Training issues of the Green-Comp-IT project refer to development of the concept of “green economy”, which constitutes a response to global problems of environmental degradation caused by expansive economic activity. Annually increasing amount of industrial and municipal waste, as well as improper way of proceeding with them constitute a serious threat for people and environment. It should be emphasised that waste mangement in the EU constitutes a quickly developing market, which generates new jobs requiring new knowledge, skills and competences. The CEDEFOP Skills for Green Jobs (2010) report emphasises that in the future each workplace will have to be favourable for more efficient management of resources and that development of low-emissions economy (Europe 2020 Strategy) will require improvement of present skills. Assuming the above-mentioned context, there has been established the partnership of the Green-Comp-ICT project including EU countries (PL, SE, DE, PT). Its main aim shall be constituted by transfer of European good practice, development and improvement of the quality of training and professional qualifications of employees within the Waste Management (WM) area with use of IT tools supporting processes of competence management and development of training modules based on standards of professional qualifications and learning outcomes (knowledge, skills, competences). The project assumes preparation and better use of ICT and OER (Open Educational Resources) tools and achievement of coherence between European and national tools concerning recognisability of qualifications and competences.Project measures and outcomes are directed to various recipient groups: training institutions from the area of waste management, employees of SME responsible for waste management, institutions occupying with development, validation and confirmation of professional qualifications and competences, HR employees, professional and personal advisers. This project refers to detailed objectives of the Erasmus+ Programme: improvement of quality, innovativeness and internationalisation of educational institutions, modernisation of educational systems through exchange of good practice and outcomes, use of European tools facilitating recognition and transfer of qualifications, development of an international dimension of education and training, especially through cooperation of institutions from countries participating in the program with institutions from the programme’s partner countries in the sector of vocational education and training. Measures related to preparation of the project outcomes shall include above all execution of comparative researches of qualifications and competences from the WM area present on the 4-5 EQF/NQF level; recognition and exchange of good European practice within the scope of developing standards of professional competences and training within the WMO; development (according to a research method adopted in the partnership) of a description of standards of professional competences (SPC) and units of learning outcomes (ULO) for a new occupation Enterprise Waste Management Technician/Organiser (EWMT/O); based on SPC and ULO, design of a bank of training modules considering requirements of the ECVET system, competency tests and development of a platform and e-learning content for EWMT/O; development and test of an IT tool for diagnosing, identifying competence gaps and to study growth of knowledge among training participants concerning the EWMT/O occupation, operating based on SPC and ULO and including the base of competency tests and training modules; implementation of a blended learning training of a pilot form for MSE employees with use of developed OER for EWMT/O and establishment of European network of training institutes and enterprises for the benefit of development of professional competences within the WM area.As dissemination measures, one plans above all information seminars organised in each partner country, international conference suming up project implementation, book and training film documenting good European practice, project website together with shared outcomes and OER for the new occupation EWMT/O.Potential long-term benefits of the project include internationalisation of the activities of the project partners, training institutions and enteprises through their inclusion in the European network of development of professional competences within the area of WM, development of national training based on learning outcomes and ECVET approach, increased capacity of employment for persons with confirmed qualifications in the EWMT/O occupation. Moreover, it is assumed to integrate an IT tool developed in the project with the Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe (EPALE), as well as to adjust this tool and the methodology of establishing standards of professional competences for other occupations resulting from development strategies of economy and labour market.

Problems of the TRANS-FINECVET project refer to development of the European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET) in the European Union and to implementation of curriculum solutions developed with consideration of EQF/NQF requirements and descriptors describing learning outcomes (knowledge, skills and competences). Due to the above conditions, the project partnership has been established and it has included three EU countries (Poland, Finland, Spain), the key aim of which shall be constituted by transfer of European good practice at practical implementation of the ECVET approach, as well as development and improvement of quality of professional qualifications in occupations important for the European labour market, i.e. Child Care Worker and Health Care Assistant acquired in formal and non-formal education. Innovative character of the project shall be manifested, inter alia, in development of a new ICT tool to support processes of creation, update and evaluation of descriptions of qualifications and units of learning outcomes, with regard to development and improvement of quality of a curriculum offer in the above-mentioned occupations belonging to the group 5311 and 5321 in the ISCO-08.The project assumes preparation and more efficient use of ICT tools and open educational resources, as well as achievement of coherence between the European and national tools concerning recognisability of professional qualifications and competences.Project measures and outcomes are directed to a broad group of recipients, including teachers and trainers in the both professions. Methodologists, careers advisers, research institutions, training institutions, adult 50+, women getting back on the labour market, teachers are threats of the lose the job.This project and its outcomes correspond with detailed objectives of the Erasmus+ Programme: improvement of quality, innovativeness and internationalisation of educational institutions, modernisation of educational systems through exchange of good practice and outcomes, as well as use of European tools facilitating recognition and transfer of qualifications on the sector of vocational education and training. Measures related to preparation of the project outcomes shall include i.a. execution of international comparative research of requirements of standards of professional competences for two occupations that are subject to transfer and preparation of a report and recommendations directed to target groups (output O1); development of methodical material concerning transfer of good practice from Finland to other partner countries within the scope of implementing the ECVET approach in the practice of vocational education and training (output O2); comparison of this solution with solutions functioning in Poland and Spain in order to support recommendations to enhance national initiatives related to ECVET (output O3); execution of comparative research of curriculum offers functioning on the market for two occupations in order to identify learning outcomes that are common and differentiating particular partner countries (output O4); development of a base of descriptions of qualifications and units of learning outcomes for the above-mentioned occupations according to the methodology adopted in the partnership and constituting the source of valid knowledge about qualification requirements for future employees in these occupations (output O5). The above-mentioned outcomes shall constitute information resource for a developed interactive ICT tool applied, inter alia, to update and evaluate a catalogue of learning outcomes identified in the project and appropriate for the occupations: Child Care Worker and Health Care Assistant (output 6), which may be used for cyclical verification of the quality of vocational education and training curricula.As dissemination measures, it is planned, among others, to organize video-conference seminars, in each partner country, international conference summing up project implementation, multilingual book and the project website together with shared open educational resources (OER), access to the ICT tool and the database. Assessment covered all functional modules of the tool:•Form for registration of institutions and experts („Participation”)•Competences catalogue•Competences tests•Institutions catalogue•Experts catalogue•Glossary of terms•Contact information.Application was again made available on a Web server in ITeE - PIB at: http: http://trans-finecvet.eu/service/en/. Potential long-term benefits of the project include, inter alia, internationalisation of the activities of the project partners, educational institutions, development of national training based on learning outcomes and ECVET approach, increased capacity of employment for persons with confirmed qualifications in the above-mentioned occupations taught in the mode of formal and non-formal education.

Current activities promoting employment in many EU countries are insufficient. ALMP expenses in eastern Europe are low compared with other countries. In many countries, programmes do not increase the employability of participants. Disadvantage in the labour market is persistent. It is notable that disadvantaged groups do worse than others during recession, and remain unemployed more at any time. Current approaches are ineffective at the level of individuals in need of help. Council Resolution November 2008 noted that ‘Member States should [...] consider:- including activities which foster the development of career management skills - preparing teachers and trainers to conduct such activities- facilitating access to information about skills needs - developing career management skills- making guidance one of the objectives of schools, VET providers and higher education- integration into working life.’There is a large and growing body of scientific evidence from around the world concerning the methods of guidance which are most effective in helping people choose and succeed in suitable careers. Many people in schools, colleges, organisations and NGOs for disadvantaged groups have responsibility or contribute to the transition to work, and have little or no training in career guidance.The aim of the project has been therefore to: - review the evidence of what works in career and employment advice- apply scientifically validated methods to support the findings and test the effective methods in employment advice for disadvantaged people - work with all those providing careers advice to school- and college-leavers as well as adult job seekers (schools, colleges, PES, NGOs, welfare-to-work service providers services, career centres) to establish effective usable ways to improve services- create, test, apply & disseminate training that will enhance the performance of careers advisors, VET staff with employment objectives- make training available online, in workplaces, in modular accessible form- develop a guide to help organisations adopt evidence-based methods, including guidance on training, installation, self-assessment and use of skills & activities that work in organisations - publish a Handbook of Career Advice Skills based on the project findings- make resources available as Open Educational Resources.The six partners from 5 countries – TREXIMA Bratislava (SK), VRC Ltd (UK), M.M.C Management Center (CY), Human Profess Közhasznú (HU), Institute for Sustainable Technologies – National Research Institute (PL) and Spoluprácou pre lepšiu budúcnosť Veľký Meder (SK) – reviewed scientific evidence from around the world about the most effective methods of guidance for helping people choose and succeed in suitable careers. Based on research results, we have created a curriculum to train counsellors, employment advisors and others working with disadvantaged groups, enabling them to apply the methods that research has shown to be effective. The curriculum has undergone controlled comparative testing in four countries, and has led to the publication of Handbook of Career Advice Skills based on the project findings.Partners have tested their products in two phases with about 120 learners/users working in the field of career advice. 24 persons took part in the first trial (in person training) and 85 persons took part in the second trial (in person training combined with distance and e-learning). Additional users took part in an e-platform testing and we are continuously receiving further feedback. Their experiences have been used to ensure usable and accessible products that develop skills for use at work and that complement existing practices and qualifications.The impact of the project has been mainly improvement of services to disadvantaged people looking for work and/or being in transition from school to work: - better empowerment in the labour market through more effective guidance support and advice skills- development of skills that support employability. The deployed evaluation questionnaires to measure quality and success of the developed training programme showed increase in confidence scores in all countries for advisors/learners, their managers and trainers (from project partners staff).In the long term, guidance services should benefit from project results by:- use of better skills for counsellors- access to guidance on implementation to help organisations modernise careers advice services- development of a definitive ‘text’ and toolkit for advisors, VET trainers on the evidence base, practice and ethics that underpin and energise vocational guidance and employment support- availability of extensive distance learning materials that may be translated and applied in different settings and through different media- application of behavioural assessment criteria for the learning of skills and for the award to advisors- provision of the products as ODL.

An important element of business launch is a business model, which particularly in the modern times of fast paced technological, economic, market and social changes is a pre-requisite for the success of an enterprise. Unfortunately, not many entrepreneurs-to-be realise the power of business models and seem not to pay enough attention to this stage of company creation. It is estimated that the percentage of people who wish to be self-employed is still significantly lower in Europe than in the US and China (European Commission, 2013), and only 50% of European start-ups survive the first five years (EIM Business and Policy Research, 2011). A common reason for that, apart from insufficient funding and support, is the lack of a well-designed business model, or sticking to the same business model for too long, which makes it impossible to adjust to the changes coming with market globalisation. Therefore, it was important to provide future entrepreneurs with an easy and helpful business models compendium. And that is where the 'Understanding and Developing Business Models' (ProBM) project came in handy. The project was conducted in KA2 Strategic Partnerships: Exchange of good practices, and strived to provide a common ground for the exchange of experience and know-how between different types of organisations involved in adult and entrepreneurship education, and develop a network for transnational cooperation. The project focused on entrepreneurship education, and thus addressed one of the eight key competences as specified in European Council Recommendation no 2006/962/EC, that is sense of initiative and entrepreneurship. The ProBM project assumed greater focus on encouraging people to become entrepreneurs and making it easier for them to start a business, which is directly related to the provisions of the Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan.The partnership included five organisations: research institute (Poland), and adult training organisations (Italy, Greece, Slovenia and the Czech Republic), which co-operated together in order to fulfil effectively all the project's tasks.The main objective of the 'Understanding and Developing Business Models' (ProBM) project was to analyze adults’ actual knowledge and skills in the field of business model design and implementation, learn from the experience and good practices from partner countries and design a business models compendium, which being a kind of an informal educational toolkit, is helpful for future entrepreneurs. In order to fulfil all the planned objectives, the partners undertook several steps (i.e. case study analysis and survey questionnaire) to develop a compendium as a final result of the project works. The designed compendium is now available in six languages: English, Italian, Polish, Slovenian, Greek and Czech. It can be easily downloaded in PDF format from the project website www.businessmodels.eu. The compendium includes the following chapters: theoretical background of business models aspect; the executive summaries from case studies analysis performed in enterprises and the results of the survey questionnaire with the ordinary citizens (also available on the website as separate files), examples of exercises related to business models aspect, and useful word bank. Moreover, the compendium includes the annex containing the detailed results of the survey with ordinary citizens on the needs of business models in practice (comparative analysis). The annex is available in English (in the case of Greek compendium the annex is also translated into Greek). The project brought added value to the EU entrepreneurial ecosystem, and had the impact on the participants, participating organisations, target groups and relevant stakeholders, through the completion of following planned detailed objectives:(1) Creating a transnational project consortium and developing a network for transnational cooperation facilitating the exchange of experience and know-how between different types of organisations involved in adult and entrepreneurship education (not only partners' organisations, but also the network of scientific institutions and private entrepreneurs);(2) Facilitating the exchange of good practices in the field of business model design and implementation;(3) Helping target groups increase sense of initiative and entrepreneurship and increase opportunities for professional development by boosting business model development and implementation knowledge and skills.The main output can be successfully used by the entrepreneurs starting their adventure in business activity area. Moreover, the compendium can be a useful material in secondary schools when learning and teaching about business activity aspect. Therefore, it seems crucial to submit the proposition of a larger project focused on the design of the complex curriculum related to the business models topic, which could be used by the students in secondary schools and at teriary level.

"Project EcoMentor concentrated on the situation in the eco sector in the field of work-based-learning (WBL). As it was pointed out by the European Ministers of Vocational Education and Training in the Bruges Communiqué, WBL constitute a foundation for the social coherence of the current and future employees as well as the base for their professional and personal development. It is worth and important to include WBL into the strategic activities on the national and international levels. The renewed European agenda for adult learning also calls for promoting WBL, as a form of vocational education and training, which assure achievement of the aims of the Strategy ET 2020. Partnership of the project was properly selected and consist of 5 institutions from 4 countries: Poland (PL), Greece (EL), Italy (IT) and United Kingdom (UK). Partners have been chosen according to the project's aims and the expertise needed. They represent different culture and traditions of vocational education as well as assure geographical diversity of the partnership. The main aim of the project was to use good European practices, increase the availability and improve the quality of work-based learning, through skills development of mentors - experienced staff of companies assisting in obtaining necessary professional qualifications, taking care of trainees in the workplace, including the trainees participating in internships or apprenticeships in companies of the eco-industry. The mentor’s responsibility is to facilitate, stimulate and support the development of employees and prospective employees (interns, apprentices) by sharing their knowledge and professional skills, values and attitudes.In order to achieve the abovementioned aim, a system of certification of mentor’s competences was implemented. The system focused on the employees of eco-industry. Its implementation enabled: - Recognition of learning outcomes (non-formal and informal) of experienced eco-industry workers in the area of mentoring competencies necessary in the process of work-based training- Complementing employees’ professional competencies in eco-industry with mentoring competence enabling them to build a master-trainee relationship in the course of work-based learning- Enhancing the competencies of workers in the eco-industry resulting in the increase of their competitiveness in the labour market and the increase of employment opportunities (for the unemployed) or job keeping.The results of the project were aimed at different audiences, in particular: at vocational training institutions in the ""eco"" area of industry, teachers/trainers preparing for work in the eco-industry, employees in the eco-industry, institutions involved in the development, validation and certification of vocational qualifications and competencies, HR employees as well as professional and personal advisors.Main results of the project are:1) The standard of professional competences (SPC) for mentors of eco-industry which was based on the framework of general mentors' competences developed in CertiMenTu project. The competences of mentors were defined at level 5 of EQF. 2) Training programme for mentors which was developed based on the standard of professional competence (IO1) available in English and in the national languages of participating partners. 3) Blended learning VET course for mentors in eco-industry which was based on the developed VET programme. Τhe training course has been developed as blended learning course, melding face-to-face activities and a Moodle e-learning platform. All the materials are available in e-learning platform and the Trainers Handbooks. The e-learning platform is based on Moodle, an open source course management system (CMS). 4) Certification system for mentors in the eco-industry (your short part)5) Methodological and organizational compendium of ECVET system for mentors in eco-industry which gives an overview of the current state of progress of ECVET tool implementation and other systems available for recognition of competences among different EU states. The Compendium has been conceived as a practical guide on how to use the ECVET system in eco-industry. 6) The monograph summarizing the results of the project. The aim of this publication is to make the project results available, especially to VET experts dealing with formal and non-formal continuing education and to people who are or want to become mentors in eco-industry.All the results are available in 4 languages: English, Polish, Greek and Italian."