The aim of the ECORL -Economy Co-Responsibility Learning- project is to provide an innovative and concrete response to adults’ needs concerning the knowledge, understanding and use of economics and finance.The process of globalization and the recent economic crisis have plunged the traditional system of managing and investing citizens’ savings into deep crisis. Individuals are faced with an economic downturn without being equipped for it and without the basic knowledge to be able to deal with it.We believe that social inclusion also depends on the economic education of citizens: not knowing the rules of the economic systems and not having access to information is one of the main causes of the impoverishment of people in Western societies.More and more adults are asking to be kept up-to-date about the economic and financial systems and forms of sustainability of a responsible economy. This necessity becomes a primary need in a time of economic crisis where the demand arises for new skills that equip citizens to deal with the basic issues of saving, investment, business creation etc., so they can better defend themselves against the crisis and consciously pull through it.The ECORL project and results are targeted at adult learners, students, employees, unemployed and retirees who wish to stay informed about new economic issues.During 2 years, the project provided adults with new basic skills in the field of economics and finance as key areas to tackle and overcome the current crisis in a responsible manner through:- a comparative study on Social Economy within an international perspective, investigating forms of new economy in Western, European, and emerging economies;- an Interactive Platform, as Repository of News, documents, products, online courses, deepenings, Glossary and FAQs, International weekly news on Sharing Economy;- the testing of 10 Pilot Training Courses, in a blended modality, 2 editions in each Partner country: Albania, Croatia, Italy, Lithuania and Spain. The Training Courses involved 120 adult learners as direct beneficiaries, 50 teachers and experts, 100 Organisations - the Consortium’s Network of Social Enterprises, Associations, Public and Private Sector engaged on the issues of the Sustainable Economy; - the use of the collaborative learner-centered methodology and the creation of the Guidelines on Adult Collaborative Learning;-the Guideline on the Economic Literacy for adult learners;- the setting up of 54 Open Educational Resources, within 4 topics: Social Economy, Ethical Bank, Sharing Economy, Sustainable Lifestyle. The OERs are Open and free, simple to use, designed for adult learners, with Video, Deepenings, WebReferences, Further Reading digital materials and Exercise;- the online survey, in order to test the adult economic competences;- the online match with the economic competences and the OERs content;- the mobility of 40 adults in Tirana, in order to:know the methodology of the Balkan YUNUS Social Business-the Center founded by Muhammed Yunus, international historical forerunner of the “social” approach to the economy; visit the main examples of Social Enterprises in Albania;share the national good practices on Sharing Economy in an International context.- the dissemination of results at schools, social enterprises, universities and associations during the 7 Multiplier Events;- the creation of a weekly News Letter as international network on Sharing Economy within the Ecorl platform, that had more than 130.000 views after 24 months of online activity.Thanks to the Università Popolare di Firenze, UPF-Italy, the Federación Española de Universidades Populares,FEUP-Spain, the Open University di Pula, POU-Croatia, the Eu Trade-Lithuania, the Yunus Social Business Balkans-Albania and the Università Telematica Uninettuno-Italy, the ECORL project had an important impact 1) on production of new digital materials on Social Economy, with the OERs, the online platform and the international weekly News, and 2) on the training of direct and indirect participants, their lifestyles and choices of critical consumption. For these reasons, the results of the project are useful not only in the adult education sector, but also in the training of professionals and in higher and university education as the topics addressed are wide ranging and transectorial. All results are available, open and free, on the Ecorl platform for other 5 years after the project lifetime end.

This RISE project aims to open new spaces for reconciliation in the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Northern Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia) through social entrepreneurship, thus stimulating cross-border cooperation. It involves 6 local dynamic incubators located in the Western Balkan region and directly providing training in the field of entrepreneurship, the French social entrepreneurship support NGO PULSE, and SEEYN, a regional network fostering cross-border cooperation. Over the RISE project, partners will work together towards the capacity building of 6 local incubators (VET providers). Partners will co-construct several innovative pedagogical tools and material on social entrepreneurship and on interculturality. Capacity building activities will be organized to improve the knowledge, technical and pedagogical skills of VET trainers and coaches and unable them to unroll high quality and innovative social entrepreneurship support programs fostering reconciliation and the building of a common future in the region. This, in turn will contribute to a better alignment between VET structures and the emerging social entrepreneurship market in the countryBy implementing the project throughout all of the Western Balkans, by fostering mobility and by sharing and showcasing the results of the project, we also intend to foster cooperation within the region and to strengthen the regional ecosystem.

VET-WEB is embedded in the context of the VET system of the Western Balkans, in particular Albania and Montenegro, and takes into consideration the current problems and challenges that slow down its competitiveness and attractiveness, causing a chain effect that leads to poor support to the economic and social development of the territories of interest. The exchange with other VET institutions and organizations devoted to training and job placement of citizens with consolidated experience from Programme countries is intended to promote, also through dynamics of two ways exchange, the construction of collaborative networks between public and private entities and to foster the ability of the VET ecosystem to respond to the actual needs of the socio-economic structure of the territory, with respect to the labour market. The logic of the project is based on a constant twinning, coaching and support between Programme Countries partners and Western Balkans VET providers with a bottom-up approach. VET providers and other organizations devoted to training and job placement are going to help Western Balkans VET providers to improve their managerial, organizational, pedagogical, communication, networking skills and competencies. The capacity building activities are structured with five lots of activities, addressing specific areas of work:– 1: Staff mobility for capacity building activities– 2: Events and conferences– 3: Pilot students' mobilities– 4: Networking– 5: Sharing of operational and strategic tools for capacity building The partnership intends to improve the innovation and modernization of Western Balkans VET providers, aligning it with European VET strategies. The project intends therefore to develop long-term services and outputs that can affect and influence the whole VET community of the Western Balkans