Increasing quality and equity of ECEC services is a priority for all EU countries and can make a strong contribution, through enabling and empowering all children to realise their potential. Urban Horticulture has proved to be a powerful tool for education, socialisation and inclusion and for improving the sense of belonging to the community. GARDENStoGROW provides ECEC teachers with an innovative teaching methodology, tools and materials to foster inclusive attitudes and key competences acquisition from a very early stage of child development (3-6) through horticulture.This is made possible thanks to a balanced, transnational and complementary cooperation with pre-primary and primary schools, children’s and science museums, STEM centres, universities and local educational authorities. Educational gardens, with an active support and inputs from school teachers and local stakeholders, can become permanent and living learning places for schools, pupils, children and families, where they can meet and learn from each other.During the entire project duration (30 months) 11 different partners – 4 schools, 2 children’s museums, 1 STEM Center, 2 universities, 1 foundation and 1 research centre from Italy, the UK, Spain and Bulgaria – produced 4 IOs:•IO1 GARDENStoGROW Inventory: a framework of inclusive practices and activities carried out in gardens by ECEC schools in 4 European countries: Italy, the UK, Spain and Bulgaria, identifying skills and competences needed by teachers and ECEC professionals to successfully carry out them (surveys, inventory of educational gardens and creative sessions with teachers);•IO2 GARDENStoGROW Methodology Guidelines: technical guidelines for educational gardens, with step-by-step construction and additional technical information, completed by evaluation grids on how to monitor inclusiveness during an educational activity and a set of observation categories to set the basis for an inclusive child-adult relationship;•IO3 GARDENStoGROW Educational Materials & Training course: an online course named GARDENStoLEARN, in a dedicated platform – Explora Education – with 3 different modules on how to establish and sustain an educational garden, how to design, develop and manage educational gardens, theory on inclusion, hands-on workshops for early childhood and community, completed by an international training course with the participating organisations, several national events and the creation of pilot gardens in each country;•IO4 Learning, Affordable, Inclusive and Open Gardens for Innovative ECEC practices: a pilot gardens catalogue, tips on inclusive education and a set of recommendations, exploring the multiple benefits of educational gardens, providing evidence and seeking links with global, European and national policy priorities.The project implemented 7 transnational meetings, 2 learning and teaching activities and several evaluation and communication activities.GARDENStoGROW involved more then 1,800 participants in the activities and results: ECEC teachers and school leaders, teacher trainers and educators, personnel of children’s/Science Museums/STEM Centers and other ECEC teacher training providers; HEIs researchers and students, civil society organisations, pupils and families.Besides the Intellectual Outputs, the project produced: a project website, communication on social media and partners’ websites, a growing community with the involved stakeholders, several recommendations and teaching documents useful for teachers and educators willing to create inclusive educational gardens and hands on workshops.On a longer term, the project will impact on the quality of the ECEC sector by:•offering teachers and pupils aged 3-6 the opportunity to enrich their curriculum and competences based on a non formal and hands-on approach and an innovative tool for social inclusion or marginalised pupils, through educational content provided in open format in the learning platform Explora Education;•improving the capacities of schools of operating in partnerships with key local actors, including children’s and science museums, STEM centres, foundations and research centres/universities;•evaluating in a long term perspective the efficacy and role of extra-curricular hands-on workshops based urban and social horticulture;•reinforcing cooperation between practice, research and policy. Thanks to GARDENStoGROW pupils and families, including those at risk of marginalisation, will benefit for better ECEC services, innovative pedagogical activities with motivated teachers. They will find in the pilot gardens a place for socialisation and inclusion and more opportunities for learning and experiencing direct contact with nature.

Europe needs more young people with green entrepreneurship skills if it is to achieve its EU2020 target of ‘Sustainable growth - for a resource efficient, greener and more competitive economy.’ Delivering this target requires young people with the skills, knowledge and commitment to build a more competitive low-carbon economy that makes efficient and sustainable use of resources, protects the environment, reduces emissions and prevents biodiversity loss. The green economy is an increasing source of jobs in Europe (CEDEFOP) and Eurobarometer (2013) reports that green skills in SMEs are increasing with 4/10 employing at least one full-time employee working in a green job. Recent research shows that start-up rates increase by as much as 20% when entrepreneurship lessons are provided in schools. The GEE (Green Entrepreneurship Europe) project brings together the twin necessities of a green economy and increased entrepreneurship that provides meaningful jobs and restores our natural wealth. GEE will improve the capacity of schools to teach the competencies and skills for young people to take an active role in the green economy and strengthen cooperation between school and the world of work. GEE has been identified by the partners as a response to the need for a pan-European response to building the green economy, a belief shared by our project schools that have identified entrepreneurship education as a priority.The overall objective of GEE is ‘to improve the key competencies and skills of young people to take an active role in building the green economy and strengthen cooperation between school and the world of work.’ This project aims to achieve this through linked specific objectives:• Improving the capacity of schools to connect learning with the world of work within the context of building a green economy.• Providing pupils with a range of meaningful real-world experiences linking the classroom with business and entrepreneurship.• Developing the skills and competencies of pupils to rethink business models in-line with the need to build a green economy.• Enhancing the ability of teachers to teach entrepreneurship.• Increasing the sharing of educational resources for schools across Europe.• Sharing and enhancing good practice in integrating sustainable development into business thinking.In delivering the specific objectives listed above we will aim to work with 15 associate secondary schools in five countries, 30 teachers and approximately 375 pupils. Through dissemination and exploitation activities we aim to reach a further 125 secondary schools, impacting 3125 pupils, and 250 teachers as well as education providers and local education departments. The project results will be freely available as open online resources during and beyond the project.The overall impact of GEE will be to improve the competencies and skills of young people to take an active role in building the green economy and strengthen cooperation between school and the world of work. Pupils will benefit from entrepreneurial learning, developing business knowledge, essential skills and attitudes including developing: creativity, initiative, tenacity, teamwork, an understanding of risk and a sense of responsibility. This is the entrepreneurial mind-set that helps entrepreneurs transform ideas into action and also significantly increases employability.GEE blends two learning approaches: learning outside the classroom and real world learning. Learning is embedded through students' direct contact with business and entrepreneurs. We will connect schools with local businesses and entrepreneurs so that they can work together to develop green business plans and ideas for new products based on reality rather than fantasy. GEE methods develop entrepreneurial solutions that support a green and sustainable economy. To achieve this it uses the natural world as a metaphor and measure for sustainability. Outdoor learning helps pupils understand how nature works and the key operating principles. For example, in nature, waste from one process is food for another thus creating a virtuous cycle rather than the linear take-make-dump found in traditional business models. GEE applies these principles from nature to business through creating entrepreneurship ideas. Pupils use natural principles to explore what some businesses are already achieving (GEE case studies), work with real businesses and entrepreneurs through our Coffee House Challenge Events, and finally develop their own business ideas and plans which are shared with local business.In addition to the activities developed for pupils, we will offer online and face-to-face support for teachers and schools, and disseminate the results widely through teacher seminars, conferences and a project website.