Land Degradation and Rehabilitation in Mediterranean Environments, the LANDCARE and Erasmus + project, was developed through the Strategic Partnership for Higher Education (KA203) programme. This partnership is a cooperative network aimed at providing better quality education, training and youth employment. Context /background of the project The Mediterranean region is vulnerable to land degradation, which affects important sectors of the economy (agriculture, fishing, tourism) and the supply of vital goods (water, food). Although “actions to restore ecosystems and biodiversity have significant potential to create new skills, jobs and business opportunities” ((ED 2011/2307(INI)), there is a considerable shortage of skilled workers in this field due to the lack of proper training. This is especially important in Southern Europe, where youth unemployment is extremely high. Objective of the project The overall objective of LANDCARE was to improve training capacities in relation to Land Degradation and Rehabilitation (LD&R) in Southern Europe, in order to fulfil the demands of an emerging labour market and contribute to the green economy. LD&R is a field that requires training involving real study cases and hands-on experience. For this reason, the educational path proposed in the project combined short-term international mobility and innovative online learning. The project attempted to recover skilled unemployed people to encourage employability in the sector. Employability skills were enhanced by means of personalized training and hands-on practices. To increase the scope of this strategy, the project reinforced interactions between students, educators, researchers, companies/agencies/NGOs and decision-makers. Number and profile of participants The consortium consisted of 8 partners from Spain, Greece, Portugal and Italy. The four academic partners comprise educators/researchers with recognized expertise in LD&R and project management. The partners also have university entrepreneurship abilities. The four professional partners include Small and medium Enterprises-SMEs, an NGO and decision-makers. The professional partners complemented the training and also increased the scope of the project outcomes. The coordinator (USC) is the academic partner with the strongest structures in place for virtual learning, employment and Quality Assurance. Description of activities The main activities focused on training both staff (from academic and professional partners) and students (High Education Institutions-HEI, company staff and selected unemployed people). Teacher training included a) intensive training in innovative online learning tools and b) short-term, joint events to reinforce training capacities in LD&R. The student training was based on two types of blended mobility. The concepts of LD&R were taught by means of an intensive study programme, involving mobility and flexible online training. Practical experience and employment skills were provided by means of an internship programme combined with solid online and personalized training in employment and entrepreneurship. The trainees included HEI students, staff of companies involved in LD&R and selected unemployed people. As expected, the teaching outputs of the project had strong multiplier effects: the virtual platform, the development of blended mobility to enhance employability in the “Green Economy”, publication of the first handbook linking Land Restoration and employability opportunities and launch of a peer teaching network. The main multiplier social effect was the enhancement of the green economy to create jobs. Methods used in carrying out the project The project was divided in four main logistical phases: 1. Stock-taking of good practice and evaluation of available materials and resources for LD&R training. 2. Collection and production of materials and case studies for the interactive courses. 3. Implementation of a pilot project. The trainees travelled from the home institutions to attend training sessions and also used the online learning tools. 4. Dissemination/multiplier events towards outcomes, at three levels: a) dissemination of good practice by all participants, b) interactive courses and an electronic platform involving universities, social media and alumni and c) launch of a LD&R network with peer teachers and experts. Short description of the results and envisaged impact The impacts at individual levels include access to innovative methods and techniques in LD&R, improvement of language and digital skills and increased employability of the workforce. At organizational levels, the companies/agencies/NGO have benefitted from access to knowledge and special facilities and increased supply of skilled workers. University structures involving online learning and employment have also been reinforced. Help has been provided to decision-makers to solve certain environmental cross-border challenges. Sustainability The results of the project are maintained after the project as a result of the effects on the structures of the institutions. The products can be viewed on permanent web pages and are published in open acces. The creation of the workshop on Education and Training in Environmental Restoration, within the Society for Ecological Restoration, ensures the long-term impact of the outputs and their benefits.
Context /background of Project The Mediterranean region is vulnerable to land degradation, which affects important sectors of the economy (agriculture, fishing, tourism) and the supply of vital goods (water, food). Although “actions to restore ecosystems and biodiversity have significant potential to create new skills, jobs and business opportunities” ((ED 2011/2307(INI)), there is a considerable shortage of skilled workers in this field due to the lack of proper training. This is especially important in Southern Europe, where youth unemployment is extremely high. Objective of the project The overall objective of LANDCARE was to improve training capacities in relation to Land Degradation and Rehabilitation (LD&R) in Southern Europe, in order to fulfil the demands of an emerging labour market and contribute to the green economy. LD&R is a field that requires training involving real study cases and hands-on experience. For this reason, the educational path proposed in the project combined short-term international mobility and innovative online learning: Personal Learning Editions (PLEs) and Small Private Online Courses (SPOCs). Employability skills were enhanced by means of personalized training and hands-on practices. To increase the scope of this strategy, the project reinforced interactions between students, educators, researchers, companies/agencies/NGOs and decision-makers. Number and profile of participants The consortium consists of 8 partners from Spain, Greece, Portugal and Italy. The four academic partners comprise educators/researchers with recognized expertise in LD&R and project management. The partners also have university entrepreneurship abilities. The four professional partners include Small and medium Enterprises-SMEs, an NGO and decision-makers. The professional partners complemented the training and also increased the scope of the project outcomes. The coordinator (USC) is the academic partner with the strongest structures in place for virtual learning, employment and Quality Assurance. Description of activities The main activities focused on training both staff (from academic and professional partners) and students (High Education Institutions-HEI, company staff and selected unemployed people). Teacher training included a) intensive training in innovative online learning tools (PLE, SPOCs) and b) short-term, joint events to reinforce training capacities in LD&R. The student training was based on two types of blended mobility. The concepts of LD&R were taught by means of an intensive study programme, involving mobility and flexible online training (PLE, SPOC). Practical experience and employment skills were provided by means of an internship programme combined with solid online and personalized training in employment and entrepreneurship. The trainees included HEI students, staff of companies involved in LD&R and selected unemployed people. As expected, certain teaching outputs of the project had strong multiplier effects: the development of blended mobility to enhance employability in the “Green Economy”, publication of the first handbook linking Land Restoration and employability opportunities and launch of a peer teaching network. The main multiplier social effect was the enhancement of the green economy to create jobs. Methods to be used in carrying out the project The project was divided in four main logistical phases: 1. Stock-taking of good practice and evaluation of available materials and resources for LD&R training. 2. Collection and production of materials and case studies for the interactive courses. 3. Implementation of a pilot project. The trainees travelled from the home institutions to attend training sessions and also used the online learning tools. 4. Dissemination/multiplier events towards outcomes, at three levels: a) dissemination of good practice by all participants, b) interactive courses and an electronic platform involving universities, social media and alumni and c) launch of a LD&R network with peer teachers and experts. Short description of the results and envisaged impact The impacts at individual levels include access to innovative methods and techniques in LD&R, improvement of language and digital skills and increased employability of the workforce. At organizational levels, the companies/agencies/NGO have benefitted from access to knowledge and special facilities and increased supply of skilled workers. University structures involving online learning and employment have also been reinforced. Help has been provided to decision-makers to solve certain environmental cross-border challenges. Sustainability The results of the project are maintained after the project as a result of the effects on the structures of the institutions. The products are published in open access. The creation of a network on training ensures the long-term impact of the benefits.