The GLAS project aims at supporting consumer education in the context of a culture of sustainability. It will identify factors of good life in different European regions, and it will collect examples of good practice relevant for a sustainable development. The project focuses in detail on the following contributions with a view to the specific contexts of project partners: 1. Support of professional qualifications and especially re-skilling und up-skilling of professional qualifications 2. Empowerment of consumers as partners in the market 3. Information about the importance of consumer education for sustainable development to policy makers and to the interested public This will also include the enhancement of diversity skills such as intergenerational and intercultural skills/competences being useful for individuals in their personal and social development and as well for the labour market. These diversity skills will help the learners to act more flexible and more appropriate in view of different lifestyles everywhere in Europe, and to accept different points of view and competences of other European citizens in their professional and private surroundings. The topics of the project are related to the various aspects of good life in some selected European regions. This includes different aspects of an emerging culture of sustainability, especially focused on consumer education with examples in the fields of cultural work, labour market and social work. It includes issues such as housing and environmental issues, nutrition and mobility, also with reference to the labour market and relevant professional qualifications. The diversity approach of the GLAS project will also contribute to European politics of supporting „equity, social cohesion and active citizenship“ („ET 2020” and „Europe 2020“). The main target groups of the project are learners and trainers/staff in adult education and consumer education, full professionals and volunteers in the field of consumer education and sustainable development including environmental groups. A special target group are low-income people in the regular labour market as well as in the “informal labour market”. A special focus will be on jobless people to improve their living conditions and also to increase their chances on the labour market. It is intended that 300 persons of these target groups will participate directly and 3000 people by Internet and website presentations during project lifetime. The methodology of the project is based on the participation of learners by reflexive and interactive learning. Learners will participate continuously in all phases of the project including testing and evaluation. Experienced institutions of cultural education, of adult education and vocational training will cooperate within the project. A workshop design will be developed for a workshop about methods and tools of adult education and training in the field of GLAS topics. Project activities will include the exploration of varieties and differences of consumer attitudes and the collection of learning and teaching material for consumer education. Special attention will be given to test innovative methods and tools of adult education e.g. combining narrative, visual and informative elements in a multi-media approach. On the basis of this “basic platform” all partners will collect additional useful material for consumer education. Special focus will be given to the differences of consumer attitudes and of changes in society in the field of consumption by transforming and adapting the material. The main impact is: Participants develop their competences as informed consumers in the field of sustainable development and also improve their diversity skills as well as their personal, social and professional competences. Additional impacts are expected on the local and regional process to reach sustainability goals and the project partners in their local, regional and national networks, especially by using the project materials and results. Additional target groups will profit by follow-up projects (e.g. workshops and courses using the materials and results of the GLAS project) and its impulses for an emerging culture of sustainability and sufficiency. Positive effects are also expected by networking and the exchange between schools, adult education organizations, environmental initiatives, churches, religious groups and local communities.
The GLAS project aimed at supporting consumer education in the context of the „UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development“ and the multiple European Sustainable Development implementation processes. It identified factors of good life in different European regions, and it collected didactic material and examples of good practice in this field, thus also contributing to an emerging culture of sustainability. The basic platform for consumer education served well in realising these objectives. The project focused in detail on the following contributions with a view to the specific contexts of project partners: 1. Support of professional qualifications of teachers and trainers 2. Empowerment of consumers as partners in the market 3. Contribution to the increase of knowledge and skills for participants/learners 4. Information about the importance of consumer education for sustainable development to policy makers and to the interested public (e.g. a Check List about sustainable goals achieved inside the organisations) Special target groups like low income people were usually participating in the documented projects. The didactic tools were designed in such a way that they could also serve successfully the specific needs of these target groups. Five organisations of four countries are partners in the GLAS project. All of them are experienced institutions in fields like cultural education, adult education, youth education and vocational education/training. They cooperated very well as a team. More detailed information about the following partners can be found on their websites: Siksali Arendusselts MTÜ: www.siksali.ee Agentur Kultur e.V. (Coordinator): www.agentur-kultur.com Verein Niedersächsischer Bildungsinitiativen e.V.: www.vnb.de Amici del Centro Socio Culturale San Francesco: www.cscsanfrancesco.it Eco Logic: www.ecologic.mk At the beginning of the project the main focus was to reach a common understanding about goals and methods as documented and adopted in the „Basic Platform“. In spite of differences in backgrounds and contexts a consensus was reached in a very constructive manner. The chosen key-topics „mobility, nutrition, housing, environment“ are especially important for consumers and highly relevant for sustainable development. They also reflect the state of the emerging culture of sustainability in each region and country. We also reached a shared understanding of the complexities and interdependences e.g. with regard to the importance of the project for the labour market, professional qualification as well as issues like raising the level of social and cultural competences. An additional focus was to explore the differences and varieties of consumer attitudes and consumer behaviour. Key results of the GLAS project 1. Project design: Basic platform for consumer education suitable for adult education and schools as well 2. Tools: Triangle/Platform, Workshop design, Checklist for Institutions, Pedagogical Cards (draft version) 3. Didactic material for the key topics mobility, nutrition, housing, environment in the field of consumer education (including innovative methods) 4. Essays: They are taking a closer look at didactic tools, workshop design and innovative approaches as well as putting the GLAS project into perspective with regard to the main challenges facing the emerging culture of sustainability and looking at the contexts for long-term impacts of project results. Main impact: Participants developed their competences as informed consumers in the field of sustainable development and also improved their diversity skills as well as their personal, social and professional competences. Additional impacts were realised with regards to the local and regional processes of achieving sustainability goals. The project partners also communicated in their local, regional and national networks the project materials and results. Additional target groups will be reached by follow-up projects (e.g. workshops and courses using the materials and results of the GLAS project) and its impulses for an emerging culture of sustainability and sufficiency. This was also supported by the project homepage and the project newsletters. Positive effects were also realised by networking and the exchange between schools, adult education organisations, environmental initiatives, churches, religious groups and local communities. The robust and flexible project design and the results attained will be also a useful platform for the intended/planned follow-up activities of project partners as well as for projects of other interested stakeholders. Detailed information concerning the key results are documented on the project website: https://glasproject.wordpress.com/ including the documentation in regular GLAS Newsletters. The project results have the potential for some long-term benefits. The realisation of these benefits is very much needed, but hard to predict.