Higher Education Curricula Development on the Collaborative Economy in Europe Erasmus Project

Project Title

Higher Education Curricula Development on the Collaborative Economy in Europe

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for higher education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Research and innovation; Cooperation between educational institutions and business; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

The collaborative economy is an economic model that turns consumers into producers (prosumers). Collaborative economy platforms increasingly cover important sectors of the economy such as peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation, passenger transport, or collaborative finance. P2P accommodation occurs when individuals offer, in exchange for money, a room or an entire house for short-term accommodation. Companies such as Airbnb or HomeAway have been able to increase the supply of rooms for people to stay in, without the need to create new assets or increase the number of human resources in the company. By enabling regular homeowners to lease unused space, and by providing a marketplace where consumers can easily reach this space, these companies have disrupted the hospitality market and given rise to an informal tourism accommodation sector. These platforms allow citizens to earn revenue from underutilised space and, at the same time, access affordable accommodation when travelling. Conversely, by removing property from the long-term rental market, P2P accommodation platforms contribute to rent price increases, as supply and demand diverge. Neighbourhood dynamics are also disrupted by the arrival of tourists. All these complex implications have attracted scholars’ interest and there are currently plenty of research projects about these topics. Nevertheless, limited attention has so far been given to the production of academic curricula covering the many and varied implications for business and society.

EU businesses should increase their competitiveness by aligning their skills and operations according to innovative business models. In terms of skills and competences, there is a clear discordance between the research conducted on the topic and academic learning materials within the partner countries. While there are a significant number of researchers working on collaborative economy issues – thus recognising their relevance – these research interest and skills are still not being translated into academic modules/professional training courses.

The main aim of this project is the creation of modules to fill the knowledge gap about the collaborative economy, particularly in business, economics, management and tourism disciplines. While these disciplines may in some cases address the digitalisation of economic activity, they fail to comprehend the concept of the collaborative economy and all the consequences arising from its steep growth.

To achieve this, the following objectives have been identified:
● To analyse the workings and characteristics of successful P2P providers (e.g. Airbnb, HomeAway, Booking.com, FairBnb, CouchSurfing, and HomeExchange), and to identify and analyse the role of innovative intermediaries (start-ups) within the market (e.g. UnderTheDoormat, HostMaker).
● To examine the social, economic and ethical implications that arise from the use of P2P accommodation platforms in different European countries (e.g. impact on traditional accommodation market sector, housing prices, neighbourhoods, consumption patterns, etc.).
● To design curricula and provide guidance for educators on the use of the learning resources.
● To disseminate the educational materials in the countries of the involved partners and in the wider EU.

This project will create both academic modules at Masters level and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) about different aspects of the collaborative economy. The educational materials will support the European agenda for Higher Education Reform by participating in mutually beneficial partnerships between EU higher education institutions and the industry through collaboration with the European Holiday Home Association (EHHA). The project targets HE graduates who want to get involved in the collaborative economy, as well as the general public, since a shorter version of the postgraduate modules will be available open source in MOOC format through the eLearning platform Future Learn. The project will include a collation of scholarship on the collaborative economy, as well as a sector-based analysis of the P2P accommodation by using a mixed-methods approach (e.g. questionnaire survey, interview, case study analysis, etc.). Surveys and interviews with key stakeholders will be used to analyse the workings and impacts of P2P accommodation platforms. Students will be able to critically analyse both business opportunities and the impact the collaborative economy, with a special focus on P2P accommodation. The European Commission (2016) has set an agenda for the collaborative economy to explore these issues to be better informed and finalise the discussion towards shaping a regulatory framework. Therefore, this project will also help to inform policy makers at local and EU level.

Reference
European Commission (2016a), “A European agenda for the collaborative economy”, available at http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-16-2002_en.htm

Project Website

https://colecoproject.wordpress.com/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 197452 Eur

Project Coordinator

LEEDS BECKETT UNIVERSITY & Country: UK

Project Partners

• TECHNOLOGIKO PANEPISTIMIO KYPROU
• UNIVERSITA DELLA CALABRIA
• SVEUCILISTE U ZAGREBU
• UNIVERSIDAD AUTONOMA DE MADRID
• DOKUZ EYLUL UNIVERSITESI