The project " Improvement of Environmental Noise Management Skills in Audits" shortly as "Noise Training Project (NTP)" is aimed to increase the qualifications of the staff working on environmental noise management area. This project includes 3 European partners with the spesific expertise in their field. The partner countries are Turkey, Italy and Spain. This is good cooperation in the extent of the environmental noise management because of their geographic, climatic and cultural characteristics that affect also the characteristic of noise produced in their urban areas. Hence, this situation is important to solve the problems with exchanging the practices and developing the innovative approaches. It is weel known that modern life has added a new form of environmental pollution, called noise. According to World Health Organization (WHO), environmental noise pollution is assessed as the second most hazard environmental type of pollution after air pollution especially in densely populated urban areas. This is further substantiated by a report from the European Environment Agency (Noise in Europe 2014, EEA Report No 10/2014), stating that exposure to excessive noise results in 8 million EU citizens suffering from sleep disturbance, over 900 000 cases of hypertension and at least 43 000 hospitalisations per year, causing – at least – 10.000 premature deaths in Europe per year. Moreover, EU Environment Action Programme to 2020, 'Living well, within the limits of our planet', committed to significantly decrease noise pollution in the Union, moving closer to levels recommended by the WHO, by 2020. In order to reach those standards, the noise is required to be managed by the staff well qualified. With this project, it is aimed to improve the skills and practices of staff working on environmental noise management using innovative methods through the well-developed project partners on these issues. Therefore the target group of this project proposal is the staff working on environmental noise management (ENM) applications from public administrations and education centers, private sectors as laboratories, research centers and non-governmental organizations like vocational associations. Moreover, it is aimed to develop sharing of good practices on noise management in audits between European countries to provide the high acoustic quality of urban cities.The innovativeness of the project will be enhancement of digital integration in learning and training and to promote learning through Open Educational Resouces (OER). The other aspect in innovativeness of this project proposal will be creation of new and effective skills for improving basic skills in this area through the expertise of project partners in this area. European variances in terms of environmental noise management applications in audits and in approaches to the training will be better quantified in the early stages of this project when each partner will complete a more in depth need analysis for their geographic area and assess the current status of for provision of this nature by organizations within their respective countries. By highlighting particular gaps and skills mismatches the transversal nature of the project will then target the development of a shared curricula, including new pedagogies and e-learning. Throughout the life of this project, the partners will participate in 5 transnational meeting, 5 training workshops, and dissemination events. Moreover totally 7 intellectual outputs will have been produced.
The project "Improvement of Environmental Noise Management Skills in Audits" shortly as "Noise Training Project (NTP)" explores practices and training programs on environmental noise management (ENM). It promotes the exchange of good practices in this field by proposing the curriculum content and creating the handbooks with their innovative digital aids for the training program given in vocational education cemters and universities. NTP analysis the existing situation in the partner countries and proposes recommendations on vocational profiles on acoustics for the recognition of both training programs and professional profiles. Context/background of the project; World Health Organization noticed that environmental noise pollution is assessed as the second most hazard environmental type of pollution after air pollution especially in densely populated urban areas. EC Report on Evaluation of Environmental Noise Directive highlighted the variances across Europe in terms of implementation of national strategies for ENM and there is inevitably considerable variance in the quality of “lived experience” of public administrations responsible for this directive. All these bring the need for greater knowledge and practice exchange with using the innovative developments. This is the primary focus of the project and the main reason why this project was carried out transnational. Objectives; The aim of the project is to improve the vocational skills and practices of staff working on ENM. In addition, it aims - To determine training need on ENM in audits - To develop sharing of good practices on environmental noise audits and training programs, - To create the curriculum content proposal on environmental noise - To develop the learning materials and evaluation tool on environmental noise - To contribute the ENM and audit policy in both partner countries and throughout EU. Number and type/profile of participants; The partnership consists of 4 partners from 3 different countries. 2 HEIs are involved as Universidad Politecnica de Madrid from Spain and Univsita Degli Studi di Firenze from Italy, 1 SME as Vie.en.ro.se Ingegneria Srl. from Italy and 1 local public body as Antalya Provincial Directorate of Environment and Urbanization from Turkey, which is the coordinator of the project. Description of Activities: The survey was conducted in all partner countries to determine the training need on environmental noise audits. The report and project article has been published with the research results and recommendation on curriculum content proposal and vocational professional on acoustics. Based on this analysis, learning materials as 5 handbooks and their digital aids as e-learning videos within the 5 training modules on legal, technical and communicative aspects of ENM have been developed. Moreover, virtual noise audit tool for the evaluation of learners was developed as an innovative aspect of the project. Totally 14 Self Monitoring reports for each activities as 5 transnational meetings, 5 short term training programs and 4 multiplier events were prepared. Extensive dissemination activities such as project webpage, workshops, conferences, publications in media as OER which are fully in line with the objectives of the Erasmus+ Strategic were carried out to reach all potential target groups. Methodology: Throughout the project, project management methodology was employed, for proper time and budget control, risk handling, effective communication and coordination. A comprehensive monitoring and evaluation methodology described within NTP ensured quality and achievement of objectives and results. Results and impact: Project participants have been strengthened through knowledge exchange and best practice events in the understanding of environmental noise audits across Europe. With this project, they gained the experience of intercultural working environment. Professional growth in terms of using new ICT based methodologies through interactive resources that are relevant for a range of fields in education and training provide the opportunity for all project partners and wider stakeholders to disseminate beyond their organizations. Large numbers of institutions, professionals and individuals concerned with environmental noise management were reached through dissemination activities. Longer term benefits: To sum up, the project contributes the vocational training programs on acoustics through the innovative outputs. It provides to raise awareness on policy makers, stakeholders and all of these involved in noise management of the necessity of shared curriculum content and vocational profiles in target groups in both national and international level. It has potential to influence the policy on environmental noise management. The NTP partnership have been going on with newly Project proposals so the sustainability of the Project results will have been ensured.