Circular Bioeconomy for improving agrifood VET institutes’ teachers’ skills and competencies

<< Background >>To help train and educate the new generation of bioeconomy professionals with the necessary hard and soft skills, we need to rethink and improve our current educational model for the bioeconomy. CB will train VET teachers from the agri-food sector in order to make them able to educate their students (i.e. the future generation of circular bioeconomy professionals) with the necessary green skills which are required by the current and future industries operating in the European circular bioeconomy. The project will develop innovative pedagogical material on circular bioeconomy related topics for VET teachers, keeping a train-the-trainer approach. Specifically, involved teachers will be provided with a thorough and practical approach to circular bioeconomy principles and their implementation in the agri-food sector, as well as with efficient tools for holding effective design thinking sessions and preparing learners to become true agents of change. At the end of the project, both teachers and students will have acquired new green skills and competencies, thus adding “circular bricks” to their knowhow.<< Objectives >>Circular Bricks’ will: - facilitate knowledge and experience sharing among institutes from different MS. This will allow: (i) rethinking & improving the current European educational model for the circular bioeconomy, providing green sectorial skills strategies and methodologies for VET teachers; and (ii) addressing the need to innovate VET by adapting it to labour market needs. - support VET teachers in the adaptation of their training offer to changing skills needs, green and digital transitions and economic cycles. This will make the circular bioeconomy more attractive for students and local stakeholders, hence stimulating local labour market and improving transnational networking activities. - develop tools and methodologies easily replicable in other MS. - contribute to tackle environmental issues by raising awareness on them and generating knowledge on a specific solution at hand: the circular bioeconomy. This will enable behavioral changes for individual preferences, consumption habits, and lifestyles. - provide students from VET institutes with the opportunity to enhance their entrepreneurial mindsets and skills, encouraging active citizenship and entrepreneurship and increasing awareness on circular bioeconomy<< Implementation >>To ensure an efficient implementation of project's activities, Circular Bricks' partners will jointly define, right at thebeginning of the project, a stable management structure to guarantee the proper implementation of the work-plan.Specifically, Circular Bricks will implement the following activities (which will lead to the delivery of the three project's results): - Over the period M1-M7, UnitelmaSapienza, Area Europa and La Uniò will work on the development of a Pedagogical Guide on circular bioeconomy, in order to provide VET teachers with a thorough and practical approach to circular bioeconomy principles and their implementation in the agri-food sector (knowledge, best practices, ideas, entrepreneurial skills, etc.), as well as with efficient tools for holding effective design thinking sessions and prepare learners to become true agents of change. - After the completion of the Pedagogical Guide on circular bioeconomy (project's result n. 1), working sessions with local stakeholders (at least 10) will be organized by VET institutes. This will allow accounting for their view and knowhow while developing the second project’s result (Circular Bricks' Open Online Platform and Toolkit).<< Results >>Circular Bricks will deliver the following three project's results: - Project result n. 1 (to be delivered by M7): Pedagogicalguide on circular bioeconomy (Leader: La Uniò) The Pedagogical guide on circular bioeconomy will be the first output ofthe project and will include the following three modules: Module n. 1 This module will include a comprehensive andinterdisciplinary overview of the circular bioeconomy, starting from few basic questions, such as: What is the circularbioeconomy? Why is the circular bioeconomy important? How do I get a circular bioeconomy? The module will take indue account regional differences across Europe (e.g. pertaining to different specializations sectors). The three pillars ofsustainability (i.e. environmental, economic and social) will also be addressed, focusing in particular on issues concerningecodesign, end-of-life options, as well as waste management and European and national regulations. European bestpractices and case studies will be presented. Module n. 2 This module will include up-to-date knowledge in thedevelopment of entrepreneurial skills.