RS: My father, Karl Badde, was an educationalist, but also an entrepreneur, who set up language schools and adult education centres in the Arab world in the 1960s. In the late 80s, I worked for his publishing company that produced guide books on studying abroad. During my time there, he was asked to do a language exhibition and I became involved in the events side of the business.

In the early 90s, my father, my brother Markus Badde and I started ICEF, a new company that specialised in exhibitions and conferences in the education sphere. In 2001, I decided to set up my own company, taking over some of the events I had been handling on my own and starting new ones.

My father, Karl Badde, was an educationalist, but also an entrepreneur, who set up language schools and adult education centres in the Arab world in the 1960s

The PIE: This year is the 20^th anniversary for ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN (OEB), how did that start?

RS: In the early 90s we organised an exhibition in Russia on Higher Education. All sectors were involved, even the military. This was shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, when the CIS States (the former states of the Soviet Union) had extensive satellite networks that had previously been used to transmit military information. The CIS States, which still had their Soviet era unified education systems, faced challenges when it came to providing quality education over wide geographic areas. They were looking to use these satellites to transfer educational expertise.

So my father had the idea to organise a conference about it, and chose Berlin because it was easier than working in Moscow in terms of technological infrastructure, and because Berlin was the perfect bridge between the East and the West. ONLINE EDUCA was my father’s brainchild, but technology in education always interested me and I have managed the conference since the very beginning.

The PIE: What was that first conference like?

RS: It took place in 1995 in the eastern part of the city with the subtitle “Technology Supported Distance Learning and Training”. Over 500 high-level people participated – all the international experts and gurus were there. Now we see around 2,200 participants each year, from approximately 100 countries. We attract delegates from all sectors – academia, the public and corporate sectors – and it is a unique event for its breadth of themes and its diversity.

Immersive learning and gamification of content are emerging as excellent tools for creating memorable experiences

The PIE: How have trends changed in e-learning over the past 20 years?

RS: The first conference was very much focused on video conferencing using satellite technologies. In 1995 we hardly used the internet, it had been dial-up for many years and quite slow, so CBL and CBT [computer based learning and training] were high on the agenda.

In 2014, we’ll be looking at trends in data such as adaptive learning where the environment adapts to your own needs; data in the classroom; cloud-based environments. Mobile is also very central, so much so that it is no longer a trend. However, a huge trend will be wearable technology. It’s not mainstream yet but there are always some teachers who experiment and inspire others. Immersive learning and gamification of content are also emerging as excellent tools for creating memorable experiences.

The PIE: You hear a lot about e-learning in the context of Africa, how did your African e-learning event start?