To promote hands-on ecological actions that establish gender justice, the project recommends a training approach addressing environmental challenges related to clothing upcycling through a gender-based methodology. The objective is to engage textile professionals to raise awareness about the environmental and social benefits of clothing upcycling through innovative methods that better establish environmental sustainability utilizing the different role of women in eco-friendly activities. This will be facilitated by a gamified learning approach through an Augmented Reality mobile app that will offer a long-lasting learning experience. General objective: Raising awareness about the eco-social benefits of clothing upcycling through innovative training methods that better establish environmental sustainability utilizing the different and yet significant role of women in ecological activities. Specific objectives: -Develop training material tailored to the real needs of the final beneficiaries -Develop an AR mobile app that promotes clothing upcycling and gender-related scenarios -Develop a solid certification and accreditation system for skills validation and recognition
Gender equality matters to environmental sustainability with women performing two thirds of global working hours and being more dependent on natural resources in comparison with men. However, the agenda promoting the importance of gender equality for the ecosystem still remains unfinished. With clothing upcycling being the new trend for green fashion, there has been no concrete initiative promoting women’s active participation in upcycling practices, despite EU's endeavor towards environmental sustainability. Therefore, the need for VET trainers and textile professionals (manufacturers, designers, colorists, etc.) to engage in an open dialogue in order to support gender-based training towards buckling down environmental challenges through clothing upcycling activities constitutes a brand new initiative in alignment with EU goals for resource efficiency. With women’s role being rapidly evolved in the recycling as well as waste management, the need to promote a gender-responsive environmental agenda becomes of utmost importance. Provided that textile experts are considered essential stakeholders in the sustainability debate, they can certainly promote a priceless prospect that policy makers might be unaware of.