In many countries like Romania (RO) and Portugal (PT) Vocational Education and Training (VET) is considered as second choice; as an educational pathway for those who failed in reaching Higher Education (HE). One of the main reasons of this rather poor image of VET is that it often must be considered as a “dead-end” educational pathway; once you started a “blue collar” job; no or only few options of career opportunities in terms of Continuous Vocational Education and Training (CVET) exist. Thus, more challenging occupations like working for the Quality Assurance (QA), Design or Production Planning departments are reserved for colleagues with an educational background from HE.But even in countries with established CVET-programmes like Germany (DE), where the qualifications of an industrial or handicraft foreman or technician are country-wide acknowledged and have a very good image, the academic drift is obvious. For our sector (industrial shoe production) a worrying indicator is: In the last two years, when the only industrial foreman course for this occupation was offered, not enough participants (countrywide only six needed) applied – and the courses had to be withdrawn.Thus, strengthening CVET is a crucial element of increasing attractiveness of VET and assuring its high quality. Target groups are colleagues, having been qualified via Initial Vocational Education and Training (IVET) in the sector of industrial shoe production. For this purpose, partners of project “Developing Innovative and Attractive CVET programmes in industrial shoe production” (DIA-CVET) have chosen 10 spheres of activities of industrial shoe production like “operational organisation” or “materials for shoe production” where autonomous work is beyond competences of skilled workers (considering skilled work on European Qualification Framework (EQF) level 3 or 4). We aim at developing, piloting and implementing comprehensive courses for each of these spheres on European level; available in English (EN) as well as in DE, RO and PT. We do not aim at developing a unified European CVET (like an “EU industrial foreman”) profile, as we respect the principle of subsidiarity in educational subjects and are aware of the different preconditions and needs regarding qualifications in our three countries. Piloting of our courses is foreseen as a “feasibility study”, direct beneficiaries will be 10 skilled workers from shoe industry. Via accompanying measures like an “Advisory Board” (AB), workshops and others we aim at reaching and involving delegates from all relevant stakeholders (companies, trade unions, chambers, competent bodies, training centres, networks) from the sector in our three countries. But project has additionally a broader scope; it aims at transparency at CVET levels within shoe sector for all stakeholders, especially social partners, companies, and authorities. To accept Learning Outcomes (LO) from another learning venue, to hire a skilled foreman from another country, or to trust national qualifications from another country is an ongoing challenge. Project consortium developed successfully a Sector Qualification Framework for footwear sector for level 2-4 in the previous project ICSAS (cp. http://icsas-project.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/06_SQF-Table_EN.pdf). Consequently the development of (and the referencing of existing or developed national CVET qualifications in DE, RO, and PT to a sector qualification framework for levels 5-7 will be another important objective of proposed project DIA-CVET and available for future levelling of new CVET-profiles or profiles of other countries after the project’s lifetime.Regarding long-term impact or sustainability, we aim additionally at implementing dual CVET-courses for industrial shoemakers in the Romanian and Portuguese VET-systems (as happened successfully with dual IVET-courses during ICSAS) – and to support the reinvigorating of the industrial foreman course in Germany.

DIABETES is a global disease that preoccupies all governs worldwide. There are 425 million people with diabetes in the World. There will be 629 million people with diabetes in the World in 2045. https://diabetesatlas.org/across-the-globe.html . Two-thirds are adults in the working age. Only in Europe there are about 60 million people with diabetes, nearly 8% of the European population. Prevalence of diabetes is increasing among all ages in the European included, mostly due to increases in overweight and obesity, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. There’s a huge support to the patients, including in the educational strand. However, there’s a point that education didn’t reach yet, which is the relationship between FOOTWEAR and the DIABETIC FOOT CONTROL. A frequent complication of diabetes is the involvement of the lower limbs, the so-called diabetic foot, where a number of irreversible changes occur in the lower limbs in connection with changes in the body of diabetics. These are primarily due to neuropathy and ischemic disease of the lower limbs, a common cause of serious complications (ulceration, gangrene), which in many cases end with amputation in the lower limb. Expert medical reports indicate that the main cause of complications on the feet of diabetics is inappropriate footwear, to maintain movement activity and the health of the diabetic foot. In diabetics, inappropriate footwear is up to 80% cause of complications to the legs, many times led to amputations. To have available in the market on demand, to purchase, to use and to maintain the adequate footwear for each case are the pillars to prevent the development of diabetic foot syndrome.The project addresses the real lack in terms of knowledges and skills on Diabetic Foot Control of:- Footwear technicians, Designers and Managers, reflecting on the manufacturing strategies to produce appropriate footwear;- Health Technicians, Shoe-shop Assistants, regarding capacity for advice, interpret and implement medical prescriptions on the adequate footwear to address to each case, accompanying the patients/consumers;- Patients, their Families, Educators, informal Carers, and everyone who can contribute to the better life of the patients. The partnership composed by a set of 3 research and development entities, one University, and one footwear association all related to footwear joint efforts to provide a contribute for the above identified need, allied with their umbrella organization vis-à-vis European entities and an expert on digital education resources developer. All together from a wide range of regions in Europe, will develop a response to the need of knowledge and skills on the problematic, always focus on prevention, reaching education on Diabetic Foot Control through the manufacturing and address of adequate footwear to the development of digital competence toward VET population. The project focuses on the RELATIONSHIP between the DIABETIC FOOT CONTROL and the ADEQUACY OF THE FOOTWEAR, which is the real lack of knowledge and skills and the arise of educational opportunities, which will make the difference at various levels: -modernization of VET, including innovative dedicated training and curricula up-taking of curriculum on Diabetic Foot Control through adequate Footwear;-increasing of digital competences of a wide range of target groups;-increasing of the quality life standards of the diabetic population;-the potentiation of results from research and development initiatives on the fieldThe project will produce 3 digital educational packages to 3 different targets in 6 languages (Portuguese, Spanish, German, Romanian, Czech, Polish) plus English, as following: Digital Educational package for Footwear manufacturers on Footwear for Diabetic Foot Control - target to footwear technicians and designers, envisaging to develop knowledge on the diabetic foot and create capacity to articulate manufacturing strategies with the needs of diabetic patients, allowing them to use fashionable footwear but adapted to their special needs.Digital Educational Package for Health technicians and Shoe-shop assistants on adequate Footwear for Diabetic Foot Control - “capacity building” tool to help/advise on the choose and/or on the understanding of the medical prescription of the most adequate footwear for diabetic foot control regarding each patient situation.Self-caring digital educational package for Diabetic Foot Control - for patients, their families, other relatives, their teachers/educators and all supportive education personnel who are in continue contact with them, all kind of informal carers and community in generalA project website and promotional and advertising material will be provided along the project as well as a set of workshops/multiplier events in each country involved, including a wide conference in Brussels vis-à-vis with European organizations.

The Textile, Clothing, Leather, and Footwear (TCLF) industries in Europe with an annual turnover of €195 billion in 2019, employs 2 million workers in 220.600 companies, 99% SMEs concentrated in Italy, Romania, Poland, Portugal, Germany and Spain, more precisely in a few regions. TCLF has now to tackle with the challenges presented by the new digital era at a higher level, within a framework of transition to a greener, circular economy increasing the resilience of the organizations involved. The new METASKILLS4TCLF proposal, allying 30 partners, is robust and ambitious, responding to all objectives of the Alliances for Sectoral Cooperation on Skills (implementing the “Blueprint”), crosses the PACT4SKILLS TCLF pillars, and, with the compromise of consolidating and updating part of the former Skills4Smart TCLF Industries 2030 project outcomes, namely skills strategy, curricula and contents, results in a stronger and a wider scope cooperation, anticipating and responding to new skills gaps with innovative educational multilevel resources and delivering methodologies, involving new actors in the educational scene of TCLF across Europe, raising attractiveness and inclusion, preventing that “no talent is wasted”, together with a strong dissemination campaign and sustainability plan.The new outcomes will be:-Strong skills partnership with relevant stakeholders-Skills Intelligence for Forecasting and Monitoring TCLF Emerging Skills Needs-New modular training curricula/training modules “Inside Fashion” (both for initial education & training and upskilling-reskilling of the workforce), all tested in due piloting opportunities-Innovative modular contents, VR training and learning tools and update the ones developed in the former blueprint -A European Virtual Reality Campus-A train the trainers and teacher package to strengthening skills supply to demand -An awareness raising campaign on attractiveness and inclusion in the TCLF industries and correspondent tools.