G² VET - Green Guide in VET

"<< Background >>We were convinced that education plays a central role to achieving the EU’s climate targets. With education can be reached people in different stages of life, with different socio-economic background and in different geographical zones. Education can achieve that citizens act as responsible workers at their workplaces and / or in private life on climate change and forsustainable development.But in order to achieve this on a large scale, the trainers themselves must first understand the complexity of the topic, find a suitable definition and undergo a change in awareness and acquire new knowledge and skills on developing sustainability competence. This is where we wanted to start with the partnership by identifying and expanding sustainability competence, guided by the GreenComp competence framework of the EU. Based on this demand we aimed to develop LifeHacks for vocational education and training as small learning units (""nuggets"") that relate specifically to company practice and show concrete and easily possible measures and behavioral changes could be done. We wanted start small and open long-term change in awareness since eduators are role models for their learners.<< Objectives >>The project aimed to raise awareness, modify attitudes and create action among employees in VET - Institutions. Therefor the project wanted to develop an understanding of sustainability dimensions and show, with simple and small steps, in an uncomplicated way with easily accessible and motivating LifeHacks, ways in which every employee can act sustainably in the context of his/her work and in private life. In doing so, we wanted to create a “green culture” in our institutions and encourage a broad community to get involved in the topic, to then activate themselves and others and develop the process consistently further. The main objectives of G2VET were to develop an understanding of sustainability, create a community focused on sustainability in everyday work, and encourage action in sustainability topics. Additionally, the project sought to develop practical, small-scale learning resources, called as ""LifeHacks,"" for implementing sustainable practices. Another key goal was to familiarize staff with the European GreenComp model and enable self-assessment of competences, while documenting and sharing the project team's learning journey as a resource for others.<< Implementation >>To achieve these objectives, the project implemented several key activities. The project team developed 24 interactive LifeHacks to promote sustainability in vocational training and embed it in the institutions. In addition, exemplary learning paths were created to achieve badges, which should increase the motivation of the learners. The project developed recommendations for the assessment of sustainability competences according to the EU GreenComp framework. These recommendations were written in several languages to ensure broad applicability. To support the learning process within the consortium, virtual meetings were held to share and learn from each other. All dissemination and community building activities were based on a well thought-out media strategy and content plan, from which a comprehensive blog was created and maintained using the WOL approach, which contributed to community building. A kick-off conference was held at the beginning of the project and a multiplier conference was organised at the end to support the transfer of knowledge. The comprehensive website (https://g2vet.eu) was developed as a central element, integrating the blog, a learning centre and a library. This is the central hub for all resources.<< Results >>The concrete outputs are freely available under a cc-by-sa open licenece on the G2VET webpage. Furthermore, the G2VET project also achieved a number of important qualitative results. The participants developed a deeper understanding of the various dimensions of sustainability. A committed community focusing on sustainability in everyday working life emerged within the participating VET institutions. This led to increased awareness and engagement with sustainability issues among staff at the participating institutions. A significant advance was the improved familiarity of staff with the European GreenComp model. In addition, the project partners further developed their technical and creative skills, particularly in the use of tools such as WordPress, H5P and collaboration software. This significantly increased their capacity to produce interactive digital content and manage online learning platforms. Another important aspect was the strengthening of transnational cooperation and the exchange of knowledge between partners from different education systems and countries. This networking contributed significantly to the success of the project."