The main aim of BusyBees was to support higher education institutions, teachers, students and SMEs in addressing the twin digital and green transition in a practical and realistic way. The project's specific objectives were to: - help SMEs understand and communicate their sustainability actions using digital tools and green marketing strategies, while avoiding greenwashing; - identify and validate key digital and green marketing skills aligned with labour market needs; - provide higher education teachers with a ready-to-use methodology and training to integrate these skills into marketing and business courses; - strengthen students’ digital, green and entrepreneurial competences through applied, challenge-based learning; - reinforce cooperation between higher education and SMEs across different European contexts.
Small and medium-sized enterprises and higher education institutions are increasingly affected by the twin digital and green transition, but they often lack practical tools to address it effectively. Micro and small companies, in particular, struggle to communicate their efforts towards sustainability in a credible and effective way, while higher education courses in marketing and business are not always equipped to integrate digital and green skills in an applied and market-oriented manner. At the same time, students need more opportunities to develop skills that are directly relevant for today’s labour market and to work on real challenges connected to sustainability and digitalisation. BusyBees was conceived to respond to these needs, bridging the gap between higher education and SMEs by translating the twin transition into concrete skills, teaching methods and learning experiences.