From 20 – 23 July 2026, the 6G-VERSUS project strengthened its international visibility at the Europe-Korea Conference on Science and Technology (EKC 2026) in Toulouse, France, through the active participation of Kingston University London (KUL) and the University of Bradford (UBRAD). The project was showcased in two distinguished sessions, highlighting its innovative approach to embedding sustainability into future 6G technologies.
A key highlight was the ETRI Special Session, “Beyond Connectivity – Advancing 6G through Sustainability and Innovation,” organised by the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), one of South Korea’s largest government-funded research institutes in telecommunications and ICT. The session brought together experts from academia, research organisations and industry to discuss the evolution of 6G towards intelligent, human-centric and sustainability-aware networks.
Representing Kingston University London, Prof. Youngseok Choi delivered the presentation “From KPIs to KVIs: Evaluating Sustainability Impact in 6G Vertical Trials (6G-VERSUS).” The presentation introduced the project’s innovative methodology for complementing traditional Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) with Key Value Indicators (KVIs), demonstrating how 6G-VERSUS evaluates not only technical performance but also the broader environmental, societal and economic impact of 6G-enabled services.
The project was further promoted by Dr. Kamran Mahroof from the University of Bradford, who was invited to present “6G-VERSUS Project: Advancing Sustainability Assessment of 6G Technologies” during the session “Data Analytics for Societal Challenges: Bridging Computational and Social Science.” His presentation highlighted the project’s holistic sustainability assessment framework and demonstrated how sustainability can be embedded into the design, implementation and evaluation of future 6G technologies. By presenting 6G-VERSUS in an interdisciplinary session, the project also showcased how next-generation communication technologies can contribute to addressing wider societal challenges through responsible digital innovation.
Together, these presentations provided an excellent opportunity to engage with leading researchers from Europe and the Republic of Korea, exchange knowledge on emerging 6G technologies, and strengthen international collaboration.
Through its strong presence at EKC 2026, 6G-VERSUS further reinforced its vision of developing communication networks that go beyond connectivity, placing sustainability, societal value and innovation at the heart of future 6G ecosystems.
