CATALYST: European VET Excellence Centre for Leading Sustainable Systems and Business Transformation
Vocational Education and Training (VET) is key when it comes to a long-term and systemic shift of European economies toward more sustainability and resilience. New skills are also needed to leverage opportunities stemming from the sustainable digital transition. The CATALYST project “European VET Excellence Centre for Leading Sustainable Systems and Business Transformation” is designed with a strong vision and motivation to contribute to the realization of the European Green Deal and the new Industrial and SME Strategies.
The main goal is the establishment of a united CATALYST Centre of Vocational Excellence in 5 countries to give support, create an educational offer to tackle personal and organizational development and embrace transformation in SMEs, enabling and inspiring them to re-think and re-design their business models, co-creating and sharing between educational and business organizations.
The project fosters innovation and applied knowledge in approaches of learning and tailor-made VET program via the “Enable component”, as well as the support of SMEs to create sustainable businesses via the “Inspire component”.
The main project outputs are:
- 5 CoVEs and CATALYST Network anchored the European VET eco-system;
- 70 VET courses for up-skilling professionals and students (Enable component);
- Co-create and disseminate applied knowledge inspiring business-education partnerships involving students, professionals, and SMEs (Inspire component)’
- Create CATALYST Platform which will unite all CoVEs on the European level;
- Implement VET training, pilot-project with SMEs, and applied joint research projects in selected sectors according to the national S3;
- Raise awareness of the potential CATALYST CoVEs have and increase the demand and attractiveness of VET.
Activities are focused on learning opportunities, applied joint research projects, innovative training methodologies and tools, and support for SMEs on relevant topics, where more than 5000 beneficiaries (professionals, students, and SMEs) can benefit.
The desired impact of the project is for the established CoVEs to be ‘catalysts’ on national, regional, and European levels, ‘enable’ change, and ‘inspire’ and transformation of individuals and SMEs toward more sustainable systems and societies.
The project partners are coming from 5 European countries, representing Central, South-eastern, and South-western Europe, and additionally, the strength that come with the P16 – SDSN, which is a European network, with over 360 member organizations across Europe. Also, added value and great geographical composition is enhanced with 41 associated partners, who besides the 5 core countries, come from 11 additional countries: Finland, Lithuania, Netherlands, Slovenia, Poland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, UK, Albania, Serbia, Spain, and Cyprus.
Funding Body: Erasmus+ Programme (ERASMUS)
Duration: Start date: 1 June 2022 – End date: 30 May 2026
Budget: Overall € 2,770,131
Leading Institution: Institute for Research in Environment, Civil Engineering and Energy (North Macedonia)
16 partners
Partnership:
Athens University of Economics and Business – Research Center, AUEB-RC – GREECE
Principal Investigator
Prof. Koundouri
Team Members:
Panagiota Koltsida Lydia Papadaki Eleni Toli
