<< Objectives >>The project aims at developing tangible and innovative methods for improving the environmental green skills of adult educators and learners over 65 years old.Its specific objectives are i) to increase seniors and adult educators’ environmental competences and awareness levels, ii) to foster the professional development of educators, iii) to engage seniors in volunteering and community stewardship activities and iv) to promote intergenerational understanding to major environmental challenges.<< Implementation >>An advisory committee of seniors to provide insight on senior engagement and environmental awareness.Study visits to support the exchange of knowledge and practises between partners.Development of a report on good practices and of an environmental education programme.Training sessions for adult educators and volunteers.Pilot testing and assessing of the programme in all participating countries.Dissemination events, social media engagement and development of videos<< Results >>The project parties will incorporate new techniques and skills, expand their target groups, diversify their activities, and gain experience of the ERASMUS+ ecosystem and network. The learners and volunteers, both seniors and youth, will challenge their biases with regards to environmentalism and ageism, expand their green skills, their relevant knowledge, and abilities. The synergies between environmentalism, seniors’ education, community and intergenerational engagement will be further explored

"While in other educational settings the intercollegial exchange is often institutionalized, in schools a strong lone warrior mentality is prevailing. The exchange within or across schools is not build on institutionalized forms of mutual support, but a selective exchange dependent on mutual sympathy. The potential of guided and structured cooperation is not exploited in this way, which also leaves many teachers feeling left alone. Much of the work is done in multiple ways, which would be eliminated by better networking and mutual support, leaving more time for pedagogical work with the pupils.Our project vision is to create vibrant local, regional and European learning communities, fuelled by Regional Learning Facilitators. We need new organisational concepts and ownership of issues and concerns from the crowd. Our approach lies in analogue and digital networking and support structures that take into account the value of informal networks. The key message of the project is: ""When we share, we win"". By learning communities, we mean forms of exchange and cooperation organised by ourselves or supported by the community, which ideally are supported by the involvement of education authorities. The Learning Communities deal with solutions to upcoming problems in everyday education, with challenges of the education system at different system levels, with the creation, exchange and further development of teaching materials, etc. The Learning Communities are also involved in the development of new teaching materials and in the development of new teaching methods.As concrete project goals we see- the training of 24 Regional Learning Community Facilitators- at least 12 Regional Learning Communities in 4 European countries- the creation of a European cross-border learning community with at least 48 active members- The development of a Learning Community Facilitator Curriculum, which will later become a standard KA1 workshop offer.- the development of an AI-supported passive networking platform for teachers and school stakeholders to test a further development option for eTwinning that currently relies only on active search functionsOur target group are teachers and their reference system. Our aim is to indirectly support the work of the teachers and to facilitate their planning, implementation and follow-up of their lessons by focusing on the principles of cooperation and exchange. Through active networking, but also by pointing out connection possibilities, teachers should no longer have the feeling of being alone in the corridor, but embedded in a professional system that also brings them more self-confidence and self-efficacy.In IO 1 we are developing the basis for the development of the curriculum of the Learning Community Facilitators with the study and policy paper ""FUTURE VISION ON EUROPEAN COOPERATION IN EDUCATION"". In the first part of the study we shed light on the status quo of the principle of cooperation in school settings in the European context. In this respect, we will collect best practice case studies from the networks of the participating partners and derive corresponding success factors. The second part will outline a vision of how the European educational area can benefit from the principle of cooperation and networking. Different cooperative organizational theories for informal structures from the organizational sciences will be used as a basis. After the study a CURRICULUM FOR LEARNING COMMUNITY FACILITATORS will be developed as IO 2. Learning Community Facilitators can be teachers, regional educational actors from the school environment, but also parents. The curriculum enables the facilitators in their role as initiators and initiators for the networking and development of the Learning Communities.On the one hand for the curriculum, but also for the Learning Community Facilitators (LCFs) themselves and for their networking and multiplier work, blended learning suitable learning materials are developed as IO 3. These learning materials are methodically and didactically prepared in such a way that multipliers can take up the learning package (theory part, self-examination and self-reflection questions, PowerPoint slides) at any time and carry it out independently.The digital world has changed the way people interact with each other. As IO 4, a platform is being developed that uses the principle of passive networking in a school context. The idea is based on a cooperation profile in which different aspects of being a teacher are collected and teachers propose concrete suggestions for cooperation."

"BACKGROUND & RELEVANCE OF THE PROJECT Learning processes between the generations offer opportunities for the social inclusion of elderly people and the closing of the gap between young and old, which is becoming ever wider in today's society. Senior who have completed their working lives run a certain risk of what psychologists call ""bore-out"": the feeling of no longer being needed that can suddenly take over and negatively influence one's own actions and thoughts. These two aspects inspired the consortium of AGE:WISE to develop a project aimed at seniors in order to empower them to engage in intergenerational learning settings (IGL) – as a teacher. PROJECT OBJECTIVESTo reach these goals, AGE:WISE aims to equip seniors with skills on two levels: 1) recognize their personal, valuable competencies and knowledge and thus restore their self-confidence outside of professional life and 2) acquire training skills that enable them to slip into the role of a teacher and pass on their valuable knowledge to young people. To build solid frameworks for these processes, AGE:WISE also addresses adult trainers and educational institutions where IGL settings can be implemented. They will act as multipliers for the results and visions of AGE:WISE and provide guidance for seniors who want to teach young people. PARTICIPANTS Both target groups – seniors and adult trainers – participate at various stages of the project. In each IO, adult trainers are directly involved to share expertise, develop single tasks or assess their quality. Seniors are involved in 2 IOs and will give direct feedback on the results of O2 and O4. We invite 15 adult trainers from AT, DE, IT, PT and PL to a 3-day LTTA in Italy. They will have the chance to become moderators and at the same time future experts for IGL-settings. They will act as multipliers and take this new knowledge with them and transfer it to adult education institutions, where it will be applied and disseminated, which will have a long-term effect.ACTIVITIES & METHODOLOGIESIn O1 we elaborate a RESEARCH REPORT, gathering best practice examples from IGL activities and on that basis introduce potential new settings and topics to which this approach could be extended. Furthermore, we assess the specific learning needs of seniors by expert interviews with adult trainers. In O2 we create a digital, web-based SELF-REFLECTION TOOL, which helps seniors to raise awareness about their rich pool of competences which can be valuable for the younger generation. At the same time, we want to raise motivation for taking over the teacher role by showing them SUCCESS STORY VIDEOS where they get tips and inspiration on how to do IGL. In O3 we create a TRAINER PACKAGE incl. a CURRICULUM for the ""training-skills-course"" for seniors with an adapted version for a blended-learning setting (guided by an adult trainer), as well as GUIDELINES for adult education institutes on how to practically implement IGL settings.In O4 a LEARNING PACKAGE for the training-skills-course is developed, including 5 modules around the topic of ""how to teach"" and make it available with unlimited access online. After completion, a test-run for the ""training-skills-course"" with seniors will be organized. The goal is to make them peers and multipliers for the course and at the same time receive feedback for the materials.RESULTSThey are available online with unlimited access in 5 languages (EN, DE, PT, PL, IT). The most important results are:- RESEARCH REPORT on best practices and learning needs of the elderly- Web-Platform with SELF-REFLECTION TOOL and SUCCESS-STORY VIDEOS- TRAINER PACKAGE: CURRICULUM for the ""training-skills-course"" for seniors & GUIDELINES for implementing IGL settings- LEARNING PACKAGE for the “training-skills-course” for seniorsIMPACTS AND LONG-TERM BENEFITS AGE:WISE not only offers awareness-raising for the value of the knowledge and skills of seniors, but also concentrates on concrete implementation tips for IGL settings, that can contribute to a higher popularity of these non-conventional learning settings. Make adult trainers and adult education institutions multipliers for the results and visions of this project is a focal point of AGE:WISE. A special focus is on the long-term and broad dissemination of the results on a local, national and international level. To this end, we make use of the broad network of the consortium, including adult education centers, senior’s associations, social initiatives, municipalities, community spaces and other stakeholders. The open source access to all project outputs will be guaranteed for at least 5 years after project end. Our aim is to enable as many senior citizens as possible to use their valuable skills outside work life and to contribute to the gap-closing between young and old through IGL processes, which ultimately benefits society as a whole."

"<< Background >>BACKGROUND AND RELEVANCE OF THE PROJECT:Increasing polarization in Europe and the entire Western world is a growing problem. Not only are politics and political views drifting apart, but also in society and in everyday life a division due to increasing polarization is becoming more and more evident. Especially in times of crisis (Corona pandemic), increased polarisation tendencies are to be expected.Our world is increasingly characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. This environment is described as the so-called VUCA WORLD, and this creates a great longing for clear, simple, and populist answers, thus laying the foundation for increasing polarisation.Frightening scenes such as the storming of the Capitol in the US in January 2021 or recurrent riots in the suburbs of France as well as increasing conspiracy theories around the Covid crisis are indicators of increasing polarisation. However, in order for our society to master the challenges of the future, it needs cohesion, the ability to discourse, empathy, and diversity as an opportunity for holistic solutions. Young people, in particular, are on the one hand very impressionable with regard to polarising tendencies, but on the other hand, they can also exert a lot of positive influence on their environment. Pupils must not feel left behind or pushed away and teachers must be given appropriate tools to support pupils in dealing with increasing polarisation online and offline. PRELIMINARY STUDIES by the consortium have shown that there are NO SUITABLE LEARNING AND TEACHING MATERIALS that can be used at the secondary level in a cross-curricular and low-threshold way. Furthermore, there is no learning material that prepares young people for the massive polarization in social media and helps them TO DEAL WITH AND USE SOCIAL MEDIA for positive things. The project bye, Polarity focuses especially on the platforms used by PUPILS, which teachers and adults often no longer have an overview of. It is important to close this gap. For this reason, the education community sees it as essential to address the issue of increasing polarisation and not only to sensitize young people & teachers to deal with the issue of increasing polarisation but also to train them as ambassadors for the basic idea of ""united in diversity"".<< Objectives >>The following overall objective was defined for the project bye, Polarity:To SENSITIZE PUPILS pupils to increasing polarisation in politics and society, TO TRAIN them in dealing with polarisation, and TO WIN PUPILS over as ambassadors for a united Europe.In order to achieve this overarching goal, the following sub-goals were defined:1)To GENERATE A GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE INCREASING POLARISATION in Europe - especially from the perspective of the target groups of pupils aged 12-16 and teachers in secondary education. 2)To DEVELOP A DIDACTIC CONCEPT that is innovatively and reflectively tailored to the target group and enables playful learning on several levels. 3)To DEVELOP TEACHING AND LEARNING MATERIALS that holistically address the increasing polarisation in politics and society. For this purpose, teaching and learning materials for classical learning, experiential learning and digital learning will be developed.4)To not only educate and inform students and teachers regarding the increasing polarization, but to TRAIN PUPILS AS AMBASSADORS against polarisation tendencies, to disseminate the content and message of this project as widely as possible.5)To facilitate mutual experiential and ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING through a lively exchange between the project countries and between educational institutions and schools.6) To address and work through SOCIAL MEDIA channels and their contribution to polarisation from a neutral perspective and especially FROM THE PUPILS PERSPECTIVE.7) To build a COMMUNITY for a united Europe through student to student action. 8) Actively engage pupils with social or economic obstacles, educational difficulties, cultural differences, or migrant backgrounds to ensure that the results will reach all pupils. The consortium sees it as essential for sustainable peace and cohesion in Europe to resolutely counteract increasingly polarising tendencies. For this purpose, a target group is addressed that on the one hand is very impressionable itself, and on the other hand, has a great influence on its environment and the future development of Europe.<< Implementation >>ACTIVITIES & METHODOLOGYThe target groups of pupils aged 12-16 and secondary school teachers are involved in all phases of the project.In R1, FOCUS GROUP INTERVIEWS take place to explore the problem from the target groups' point of view in order to learn about the awareness of the problem and the requirements for solutions. Research and GOOD PRACTICE COLLECTION provide the basis for further solutions and give an overview of country-specific differences.In R 2, a METHODOLOGICAL-DIDACTIC CONCEPT is developed to be able to adequately convey this complex topic. This concept combines methods of classical learning as well as experiential learning, group settings, and digital learning. It will also contain important suggestions for the conceptual design of similar teaching topics such as ethics or political education.In R 3, LEARNING MATERIALS will be developed that provide a pedagogical basis for a sustainable approach to polarities. The contents are conceived as competence-oriented and didactically geared towards young people. In R4, the MAJOR ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA in relation to increasing polarisation is addressed. On the one hand, students receive information on how to recognize polarising content and how to deal with it and learn how to produce positive digital content for social media. On the other hand, the CONSORTIUM LEARNS FROM THE PUPILS and their perspective flows in. This is even more important as adults and teachers need to re-engage with and understand the pupils' online world. A LEARNING TEACHING TRAINING ACTIVITY will allow a total of 26 people to try out learning materials, give feedback and learn together and from each other. This will involve trying out and learning together about R1, R2, and R3 outcomes, R4 will be tested in the development phase and will thus receive important impetus for further development. NUMBER AND PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTSThroughout the project pupils and teachers from the partner countries AT, PT, RO and CY are intensively involved. A total of at least 60 pupils and 15 teachers/educators are involved in focus group interviews and pilot tests.At least 18 pupils, 3 teachers, 3 pedagogical experts as well as 2 project team members / project managers, and 4 accompanying persons are involved in the learning/teaching/training event.MULTIPLIER EVENTSDisseminating and exploiting the results as widely as possible across Europe is a priority for the consortium. Multiplier events will contribute to this, involving key stakeholders and helping to make the results accessible to a wide audience in a sustainable and long-term way.<< Results >>RESULTSAll results are available Europe-wide, with unlimited access in 5 languages (EN, DE, PT, RO, GR). These results will be available at least 5 years after the end of the project, further processing, adaptation, or even partial application is explicitly supported. All results will also be made available via the project website and can be easily copied and saved. The most important results are:1)Report on the research work from R 1, showing how the increasing polarisation in teaching is dealt with in Europe.2)A best-practice collection of existing teaching materials on the topic3) An innovative methodological - didactical concept based on the needs of the target group 4) Learning material in printable and digital form for at least 20 learning hours plus teaching and learning material for at least 20 contact hours (workshop settings) as digital and analog resources 5) A resource website that provides all information and resources6) A guide to train students to deal with increasing polarisation on social media and to train them to be ambassadors for a united Europe IMPACT AND LONG-TERM BENEFITSBye, Polarity not only provides awareness-raising and know-how for pupils and teachers on how to deal with increasing polarisation but also focuses on concretepossibilities for action to counteract the increasing polarisation. Content is conveyed digitally and analog and the training of teachers, pupils, and other multipliers is a focus of the project.A special focus is on the long-term and broad dissemination of the results at the local, national and international levels. For this purpose, we use the broad network of the consortium, which includes schools, education centers, youth organizations, communities, and other actors. Open-source access to all project results is guaranteed for at least 5 years after the end of the project. Our intended impact is to initiate a broad debate on the increasing polarisation and to equip as many young people and teachers as possible with the tools to resolutely counteract the increasing polarisation and to stand up for a united, strong Europe."

<< Background >>We applied for an Erasmus+ funding with SEN4CE because we see and want to address the following needs with a high quality adult education digital training program:Circular Economy and sustainability – to mediate and ideally reverse climate change – will be THE upcoming topics and challenges for “the economy” – globally and in Europe. The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), policies like the EU Circular Economy Action Plan and related national policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve “climate neutrality” will need innovation by the economy and also by consumers.The demographic development of Europe and other „developed“ countries clearly shows that the percentage of elderly people/seniors in society will increase a lot during the coming years, also in the partner countries (see e.g. EUROSTAT https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/news/themes-in-the-spotlight/demographic-change-eu). Therefore, it is vital to reach out to our seniors and give them knowledge, awareness and curiosity for CE and sustainability. The UNDP report “Ageing, older persons and the 2030 agenda for sustainable development” (published in 2017) concludes in its recommendations, that it is vital to build an “intersection of ageing with other critical issues including […] environment”.Elderly people still contribute to the economy as “pure consumers” (who are not part of the workforce anymore) and could (and will have to) increase demand for circular products and services for a successful circular transition. However, aspects of circular economy need to be re-thought for the target group of elderly people: shopping without plastics and packaging might be feasible for young people, but elderly people might not be able to carry heavy loads of water bottles or reusable e.g. glass packaging. Nevertheless, elderly people will be the largest consumer group in the future (given demographic development). Therefore, current trends in circular economy (product-as-a-service and other digital tools, also from ambient assisted living concepts) will be evaluated and made accessible by teaching basic digital skills. All too often, life-long learning stops at the end of people’s work-life. SEN4CE will address seniors (60+) with a digital training program to foster life-long learning (core topics circular economy and digital tools) that empowers them to actively engage in the “green transition” and connect them with the young generation, for whom sustainability and circular economy are absolutely vital (in the truest sense of the word). While a lot of projects aim for training young people so they in turn can teach the elderly, SEN4CE “closes the loop” and educates and motivates elderly people and seniors to teach the young on circular economy and sustainability. To also include and involve seniors in retirement/care contexts, a combined circular economy/train the trainer digital training for people working with seniors in these contexts.<< Objectives >>The core aim and overall objective we want to achieve with SEN4CE is to engage and empower seniors for the green, sustainable, and digital circular economy of the future and involve them in high quality adult education and life-long learning.The primary target group (seniors 60+ years) will be directly addressed with a high quality adult education digital training program on circular economy, that can directly be shared and used by adult education and life-long learning providers. To reach the primary target group even better, a specific train-the-trainer digital training for people working with seniors in care/retirement contexts is developed. To reach the overall objective, we have identified the following concrete objectives for SEN4CE are:-to empower seniors to actively take part in sustainability and circular economy discussions, programs and initiatives-to foster life-long learning with custom tailored digital training materials for seniors on circular economy and digital tools-to foster intergenerational knowledge transfer and intersectoral (adult education/care and retirement) networks -to achieve a large, international impact, by addressing the target group through a broad spectrum of multipliers and channels<< Implementation >>All project management activities (e.g. creation of a project management handbook, an online working environment, a share and promotion plan and related materials and activities, quality management and coordination activities) aim at the successful implementation of the project results.Following state-of-the-art project management structures, the project results will be implemented according to the detailed tasks and methodologies described in this application.The digital training materials will be developed based on research and a thorough needs analysis. Game-based, scenario-based and interactive e-learnings combined with explainer videos will be used to ensure the most “learning impact” in the target group and also to make the training materials motivating and self-explaining. E-learnings will be created with Articulate 360 (Rise/Storyline) and the explainer videos with Powtoon.Special attention and focus will be given to the sharing and promotion activities and cooperations with other projects and initiatives. All partners will actively promote and share SEN4CE in their online channels and present the project at events and conferences.<< Results >>All of SEN4CE project results are aimed at achieving the concrete objectives mentioned above.Result 1: CE for seniors and life-long learningA course curriculum (including learning content) on circular economy for seniors will be developed. The curriculum will be created for 2 EQF levels (one version for enabling 2-3, one version for enabling 3-4) to ensure compatibility with the diverse learning needs of seniors 60+.Result 2: CE for care and retirement sectorA course curriculum and learning content for circular economy in the care and retirement sector will be developed, including a train-the-trainer program for staff to use the SEN4CE training (R1) with their clients. The curriculum will focus on enabling EQF 4.Result 3: Digital CE tools for seniorsCircular Economy goes hand in hand with digital tools. The focus of this result will be on digital applications for circular economy, enabling seniors to EQF 2-3 in digital tool skills.Result 4: Digital learning materialsDigital training materials will be developed, based on the concepts and curricula of R1-R3. The software Articulate will be used to create non-linear, scenario-based gamified e-learnings (depending on the choices of the learner, a different storyline will unfold, thereby encouraging replays and reuses of the materials). The digital training materials will be fully responsive (can be used/accessed in consistent high quality via smartphones, tablets or computers) and the design will take into account the needs of the target group (seniors) and respect highest barrier-free standards. The digital training will be based in blended learning methodology (e-learning and concept on how to use them in various settings, e.g. individual learning, group learning, workshops, seminars etc.), especially the train-the-trainer part of R2. Result 5: SEN4CE Digital environmentThe SEN4CE digital environment will be the primary sharing and promotion tool for the digital training courses. Special attention will be given to the design and visual identity to respect the needs of the target group seniors (easy access/barrier-free). Instead of developing “yet another platform”, the aim to is create highest possible compatibility with existing platforms.All results of SEN4CE will be available in English, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese.