Vocational Education and Training (VET) has a prominent place as a driver for environmentally sound and sustainable social and economic development in Europe, and in achieving the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) on quality education, good jobs, and economic growth. The transition to a more sustainable economy offers much potential for job creation and the promotion of decent work, however, requiring that specifically, VET will have to adapt to accompany and benefit from the opportunities arising from the green transition, and the emergence of environmentally friendly technologies in a wide range of professions. VET programmes must be developed for new professional profiles linked to greening, and VET teachers must be equipped with the required green skills and knowledge on the full sustainability potentials of their own field. On this basis, the aim of the GreenVETnet project is to spark interest and act as an agent in advancing the skills development among the VET teachers and institutions required for the green transition.

Objectives:

In line with the goals of the new Erasmus+ programme putting priority on supporting the European Green Deal and reflecting the importance of skills, knowledge, and attitudes on environmental change and sustainable development, the project aims to work on the overall objective to further mainstream the integration of sustainability aspects in VET by enhancing the competences (of staff involved in VET) on sustainable development. One of the key questions is how, practically, education and training, and skills can develop and support the green transition. The project plans to establish a methodology for educators’ skills training in some of the key sectors that come with the greatest opportunity for growth of green jobs that support sustainable development (including hospitality management and tourism, business and administration, logistics/transport, manufacturing, and construction sector). The goal is to enhance the VET educator’s skills and knowledge on sustainability potentials of their own field. Further, the project will create a platform for peer-learning, exchange of experiences and know-how, as well as identification of best practices on how VET can act as a bridge to the sustainable development of working life and supporting the green transition.

Throughout the project, with the goal to come up with a consensus on the core green skills in different fields of VET and establish a solid response to equip the teachers with the right tools, the consortium will work together by virtual means and physically during five planned transnational meetings. As one result of this work, the consortium will establish a common methodology to design and implement five strongly experimental learning, teaching and training activities (LTTA) targeted for VET educators. The project will design and launch a GreenVETnet online portal, showcasing the results and materials produced during the project. Further, the project will organise a high-level webinar gathering the VET leaders and experts advancing sustainability integration in the European VET institutes.

Expected results:

Through the set of activities implemented, the project will further strengthen skills on sustainable development and knowledge on the green potentials of different fields of education among the VET professionals. Putting the focus on identifying the core green skills and making suggestions on how to incorporate them into different fields of study will harmonise their mainstreaming through VET programmes. The outcome of the project will be upskilling the European VET institutions in the development and implementation of green strategies enabling transform their learning and training environments prepared for skilling professionals for green jobs and greening of economies.