A strong demand for sustainability in the textile and fashion industry and its global market imposes a continuous implementation of the guiding principle Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in education and in the industry as well as the investment in education and the adaptation of new skills. This is the reason for the need of enhancing the quality and relevance of the learning offer in education towards the latest developments in textile research and innovation. The Fashion DIET project envisages the development of new tools for improving key competences of lecturers, trainers, teachers, students and young textile specialists who will be professionals in the textile and fashion industry. The project's objectives are to enhance the quality and relevance of the learning offer in training by developing an innovative further education module in the context of ESD and an information & e-learning portal supporting the dissemination of the project’s outcomes such as teaching and learning material, which will be elaborated, tested and evaluated. The project's resources are well balanced between the partners, include all costs of the project and will be monitored through a management plan, financial templates, and financial reports. The project partners have planned these main outputs and activities: 1. Further Education Module 2. Information & E-Learning Portal 3. Teaching and Learning Material 4. Learning, Teaching and Training Activities (lectures, seminars, workshops, discussions etc.) 5. Multiplier Events 6. Scientific Papers, Journal Articles, Scientific Events, etc. The didactic content and methodology will be made relevant for the target group through the expertise of the partners: 1 university of education, 1 university of applied sciences and 2 technical universities with textile technology departments from 3 countries - Germany (University of Education Freiburg, Reutlingen University), Bulgaria (Trakia University), and Romania (TUIASI). The university partners will develop, test and evaluate training material, based on state-of-the-art research knowledge in textiles, fashion and sustainability and a long-lasting tradition and experience in textile education. The further education module and the teaching and learning material will be supported and disseminated by the information & e-learning portal, which will be configured and adapted with the adequate tools for learning and implementing ESD as a guiding principle. The project impact on the target group will lead to: - better understanding of ESD in the context of textile and fashion, - better textile and fashion related knowledge in the context of production, market and sustainability, - better quality of education, - better skills for project management and digital competence, - better skills in performing European partnerships, - improved competences linked to professional work, - increased capacity to work at an international level, - increased competence in foreign languages, - greater understanding of cultural diversity, - increased opportunities for professional development. The partnership brings together eastern and western pedagogical experience and points of view and researches on ESD in the textile and fashion sector. The partners are showing large diversity in experiences that can be explored and also identify similarities, moving towards ESD practices and policies that can cross the borders and become ‘European’. With this project we will learn from each other how the managing of ESD education and the use of an information & e-learning portal will be accomplished. In addition, we will have the opportunity to study and know our partners’ universities and educational systems in the occupational field of textiles and clothing and share educational problems of each partner within an intercultural exchange. The collaborative work will create strong friendships, enhance motivation and produce quality work that can be set as examples of good practice in the European community, for others to follow. Inter- and transdisciplinary cooperation and networking are to be initiated with the aim of developing ESD competence, creating fundamental changes and continuing after the end of the project.
The Fashion DIET project aimed to strengthen the quality and relevance of sustainability-oriented fashion design, textile and clothing engineering as well as management education and further education. The transformation of the textile and fashion industry towards more sustainable practices requires that all industry players and consumers take responsibility. Such a paradigm shift can only succeed with the help of extensive new knowledge. The project therefore deliberately focused on creating awareness of ESD in industry and trade in order to integrate this educational approach into their education and further education programmes. In this way, the project aims to reflect the challenges of sustainable development in the textile and fashion industry and its markets through educational processes. The objective also included the creation of Open Educational Resources (OER). OER materials are widely used in education at all levels, from primary to higher education, and are publicly available or published under an open license that allows free access, adaptation, use and transformation by others with no or limited restrictions.
Within the framework of a sustainable transformation, a reorientation of established production processes and products, consumption patterns and lifestyles is demanded by the United Nations. Especially in the textile and clothing market, which is heavily discussed in the media, a radical change towards sustainable business is necessary to counteract the serious environmental and social impacts along the entire textile chain. Companies are therefore called upon to identify sector-specific sustainability challenges and develop socially responsible solution strategies. However, a green transformation can only be successful with informed and sustainability-oriented consumers. In order to support students and pupils in classifying the relevance of their actions for the environment and society, targeted educational offers in the sense of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) are needed. ESD is an educational approach that should enable learners to make responsible judgements and act sustainably in everyday culture and professional life. The textile and fashion industry must also pursue a sustainable orientation through ESD in order to meet the global challenges and those of its markets.