koje prilikom sagorijevanja otpada, nastalog košenjem trave, sječom drveća, granja i sličnih materijala proizvodi biološki ugalj i aktivni ugalj, ali proizvodi i toplotu koja se može koristiti za grijanje drugih objekata.

Osim same tehnologije, kao vrlo interesantnog aspetka, tu je bio veliki broj stručnjaka iz Walesa, Francuske, Njemačke i Belgije. Ti ljudi udruženim snagama rade na promociji vrijednosti ove ideje i proizvoda. Neki od njih aktivni ugalj nazivaju valutom budućnosti. 

Možeš li ukratko opisati svoje iskustvo sa spomenute konferencije? Da li je to iskustvo primjenjljivo u našoj domovini? 

Moje iskustvo je odlično. Ja sam se iznenadio kada sam vidio u kom pravcu ova tehnologija ide. Upoznao sam nevjerovatne ljude, koji su investitori, biznismeni, profesori na univerzitetima, ali isto tako vrlo pristupačni za razgovor i spremni da odgovore na sva pitanja. Razgovarao sam o mnogim stvarima, ali ono što je mene posebno interesovalo je dalja primjena aktivnog uglja i to kakve su mogućnosti korištenja aktivnog uglja u svrhu prečišćavanja. Tamo ljudi već koriste filtere za prečišćavanje otpadnih voda i aktivno rade na unaprijeđenju. 

Biomasa je neiscrpiv i obnovljiv izvor, koji se dalje može koristiti. U našoj zemlji je veliki potencijal i moze se puno raditi na tome. Nedavno sam vidio da je napravljena online mapa potencijala BiH, kada je u pitanju biomasa. Tu su neophodne i velike investicije, ali siguran sam da je isplativo. I dalje se rade istraživanja na tom polju. 

Za kraj, koju poruku možeš poslati mladim naučnicima i profesionalcima u našoj BiH?

Poručio bih mladim naučnicima i profesionalcima da aktivno rade na sebi. Kada ovo kažem mislim da je znanje osnova uspješnog života, ali i zdravog uma. Međutim, svi trebamo biti svjesni da su danas informacije dostupne na svakom koraku, pa je primjena znanja bitnija više nego ikad. Radite na prakticnom znanju, unapređujte vlastite vještine komunikacije, rješavanja problema i prezentovanja sebe i svojih ideja. Čitajte, istražujte i izađiite iz svoje komforne zone... Sve prilike su tu, na vama je kako ćete ih iskoristiti. I nemojte se bojati neuspjeha, jer to je  sastavni dio puta ka uspješnom životu.

Activated charcoal as the currency of the future? - Milan Kusmuk

It is known that members of our Foundation, whether they are students or Board Members, often participate in various conferences that represent an excellent opportunity for their professional development and gaining the necessary experience. This time, the opportunity to participate at one such conference, which was held on February 26 and 27 in Baden Baden in Germany was given to the member of our Foundation, Milan Kusmuk. The topic of the conference was the concern of the biomass, their sustainability and importance for the economy and market.

Milan became a member of the B&H Futures Foundation in March 2017, and his knowledge, skills, effort and work have not gone unnoticed. Therefore, since the beginning of this year he is also a member of the Students and Young Professionals Leadership Committee (SYPLC), where he does identification and the conceptualization of project proposals and grants. If you missed to read about SYPLC, you can read it here.

Currently, Milan is located in Oslo, Norway, where he is doing the internship at  AFS Norge Internasjonal Utvexling, working on volunteerism development through a project related to volunteerism, competences and training. Here you have an opportunity to read an interview with Milan.

Dear Milan, can you tell us from where comes the interest in biomass and what did the opportunity to attend the conference about it look like?

The interest in biomass was born while I was talking to professor Tim Sholze during a study visit at the University of Essen, Germany, where together with other students I worked on developing our start-up stories and ideas. Professor is employed at the department of entrepreneurship and education and is a very interesting person, because during his work he devoted considerable time to the analysis of human competences. In addition, for the past 20 years, he has been working on the development and implementation of EU projects in the field of using biomass to produce alternative products. We had the opportunity to exchange our experiences, plans and ideas. Through my story of StartUp and air pollution problems, we came up with the idea that perhaps the active coal itself could be an interesting story and solution. The professor called me to join the mentioned conference as a guest and decided to cover all expenses related to my trip and stay in Germany. The topic of the conference was "Smart use of biomass for alternative carbon products".

Can you tell us more on the importance of this conference and its topic from your own perspective?

To be honest, I did not know enough about this topic earlier, but I tried to get as more information as possible using the Internet. It was during my Study Visit and especially at the Conference when I started to realize the true value of the biomass. At the conference, we had the opportunity to see the plant developed by the professor and other members of the project team. It is a plant that produces biocharcoal and activated charcoal, but also products and heat that can be used to heat other objects when burning waste, grass, wood and similar materials.

Apart from the technology itself as a very interesting part of conference, there were many experts from Wales, France, Germany and Belgium. These people work together to promote the value of this idea and product. Some of them actively use coal as the currency of the future.

Can you briefly describe your experience at the mentioned conference? Is this experience applicable in our homeland?

My experience is great. I was surprised when I saw in what direction the technology is going nowadays. I met amazing people, who are investors, businessmen, professors at universities, but at the Same time very approachable and available to talk with, being ready to answer all questions. I talked about many things, but what I was particularly interested in was the continued use of active coal, especially for purification purposes. People are already using filters for treating the waste water and are also actively working on its improvement.

Biomass is an inexhaustible and renewable source, which can be further used. There is a lot of potential in our country and we can work hardly on it. I recently saw that an online map of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s potential for biomass was created and is available. There are also some big and profitable investments in our country, but there is still enough space to do research in this field.

Finally, what is the message you want to send to young scientists and professionals in our country?

I would recommend to young scientists and professionals to actively work on themselves and their professional development. When I say this, I think that knowledge is not only the basis of a successful life, but also a healthy mind as well. However, we all need to be aware that nowadays necessary information is available at every step, so the application of knowledge is more important than ever. Work on practical knowledge, enhance your own communication skills, solve problems and present yourself and your ideas. Read, explore and get out from your own comfort zone ... All the opportunities are there, it's up to you to recognize and use them. And do not be afraid of failure, because it is an integral part of the path towards a successful life.