Brioškola – Udruga studenata biologije

→ Brioškola is an educational and popularization project of the Botany Section

→ the goal of the project was to familiarize all interested students with bryology as a part of botany that deals with the study of mosses at all levels: systematics, nomenclature, physiology, conservation biology, ecology and determination

→ the project was developed for more than half of 2024, all with the idea of getting interested students to get to know mosses more closely

→ the main part of the project was held in the week from October 14 to 20, 2024

→ forty registered students from six different faculties of Zagreb and Belgrade universities took part in the project

→ in addition to registered students, most of the lectures were attended by about twenty participants from the general public, from students to university professors

→ in the first part of the week, eight lectures by experts in the field of bryology were held:

A systematic review of mosses and the history of bryology – prof. dr. sc. Antun Alegro, Croatia
Conservation physiology of mosses – prof. dr. rer. nat. Marko Sabovljević, Serbia
How to get biology students interested in bryophytes? – doc. dr. Simona Strgulc Krajšek, Slovenia
Research on the ecology of mosses: insights and challenges – dr. Miloš Ilić, Serbia
Distribution of mosses along the altitude gradient – dr. sc. Vedran Šegota, Croatia
Mosses in practice – monitoring programs for Natura 2000 species – Marta Rogošić, mag. oecol.
Introduction to the determination of mosses (liverworths) – Marija Bučar, mag. biol. exp.
Introduction to the determination of mosses – dr. sc. Anja Rimac, mag. biol. exp.

→ for the weekend, on Saturday, two moss determination workshops were held where the participants learned about moss determination and bryological determination keys

→ on Sunday, Risnjak National Park was visited through a field trip, where participants learned about the ecology of individual species and collected samples for the creation of a bryological collection

→ as part of the project, on Monday, November 11, 2024, a lecture and workshop The wonderful world of mosses were held at the Center of Excellence for Biology of Varaždin County, where about thirty high school students and several high school teachers were present, who had the opportunity to hear new knowledge about mosses, which are barely mentioned in high school curriculums

→ for the very end of the project on Friday, November 15, 2024. a workshop about creating a bryological collection was held, 40 moss samples of different species were included in the collection, which are kept as part of the sample collection of the Association of Biology Students Association – BIUS

→ and finally thanks:

first of all for the lecturers without whom this project would not be possible, especially prof. dr. sc. Antun Alegro, project mentor, and dr. sc. Vedran Šegota and dr. sc. Anja Rimac, mag. biol. exp., mentors of the section, who provided great support for this project
we thank all the participants, who delighted us with their enthusiasm
we would like to thank the Student Unions of PMF and UNIZG who recognized the potential of Brioškola and provided funding
Risnjak National Park, which provided us with free entrance and allowed us to conduct research in the park area, and the company Oikon Ltd. also deserve thanks for financial support
we thank Row Spirit by Martin Sinković and Pago Croatia for the food and drinks
we would like to thank the Croatian Botanical Society and the Center of Excellence for Biology of Varaždin County for their immense support
we must also thank the Administration Board of BIUS, who all helped in the implementation of the project
we would like to thank the BioFoto section for the excellent photos and our dearest Sara Fajgl for her help in creating a visual identity for the project

project leaders: Antonio Eršegović i David Grabovac

You can find more information on the Instagram profile: @bius.botanika, and you can contact us via email: sekcijazabotaniku@gmail.com.