Empowering Regional Development and Innovations Erasmus Project

Project Title

Empowering Regional Development and Innovations

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 : Knowledge Alliances for higher education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Regional dimension and cooperation; Open and distance learning

Project Summary

ERDI project is highly relevant as it builds tools enabling the universities to develop working life relevant higher education. ERDI has promoted the partner HEIs and businesses in building the future competences in the field of bioeconomy that are urgently needed to work for a bright world. In its turn, ERDI helps us to work for the goals of the circular economy and zero-waste society. The real changes are possible only when we have competent professionals. Students can do the change – they are the future shapers who might change the world. To be able to re-shape our societies and practices they need have a vision and understanding embedded with the multidisciplinary knowledge and skills. That enables the HEI graduates to apply learning into practice and turn challenges into possibilities and solutions. Entrepreneurial mindset, interpersonal skills, resilience and ability to build trust are the key transversal skills the HEI graduates do need in the labor market. This calls for future oriented curricula, adequate learning environments, competent teachers and staff members, possibility to interact with the world of work and possibilities to solve real problems interacting in diverse teams – all this is what ERDI did and the ERDI results do in the future.ERDI project aims for better graduate employability, increased competitiveness of the regional economies and boost to bioeconomy businesses fostering better income and prosperity in the future in all the partner regions. Furthermore, ERDI increases the relevance and openness of higher education and provides the working life partners a path for a meaningful internationalisation and networking. In addition, ERDI promotes inclusion in education as it develops open education and varied pedagogical approaches to meet with the needs of the more diverse learner’s. These aims are accomplished by realising five concrete objectives:1.ERDI internationalises education by developing multidisciplinary, dynamic, working life serving, learner centred and international curriculum;2.ERDI supports accessibility of education by applying innovative and interactive digital e-learning tools and materials;3.ERDI defines the core competences of a bioeconomy expert to rise the working life relevance of education;4.ERDI boosts co-creation of knowledge with the working life and surrounding society by establishing innovative, concrete and systemic participatory knowledge alliances on regional and international level; and5.ERDI strengthens bioeconomy business, entrepreneurship and employability sharing and generating business models and innovations in local, regional and international networks.To ensure a fit for purpose implementation of the project and achieving the results, the partners worked with these objectives in following thematic work packages: Curriculum Development (WP3), Digital Learning Tools (WP4), Knowledge Alliance Models and Tools (WP5), and Business Networks (WP6). The Current State Analyses (WP1) that provided a wide survey with relevant background information forming a base line for the thematic work packages supported the thematic work. The horizontal work packages Management (WP2), Quality Assurance (WP7), Evaluation (WP8) and Dissemination (WP9) supported the entity. All the work packages were sub-divided into concrete outputs and outcomes. That helped in making the whole process concrete, understandable and visible. All the ERDI results and project information is available on the project result web pages.

Project Website

http://erdiproject.eu/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 563703 Eur

Project Coordinator

KARELIA AMMATTIKORKEAKOULU OY & Country: FI

Project Partners

• PROAGRIA POHJOIS-SAVO RY
• STICHTING HAS OPLEIDINGEN
• SLOVENSKA POLNOHOSPODARSKA UNIVERZITA V NITRE
• SLOV – MART SRO
• UNIVERZITA PARDUBICE
• MAS ZELEZNOHORSKY REGION ZS
• SAVONIA-AMMATTIKORKEAKOULU OY