#Commissioneeuropea, Direzione generale dell’Istruzione, della gioventù, dello sport e della cultura, Blended learning for inclusion, Ufficio delle pubblicazioni dell’Unione europea, 2023
The Girls Go Circular Project aims to equip 40,000 schoolgirls aged 14-19 across Europe with digital and entrepreneurial skills by 2027 through an online learning programme about the circular economy.
A Circular Economy for Smartphones and Electronic Devices
Mobile phones contain a lot of precious metals and minerals. Therefore, it is essential that we keep them working as long as possible and the raw materials that constitute them are recycled, reused or disposed of properly. Find out about the impact of smartphones and other electronic devices on the environment and learn how to create a circular economy for ICT appliances.
Circular Economy of Food in Cities
Cities can be key to driving circular change and transform the food system. It’s one of the most ambitious challenges of our time – if we get it right, we’ll help avoid a climate crisis, restore biodiversity, improve human health and reconnect people with their food – all the while creating new business opportunities. Let’s find out how in this module!
E-waste and the Circular Economy
This module looks at the growing problem of E-waste. It explores the importance of improving the collection, sorting and recycling of E-waste as well as the role a circular economy can play in eliminating waste in the first place.
Fashion and the Circular Economy
Clothes and textiles should have a higher utilisation rate and re-enter the economy after use, instead of ending up in landfill. Learn about the concept of circular fashion and its impact on the economy and the environment, and create your own business model.
Metals and the Circular Economy
A new approach is needed for the mining and metals industry. The high value of many metals and the environmental cost of their extraction makes it imperative to recycle, recover and reuse them. Check out this module to understand how metals can be extracted and used more sustainably.
Rethinking Plastics
Building a circular economy for plastics requires a complete rethinking of how it is designed and used. Research the benefits and problems of using plastics, discover solutions to tackle the global plastic waste crisis and propose alternatives for producing goods without plastic packaging.
Robotics and the Circular Economy
We are currently living in the new era of Manufacturing, a so-called Industry 4.0, in which innovative technologies such as Robotics and Artificial Intelligence are playing an essential part. Industry 4.0 bears enormous opportunities to enable circular economy in which end of life products are reused, remanufactured and recycled.
Tackling Climate Change Through Circular Consumption
This module emphasizes the role of the circular economy in tackling climate change. It gives an overview of the environmental issues relating to consumer goods and indicates how adopting circular consumption practices can help us reduce humanity’s climate impact.
Sustainable Mobility for Circular and Inclusive Cities
Adopting circular and more equitable planning approaches for improving the mobility systems of our cities is essential. Learn about environmental and societal challenges produced by urban mobility, and how the concept of sustainable mobility is addressing them by bringing together technology solutions with a healthier and greener lifestyle.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are relatively new technologies that are becoming exponentially more complex as they also quickly integrate into our societies and economies. This rate of change will rapidly increase the already significant unmet need for digital skills and competences across the EU.
This includes training for skills that will continue to require human expertise, often integrated with AI technologies. Increasing digital competences in vocational education and training (VET) is crucial to ensure that these new technologies can be utilized to improve citizens’ working lives at all social and economic levels.
The EU’s Council Recommendation on improving the provision of digital skills in education and training includes expanding vocational programmes in AI and cybersecurity. However, many initiatives focus on the use of technology for teaching and learning, rather than strengthening digital skills development.
Evidence from a 2020 study shows that in initial VET, digital skills are integrated across subjects rather than taught as a separate subject. Despite high demand for specialist digital skills such as managing and working with AI, the VET sector faces challenges in responding to these demands, with notable disparity across contexts and between Member States.
Digital skills for work and for life are at the top of the European Policy Agenda. The Commission also recently published DigComp 2.2, a significant update to its Digital Competence Framework for Citizens. It provides an integrated understanding of what digital competence is, and includes more than 250 new examples of knowledge, skills and attitudes to help citizens engage confidently and safely with digital technologies. This includes a dedicated annex (pp. 67-119) with more than 80 examples of new specific competences for citizens to engage confidently, critically and safely with AI systems.
Additional information
Education type:Vocational Education and Training
Target audience:Careers Councillor Government / policy makerHead Teacher / Principal ICT CoordinatorPedagogical Adviser Researcher Student Teacher Teacher Teacher Educator