"<< Background >>The HOPE (Home and Overseas Project management Excellence) project focuses on the skills of Overseas or European project managers in the community development sectorCommunity Development projects contribute to the development of a community. Unlike emergency projects, they are characterised by a long-term approach and aim to empower local actors in a sustainable way. These projects can be carried out by different categories of actors (NGOs, associations or local authorities). Project managers hold a key position. They coordinate the projects and demonstrate the ability to manage all of the project management life cycle (needs assessment, project design , funding, implementation of activities, administrative and financial monitoring, partnership management, evaluation of project results, etc.). This position has several titles within development NGOs: Project Manager, Program or Programme Manager, Assistant Project Manager, Country Manager, Country Coordinator, etc. that is why it covers a large number of jobs, all over Europe. These jobs have evolved considerably for many different reasons: a wider range of stakeholders, the increasing level of donor requirements and security needs plus the implementation of digital and environmental approaches.In addition, the experience of the 3 partnership members demonstrate that ""project management"" has very different meanings over the world.<< Objectives >>The HOPE project aims to define and enhance, at European level, the competencies of development project managers and to strengthen them through the implementation of innovative trainings. It will develop an agreed definition, at a European level, of the profession and its competences, by prioritising them. It will identify training needs to compensate for the lack or insufficiency of certain skills. In this way, the HOPE project will contribute to the adaptation of vocational training to the needs of the labour market and will strengthen the partnership between companies (or non-profit organisations with employees) and training centres.<< Implementation >>To achieve these objectives, the following activities (related to project results) will be implemented. - To design a glossary in the languages of the partnership. This glossary will consist of a list of definitions, in 4 languages (English, French, Spanish and Portuguese) of useful terms connected to different project types and to the main competencies relating to project management. It will facilitate the exchanges between all partners all along the HOPE project and will help the implementation of the other project activities. - To carry out a European study on the skills of project managers in Overseas or European community development projects. This study will be carried out in the 4 partner countries and will focus on 2 levels: The skills expected when recruiting project managers. The skills developed by the project managers on the job. -To design a common language for project manager skills relating to European or Overseas community development projects. The objective for the partners will be to create a common list of skills, adapted to the different contexts of the partner countries and taking into account the evolution of jobs in the sector and also the results of the study-To design a training framework.Taking into account the previous project results, the partnership will define the topics and the learning outcomes of the training. -To create a training manual.This manual will be a support for trainers carrying out the training implementation. - To trial the training as an experiment (face-to-face). The learners will be project managers currently working and/or vocational students in project management. - To design an online training course. The face-to-face training will be adapted and put online to allow a large-scale roll out and enable learners to go at their own pace and in their own time. In addition, it will participate in the digital transition of individuals and organisations.<< Results >>HOPE project will allow : - to analyse the evolution of the project mangers of European and International development projects ;- to recognize and promote these project managers competencies at a European level ;- to strengthen the competencies of these project managers or future project managers ;- to improve the quality of the trainings in development project management ;- to reinforce the impact of the development projects for the benefit of their target groups ;- to promote the digital and environmental transition of the HOPE project participants (individuals and organisations)."

The economic crisis in Europe, and all over the world, generates strong and large evolution of the national and local public policies. In order to implement those new policies, local authorities are depending more and more on the third sector organisations. But, they do not know deeply those organisations. For instance, they do not know their projects, their business models, their governing processes, etc. Also, the third sector organisations often have an incomplete view of the public authorities, focusing only on their funding role. Those views are related to the lack of time in local authorities and in third sector organisations but also to the actual trainings which do no stimulate mutual knowledge. One of the main objectives of SPOTS Project (Sustainable Projects for Organisations of the Third Sector) is to facilitate the mutual knowledge of those 2 categories of organisations using the tool of the training. The 4 partners of SPOTS project are: IFAID Aquitaine (France), the coordinator, professional training centre involved in International solidarity and community development for 30 years (learners of IFAID training will also participate in the project), BAIRROS (Portugal) non-profit organisation supporting the development of the third sector in Lisbon, Advantage Business Agency (United Kingdom), consultancy specialized in support to the Third sector, with a strong expertise on business management, AEC (Algeria) non-profit organisation that contributes to link public funders and enterprises creators in the Beajia Region. This partnership is based on mutual knowledge and previous mutual projects. . SPOTS will last 3years and follow an agreed and common methodology. A first stage will identify the existing representations of each of the 2 categories of actors and the existing ways of cooperation for building local policies in each country. Needs assessment documents and document of recommendations in each country will be produced, also completed by the experience of each partner. In a second stage, a training will be elaborated in order to better understand mutual aims and perspectives. This training will be implemented in each partners’ countries. After, it will be improved thanks to training evaluations. Pedagogic material will be created.. The methodology, chosen for SPOTS Project, is based on participation of SPOTS partners and of the different categories of actors, related to public policies implementation, in each country. At the end of each stage, a multiplier event will be organized in order to communicate and disseminate SPOTS results. At the end of the project a final wide dissemination event will take place in Portugal. SPOTS will facilitate a co-building approach of public policies and develop new knowledge and skills for the learners. Those learners will be able to adapt themselves better to the world constant evolution. These co-building public policies practises will respond to a double demand: a better use of public funds and more sustainable 3rd sector organisations who participate in the implementation of public policies. This sustainability will be reached by a better articulation between organisations project and activities and by long-term business models.

This project was about promoting and reflecting global education in adult learning in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals. It was developed and implemented against a background of unprecedented challenges and opportunities facing the world such increasing globalisation, a digitally connected and interdependent world, international and religious conflicts, mass movement of people from conflict zones and poor countries to Europe, the refugee crisis, climate change and environmental degradation, the Sustainable Development Goals, BREXIT, the rise of populism and the right, and the recently published OECD “global competency for an inclusive world”. The aim was to build and strengthen the capacity and ability of organisations providing learning opportunities to adults by developing a strategic approach that empowers educators with the competences to teach adults about global and international development issues; effectively opening a window on the world to help see the ‘bigger picture'. The objectives were to:1.Provide information about the adult global education landscape in Europe 2.Identify the global competences required by adults and adult educators3.Empower at least 14 adult educators to facilitate the development of adults’ global competences4.Improve the knowledge and understanding of global and international developments of 600 adults through participation in discussions, debate, seminars, and training.5.Create resources including guidance for embedding global and international development issues in adult education6.Improve the intercultural competence of participants.The main project activities were undertaking transnational project meetings, organising blended learning of adults, joint staff training, multiplier events in each partner country and producing 5 major intellectual outputs. All transnational meetings took place as planned, each attended by representatives from all partner organisations. Except for the final meeting which as virtual, the other meetings were face-to-face and took place before restrictions were put in place.The main groups of participants were adult educators and adult learners from partner organisations with involvement of a few stakeholders in adult education. They participated in the training activities and attended some of the multiplier events.Multiplier events were held in each partner country, most virtually, but some face-to-face. A few partners held the events over different dates in view of Covid-19 restrictions around socialising and large gatherings. The multipliers attracted 234 participants across the partnership. The partnership produced 6 intellectual outputs1.A report on the adult global education landscape in each partner country2.Global competence frameworks in the context of the ESDGs for (a) Adults and (b) Adult Educators stipulating the global competences required adults and adult educators 3.Course in Global Education for Educators – consists of two courses: a blended course and an online course. Materials for delivering the blended course was also produced as part of this output.4.Embedded materials – curriculum materials in which global themes/issues are embedded. 5.Guidance for Adult educations- this publication provides guidance for adult educators and organisations wanting to introduce and embed global education in their work with adults. 6.Thematic Workshops – based on the global themes identified in the competence frameworks these consist of resources to deliver global education workshops on a standalone basis in each of the global competence areas contained in the framework. The overall feedback from participants was positive. The main feedback from the multiplier events was that the project would make a valuable contribution to helping adults understand some of major challenges facing us with training organisations and they could engage sustainable development. Those attending the training activities said that they now had a better knowledge and understanding of global issues. Some educators were sufficiently inspired and expressed an interest in organising global awareness workshops in their local areas. They also welcomed the resources developed by the project and said they would be extremely useful, as global education was something new to most of them and would need help and support in reflecting global themes in adult education. The overall feedback from the multiplier events was that the project would make a valuable contribution to helping adults understand some of major challenges facing us with training organisations, especially NGOs expressing an intention to engage more actively with the whole issue of sustainable development.One unexpected impact of the project was recognition of the importance of digital skills in delivering global education. The educators were very keen to improve their digital so can include the use of digital technologies in their teaching which, which led the development of a digital skills module in the course on global competence for educators.