Learning & education can play a very important role in reducing age segregation, as it regulates imbalance between generations and opens up new opportunities for social inclusion to older adults. Despite the fact that there is a need for providing better opportunities for education of older adults & intergenerational education & learning, education of the elderly is still a peripheral activity today, which is reflected in the development of theory and practice of this area (in particular, the development of programs and skills of education providers for older adults).The training of older adults requires andragogically well-trained providers, who are familiar with the theory and practice of adult education, know the characteristics of the life course of the members of different age cohorts and those effects on the readiness for education, understand that older adults are an extremely diverse group of adults with very different needs and require tailor-made approaches and modes of work in educational programs.The main problem that IT educators are facing is that they don't have the needed skills and competences to educate older people in new technology. Educators of elderly, and specifically IT educators, need knowledge of older and contemporary image of old age in society. On one hand they are aware that older people are not all the same, that they are very different, that they are more different from each other than different members of the younger generations, but on the other hand they also know, they lack knowledge both in theory and practice on better working methods with this target group. Lot of teachers are more pedagogues (school system of teaching) than andragogists with merely basic knowledge on working methods for seniors. Partnership of the project is composed of the following organizations:- Ljudska univerza Ptuj (Slovenia)- Age UK (United Kingdom)- SOSU Østjylland (Denmark)- p-consulting (Greece)- CDEA (Spain)- Estrategia y Organización SA (Spain)Main objectives of the project are: - Better understanding of senior expectations & needs in learning environments, focusing on IT training;- Improved knowledge & use of pedagogical tools, new technology in educating seniors;- Exchange of good practice among partners;- Create the basic theoretical foundations for the implementation of education of IT to older adults;- Get to know older adults as an extremely diverse group of adult learners for whom education is being prepared according to their needs and for themPrimary target groups of the project are adult educators, teachers, mentors, trainers, professionals in IT, who will:- gain necessary awareness, knowledge and pedagogical tools;- develop key competences for working with older adults- adopt practical skills for increasing the quality and efficiency of the implementation of non-formal IT programs for seniorsSecondary target group are seniors who will be be impacted with an increased accessibility to non-formal IT learning activities, especially adapted to their needs & expectations.Short description of the results:- Compendium of existing innovative and effective practices and tools in teaching technology to older people- Job Profile of IT trainers of older people- Training programme for IT trainers- Video for sharing the successful experiences by teachers and older peopleImpact envisaged and the potential longer term benefits:- Created tools will remain within the work culture of the organizations involved and will become a new way to implement strategic actions aiming at the building of professional job profile for IT trainers of older people- Training methodologies and tools will be available on the website and in the community of educational providers and IT professionals. They can be used, replicated or adapted to new forms in unpredictable ways, reaching an indefinite number of people- The network of this project will also become a space where the organizations will be able to share its best practices, tools, methodologies and difficulties and its obtained results.Foreseen sustainability on the project:- Training program will be used by partners and their networks even when the project will be finished- Partners will make effort to validate the Job Profile.- Job Profile will be used by partners and their networks to the implementation of IT training programs for seniors. - Compendium will be disseminated and use by the partners after the end of the project- All information will be published in partners' websites- Project website with all intellectual outputs will be maintained by p-consulting at least 5 years.

<< Background >>The E(U)-leaders project responds to the EU high priority on boosting the e-leadership and digital competences, thus amending the mismatch between the skills available and those demanded for digital transformation of the economy. Therefore, the aim of the project is to foster the competitiveness and productivity of businesses and organizations through the development of strategic e-leadership skills necessary for entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers ( as well as VET trainers, educators and mentors) to manage their teams effectively and efficiently within virtual working environments. The project will contribute to the development of a complex and reliable set of digital tools and approaches for e-leadership skills assessment, development, evaluation, and certification, thus addressing the needs of the labour market and supporting the digital transformation of businesses. In the current globalised environment, we observe the emergence of a new class of e-leaders, namely leaders who display strategic leadership, business and ICT savviness (www.eskills-guide.eu). Currently, there is a considerable growth of labour demand, as well as a high increase of ICT graduate entries in Europe, leading to an estimated growth of the IT workforce from 8.5 million in 2016 to 9.5 million in 2020. The 2017 Final report of the EC on “High-Tech Leadership Skills for Europe” clearly highlights that “Europe is required to generate around 50,000 additional high-tech leaders per year in the years up to 2025, or a total of around 450,000 until 2025, by providing them with relevant education opportunities and exposing them to the necessary work and leadership experience”. Furthermore, based on the Final Report on “Digital Organisational Frameworks and IT Professionalism” (February 2019), a number of 64,489 posted online vacancies for e-Leaders in Europe is being estimated for the year 2018. However, technology advancements have overcome barriers to communication and it becomes more and more common for business leaders to work flexibly across time zones to ensure the most effective maintaining of business operations. In virtual teams, there is a greater requirement for autonomy and thus, a greater need for communication, trust and cooperation between a team leader and the team members. In Europe, e-leadership skills are a major policy concern for the creation of employment opportunities, innovation, and growth. In more detail, a 2019 JRC report highlighted the necessity in promoting and developing ICT training on digital skills and telework within organisations for keeping up with changing and alternative ways of working. To briefly explain, less than 10% of personnel receive training for ICT skills in Cyprus and Greece, around 10%-25% of personnel in Slovenia and Portugal and above 30% of personnel in Netherlands and Germany. Eurostat published on April 2021, a statistical report on employed persons working from home as a percentage of the total employment from 2011 until 2020, by sex, age (15 to 64 years old) and professional status (%). Focusing on the latest trends, in Germany, the percentage of the employed people working from home increased from 5.2% in 2019 to 14.8% in 2020, in Greece from 1.9% to 7%, in Cyprus from 1.3% to 4.5%, from 14.1% to 17.8% in Netherlands, from 6.5% to 13.9% in Portugal and from 6.8% to 7.4% in Slovenia. With this in mind, the E(U) Leaders project is innovative as it will provide a holistic approach for the development of high-skilled and competitive leaders for the needs of the EU labour market. It will follow a thorough procedure for educating and certifying its target groups and offer a comprehensive package of educational tools and methodologies through a tailor-made E-Leaders High-tech Course which will be free-of-charge, available through a virtual environment and certify their knowledge and skills based on widely recognized quality standards.<< Objectives >>The aim of the project is to foster the competitiveness and productivity of businesses and organizations through the development of strategic e-leadership skills necessary for entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers, as well as VET trainers, educators and mentors, to manage their teams effectively and efficiently within virtual working environments. The project will contribute to the development of a complex and reliable set of digital tools and approaches for e-leadership skills assessment, development, evaluation, and certification, thus addressing the needs of the labor market and supporting the digital transformation of businesses. With this in mind, the objectives of the project are:•To create an e-leadership model by mapping strategic e-leadership skills, competencies and approaches organizations communicate within virtual working environments•To identify common high-tech leadership skills’ needs within virtual working environments, both at personal and strategic/organizational levels•To identify effective web-based tools and approaches in managing virtual working environments and teams successfully•To develop and assess e-leaders’ strategic e-leadership skills through web-based teaching and learning approaches•To create a certification framework which will define both the e-leaders curriculum and the skills assessment process.These indications imply that prioritization initiatives need to be made to support the digital transformation of businesses and enterprises. Therefore, in order to set up or manage a business, technological and business skills should be enhanced by skills that enable change, innovation of societal practices, attract, develop and manage (especially virtually) talents. To address these needs in the labour market, the E(U)-Leaders project addresses the common e-knowledge, e-skills and e-competencies needed by existing and would-be e-entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers/VET trainers/mentors/educators to lead in the digital economy. For this reason, the target groups who will benefit from the project products and take part in the projects’ activities are as follows:Primary:•Entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers leading teams in virtual business environments across different national contexts – prior, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic period: -SMEs (tech-based and non-tech-based organisations such as ICT companies, multinational organisations, etc.) -NGOs •Future entrepreneurs/leaders•Partner organizations Secondary:•VET trainers •VET mentors •VET training centres and other VET organisations•Chambers of Commerce and IndustriesThe expected impact on the target groups:•Improvement of high-tech leadership skills of end-users•Increased availability of reliable and accurate tools for diagnosis and improvement of strategic leadership skills •Increased skills of VET trainers, mentors and educators in using tools for assessment and development existing/aspiring leaders•Increased awareness of SMEs and NGOs on how to seize the opportunities in innovation/new technologies •Increased productivity of businesses, organisations, institutions run by highly-skilled professionals•Mitigating the digital gap in education and labour market•Incorporating new learning/teaching programmes and materialsThe project involves 7 organizations from 6 EU countries - CY, GR, DE, PT, NL, SI. Information about the EU support accompanied by the EU logo will be visible in all project products and in promotion materials used during the project’s implementation and beyond; available on project website as open source and on the project’s e-learning platform, without any financial restrictions.<< Implementation >>A short-term Joint Staff Training Event (C1) will be implemented, addressing entrepreneurs, employers, leaders, managers, as well as VET trainers, mentors and educators of the project partners with the aim to enrich their competencies and skills so that they can transfer in a self-sustaining way the training/learning approaches of the E(U)-Leaders’ project products in each partner country; it will provide added value to the E(U)-Leaders’ project in the following ways:•Transfer the training methodology and project results (materials and tools) to end-users: 14 in total•Each participant of the C1 activity will elaborate an evaluation report by assessing the products’ methodology and materials through providing their practical feedback and experience based on which the fine-tuning of the project products will take place•Based on the evaluation, EUROSC, with the contribution of TUV Cyprus will elaborate a summative report on the sessions, where the overall activity will be thoroughly described. It will also provide the partners with recommendations and conclusions for the successful practical implementation/transfer of the products in each country in the next phases of the project.The selecting criteria are as follows:•Proven experience in leading and managing virtual teams •Proven experience in the field of digital skills and other soft competencies•Experience in non-formal education methodology•Fluent communication in English (oral and written)•Good communication and interpretation skills•Good digital skills•Highly-motivatedEach participant (in case of external expert/collaborator) will have to sign a voluntary agreement with the national partner, who will then have to provide a copy of the agreement to the project coordinator and an official contract with the sending organisations, defining their involvement in the projects’ activities and the responsibilities of each party (participant and partner organization) regarding the mobility. Concerning the support and safety of the participants, every sending organisation will be responsible for organizing transport for participants, accommodation and money to cover transport, accommodation and subsistence costs. During the implementation of the mobility, the host organisations will assign 1 contact person who will be in constant contact with participants to guide them, solve any occurring issues and monitor the results and impact. Whenever additional actions prior traveling are needed (i.e. official document/ invitation from the hosting partners to the specific participant partner), these will be communicated in time among the two partners (participant & hosting organizations) and will be arranged within the needed deadlines. The participants of C1 will obtain Europass Mobility issued by hosting partners (EUROSC). Also, all project results will be pilot-tested be all project partners in the project countries, for improving the quality standards of the outcomes based on the end-users needs at national and European levels. Moreover, 6 MEs (5 national events and 1 international Final Conference) will be implemented towards the end of the project implementation, to implement the final version of all results to target groups, stakeholders, authorities, and end-users. All implemented activities will be enhanced through the use of various dissemination tools and channels, implemented by all project partners. Dissemination will maximize the promotion and exploitation efforts, through using social media, webpages, digital materials, articles, and press releases. Finally, to evaluate and fine-tune all elaborated materials and products, the partners will implement internal reviews with staff members of each partner organization, as well as piloting activities with the participation of target groups and stakeholders. Through these activities, remarks, comments, and suggestions will be collected in order to improve and fine-tune the materials of the project<< Results >>Five main project results will be developed: PR1: Guidebook of inclusion of best practices on suitable digital working environments •The Guidebook will include examples of good practices already established at a national and European level, promoting e-strategies and e-tools organisations adopt in their daily management for ensuring the efficient virtual working environment of their employees•The Guidebook will be addressed to entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers PR2: E-Leadership Model adopted within tech-based and non-tech-based organisationsThe aim is to identify the training needs, challenges and gaps entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers face when managing virtual working environments and teams. It consists of a set of focus groups implemented in the project countries, which will mainly focus on:•e-leadership styles•web-based teaching and learning approaches•remote strategies and culture •monitoring individuals progress remotely •the use of web-based tools (for measuring productivity, engagement, work progress, etc.)•managing virtual team interactions and well-being The results of the focus groups will be used for the development of the PR3: E-Leaders High-tech Course for entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers/VET trainers/mentors/educatorsPR3: E-Leaders High-tech CourseA set of modules developed to enrich high-tech leadership skills for entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers/VET trainers/mentors/educators (incl. mentoring methodology for mentors)•The High-tech Course will be available on the e-learning platform (PR4) •The High-tech Course will be developed based on the results of PR1&2PR4: E-learning platform for Leaders This will be basically the platform which will host the developed training materials of PR3 for the end-users (entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers/VET trainers/mentors & educators)PR5: Certification framework of e-leadership skills for defining the certification scheme, quality standards and requirements based on ISO/IEC 17024:2012, addressing entrepreneurs/employers/leaders/managers/VET trainers/mentors/educators

<< Objectives >>Many companies have been challenged during the pandemic to attract and retain talent. Not surprisingly, smaller companies have had the most difficulty. They simply don't have the resources, know-how and capacity that larger organisations have.RE-CREW intends to support the sustainable growth of EU small businesses, making them informed, prepared, aware, equipped with innovative tools and skills to effectively perform recruiting and hiring. In other words: finally ready-to-labor-market<< Implementation >>Starting from the investigation of the current state of EU small businesses, with focus on their ability to execute recruiting/hiring in the pandemic era and future trends, RE-CREW will deliver: an innovative training curriculum for EU small businesses to effectively carry out recruitment and hiring; a performing digital tool to check the actual recruiting/hiring capacity of small businesses; the Open Guide for VET Trainers to facilitate the re-use of the RE-CREW training curriculum and tools<< Results >>RE-CREW will:- ensure the full understanding of the EU small businesses’ capacity to deal with recruiting and hiring in all its phases;- allow EU at least 60 EU SMEs to express their full potential, grow in sustainable way and address the new challenges of the labor market; -support the VET providers and business support organisations in extending their service portfolio by integrating innovative tools, consultancy and training for the small businesses, the key players on the EU single market

Small NGOs (SNGOs, <15 employees) in Europe are facing rising operating costs in terms of new skills to acquire, accelerating competition for public funds, and shrinking government support, particularly in countries suffering from nationalism and restricting laws. SNGOs are facing higher operational costs and worse visibility (particularly with regards to refugee support). At the same time, in 2018 the EU Commission launched a plan to protect European values having a special focus on NGOs, launching a new Justice, Rights and Values Fund aimed at strengthening civil society facing several threats in several member states. In fact, as also the Fundamental Rights Agency stated in the same year, European civil groups are far from reaching sustainable long-term financing – this is expressed in short-term projects or in not-qualified personnel doing the fund-raising. As such, every year SNGOs face to quit as they cannot plan ahead – this is transversal in Europe and particularly evident in Southern states. The project regards particularly to the dramatic data regarding financial and digital education – 1 out of 3 adult Europeans are not sufficiently equipped to reach satisfactory digital competencies or with sufficient financial literacy. e-PATTERNS (E-learning platform for up-skilling in fund-raising practice, financial digital literacy in NGO management) wants to support poorly- ICT-equipped SNGO practitioners (30+ years old) who need to be up-re-skilled in ICT & financial literacy (budgeting, planning ahead, choosing products (brand) and using independent advice )to develop strategic competencies in fund-raising, crucial for the development of any social project. Gender makes the situation even more dramatic, both in Italy and in the rest of the partner countries. Fund-raising (as financial literacy) requires a broad approach - entrepreneurial techniques, financial analysis, digital knowledge and branding are required for social projects. Differently, SNGOs often see fund-raising just as limited tool to finance something, and not a permanent strategic activity that regards entrepreneurship strategies, financial and digital positioning as well as digital marketing techniques.e-PATTERNS aims to up-re-skill adult SNGOs practitioners (30+ years old) to support their work in fund-raising and strategic digital positioning through new technologies, developing a web-platform to help strategical planning and to incubate projects in a sustainable way, creating also a self-assessment tool to analyse the state of digitisation within the organisation. Indeed, the project wants to support concrete SNGOs projects in each partner country, improving also working flexibility of adults in SNGOs which face the hop-in/hop-out problem with regards to job market.Specific objectives:- Train low-skilled adults and develop their competences in financial literacy/fund-raising through simplified ICT tools developing a Step-by-Step Educational Framework connected to Open Badges System (OBS) to be tested/complete through two specific training sessions during the project life time;- Support local projects incubating them through fund-raising preparatory actions (or through crowd-funding, partnership building, budget planning etc.) during the project enhancing the impact of SNGOs (C1,C2);- Create a web-platform hosting an interactive online step-by-step web tool to guide target group users in learn financial basics to make a fund-raise plan, where they can train/consult FAQ/orienteer better. Learning qualification will be issued through Open Badge System.- Define/develop a self-assessment tool for digitisation of SNGOs in order to define areas of work and training patterns within organisations.The project main aim is to empower at local level SNGOs and to improve the project management, implementation and delivery of them in order to keep them alive within the European democratic system.

CONTEXT/BACKGROUND: The refugee problem is one of the most important public health problems in Europe. Refugees have been forced to wait in temporary camps in various parts of several countries in Europe (e.g. Greece, Italy, Spain) with limited access to crucial information and available services. Many suffer not only from the trauma of witnessing the death of loved ones, but also the profound sense of powerlessness of a refugee’s life in limbo. They endure the added stress of uncertainty and constant waiting. They need mental-health counseling and other psychological support as well as administrative support. Refugees also need reliable information about their prospects and available asylum services. As more and more refugees are relocated from camps to towns and cities, there is a need to make sure that they can meet their basic needs, are protected from exploitation and violence, and can build a better future for their families. Also, there is a need to cooperate with local partners to ensure that refugees are integrated into their new communities. Also, there is inadequacy or experienced personnel to manage health and administrative problems of refugees. Especially in second locations of refugees, all categories of personnel are not experienced, and their education will help in better approach of refugees and migrants. OBJECTIVES: was to increase the skills of local professionals (health and administrative personnel) possibly working with the refugees in each area except the areas of first entrance. As the refugee problem is a European problem, the education process for the professional dealing with this issue in different countries had been evaluated and compared between the countries facing the refugee problem. PARTNERSHIP: Three VET institutions; one public (SOSU Oestjylland - previous name: SOSU Aarhus) and two private (Centro San Viator & FORMA.Azione), one public University (University of Patras – Department of Public Health, Medical School), an organization for refugees (Arci Perugia), a private company in the field of research, consultancy, IT development and training (p-consulting) and a SME working in the field of specialized architecture - including work related to improving life for disadvantaged group of people, with big experience in Quality Management and Evaluation in Erasmus+ projects (Errotu). The partners represented four countries: Greece, Denmark, Spain and Italy. All partners are working in the field of education, training and/or care of people who are in vulnerable position, including refugees and/or migrants and the variety of types of organization ensures the best possible framework for different approaches, exchange of good ideas and best practicesDESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES: Research into the needs of refugees living in local communities and the needs and lack of skills of community and health workers working with refugees. Co-creation (part of Living Lab); curriculum, competences, learning outcomes for modular courses; experience of training community and health workers working with refugees. Create training course for teachers/trainers, Implementation and Evaluation – Learning Recourses and Learning Outcomes “How to work with refugees” - Design, development and testing of workshop and e-learning. Implementation and evaluation of community and health workers training - Practice with refugees for trained community and health workersMETHODOLOGY TO BE USED: Each Intellectual Output had a lead partner who took responsibility for the timeliness, suitability and quality of the output. The partners who had less experience were assisted and mentored by the experienced partners. this had two benefits - ensuring this project works well and delivers the promised results and also allows the inexperienced partners to gain the skills necessary to pursue their own projects in the futures. Peer and other evaluations (Errotu led) will ensure any lessons learned are captured and shared; continuous improvement.SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE RESULTS: A multilingual guide that contained good practices and strategies of European countries on improving the skills of professionals working with refugees was prepared. The design and implementation of training needs in each participating country to provide necessary information for educational deficits, skills and attitudes required to have the training for the implementation of the project objectives. The training of a significant number of professionals per participating country refugee issues, optimal handling, workarounds, cooperation with relevant bodies was organized.POTENTIAL LONGER-TERM BENEFITSThe partners through collaboration, synergies and the actions outlined above will bring the various levels and their areas of expertise on the subject, will be able to learn from each other and share their knowledge with the public benefit. They can create a common intervention program at European level to tackle the lack of skills. The results will contribute to establishing a single European policy.