Supporting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in small and medium sized enterprises through VET Erasmus Project

Project Title

Supporting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in small and medium sized enterprises through VET

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 vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Environment and climate change; Cooperation between educational institutions and business; Enterprise, industry and SMEs (incl. entrepreneurship)

Project Summary

In 2015, all the Members from the United Nations signed an agreement to implement the 2030 Agenda. The Agenda included 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to be reached by 2030 and a ‘call on all businesses to apply their creativity and innovation to solving sustainable development challenges.’

Despite the growing interest from businesses in sustainable innovation, the SDGs are largely new territory for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). Nevertheless, as it has been recognized by the European Commission, the SDG can only be achieved if countries manage to build up supporting systems for SMEs, including the provision of capacity building programmes addressed to them.

SME Green Skills HUB project is a European multi-stakeholder partnership and a learning network between SMEs, sectorial clusters, regional governments, HEI, and VET providers from five European countries, Spain, Ireland, Portugal, Turkey and Italy. They have worked together to identify common needs and challenges and key areas of intervention in order to achieve the main AIM of the project: support the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in SMEs through VET.

During the preliminary analysis partners have identified two main FACTORS FOR SUCCESS:
(1) The ability to adapt the SDGs to the context and situation within which each business operates, that will require expert support to SMEs staff from VET teachers, trainers and mentors, skilled to provide initial and/or continuing training to them.
(2) The use of effective and innovative training approaches and pedagogies for work place learning in SMEs, as traditional employee training and onboarding processes can become monotonous, resulting in diminishing engagement and poorer results.

Based on this analysis, the partners have set the following OBJECTIVES for the project:
– To co-define a structured set of competencies on implementing the SDGs in SMEs following ECVET and EU standard methods: the IO1 European Framework of Competencies.
– To co-design, test and implement a next-generation ICT-based educative tool to provide OER, including training contents and VOOC, on implementing the SDGs in SMEs through VET: the IO2 SME Green Skills HUB Virtual Campus
– To co-create, test and implement a digital assessment tool to evaluate competences on the implementation of the SDGs in SMEs through VET: the IO4 Mobile Assessment App.
– To elaborate a policy set of recommendations to promote transparency and recognition of skills on the topic of the project: the IO4 Guidelines to promote transparency and recognition of skills to implement SDGs in SMEs.
– To establish a European multi-stakeholder community of practice on supporting the implementation of the SDGs in SMEs and the further development of green skills in SMEs staff: the SME Green Skills HUB.

The project will also apply the following INNOVATIVE TRAINING APPROACHES and PEDAGOGIES for work-place learning in SMEs:
– NEXT-GENERATION TRAINING SOLUTIONS, which have a modern User Interface (UI) for the learner; offers high-level interactions; promotes social, active learning; enables high-resolution formative assessment; enables personalized experiences; offers mobile compatibility.
– GAMIFICATION, to integrate principles of play and positive competition into employee training to create a training experience that holds the employee’s attention and motivates them.
– Innovative WORK-BASED LEARNING APPROACHES, to increase the extent to which work is learning-rich within the workplace, including encouraging people to reflect on their experience; peer guidance by other workers; demonstration and practice; simulation; and problem solving; all these techniques can be integrated with the normal cycle of work and production.

SME Green Skills HUB will involve 74 VET teachers, trainers and mentors, TARGET USERS of the project (24 partners’ staff /30 experts involved / 20 participants in pilots). The project will directly involve and benefit 100 SMEs staff, TARGET BENEFICIARIES participating in pilots. 385 stakeholders will be directly involved at local, regional, national and European level, and the project will reach a minimum audience of 1000 recipients through dissemination activities.

The project will have a positive impact in: (i) partner organizations, SMEs, and other VET stakeholders in Europe, that will count with an innovative set of VET tools to support the implementation of the SDGs in SMEs (ii) VET teachers, trainers and mentors, acquiring new skills and opportunities for recognition and professional development (iii) SMEs staff, accessing to new opportunities for training and upskilling in green related skills.

The expected impact of the project is a raised awareness about: (I) the importance and value of the SDGs; (ii) the opportunities derived from the implementation of the SDGs in business strategies: (III) the role of VET in the fight against global warming and environmental transition.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 349250 Eur

Project Coordinator

INSTITUTO PARA EL FOMENTO DEL DESARROLLO Y LA FORMACION SL & Country: ES

Project Partners

• INNOQUALITY SYSTEMS LIMITED
• Mindshift Talent Advisory lda
• Fondazione per la Ricerca e l’Innovazione
• ISTANBUL VALILIGI
• AGRUPACION EMPRESARIAL INNOVADORA PARA LA CONSTRUCCION EFICIENTE