Co-design and co-production processes are promising horizontal governance tools to innovate public administrations and the public sector in general. In particular, co-design processes aim at improving policy effectiveness by including a wide range of viewpoints in the formulation of public policies and in the design of public services, while co-production processes are designed and managed to involve ‘responsible citizens-users’ in the implementation of the policies and in public service delivery, and aim not only at improving policy effectiveness, but also at sustaining public sector intervention in the recent austerity era, during which governments (especially local governments) must face new social needs and complex problems with decreasing public resources. Notwithstanding the high potential of these processes as innovative and effective governance tools, practical evidence about their usefulness and sustainability for local administrators is still lacking, and local governments proceed mostly incrementally and unaware of potentials and pitfalls. ENLARGE project aims to shed some light on the ‘how and why’ issues of co-design and co-production processes through an intense policy dialogue between policy makers, experts in participatory governance and civil society actors. The specific focus is on sustainable energy and more in general all the solutions aiming at generating more efficiency and effectiveness in public services and public endowments. In detail, the project intends to: EXPLORE the existing models of co-design and co-production of public policies and services; EVALUATE – measures for the assessment of the outcomes; mechanisms and intervening factors favouring the effectiveness of participatory processes; PRODUCE - Raising awareness among public administrators about the options at their disposal and the potential consequences of these choices; COMMUNICATE and DISSEMINATE the project results.

"The European Commission, within the framework of the Europe 2020 strategy, is encouraging educational measures fighting youth unemployment. Special emphasis has been put on vocational education, thus recognizing its potential to provide specific knowledge and skills, which contribute to raising youth employability.The Green Ideas For Tourism for Europe project (GIFT) is aimed at improving the management skillset of students from tourism vocational schools by introducing them to the newest practices in environmentally sustainable tourism management. Environmental responsibility has been recognized as a key factor for the competitiveness of the European tourism industry, as cultural and natural resources are the main assets of the tourism. Therefore the ability to make environmentally sustainable decisions will not only raise the employability chances for tourism students, but will also contribute to the modernization of the sector in the future. GIFT for Europe proposes an innovative and interactive method of learning based on the use of an online educational tool. The online tool content is supported by graphics and videos, and the tool includes two interactive sections, thus presenting the information in a way, suitable for students with varied learning styles.The project consortium consists of organizations with rich experience in the fields of sustainable tourism management (Ecosystem Europe), environmental policies (SEI Tallinn), global education (Center for Inclusive Education), e-learning (Context Learning) and a tourism vocational high school (PGT ""Mihalaki Georgiev"", Vidin).The project implementation went through several phases. First research activities were carried out in order to provide information needed for the content of the website and the online tool. This requires a research of existing best managerial practices, governmental policies, educational needs, tourism SMEs case studies, as well as the drafting and analysis of student questionnaires to determine the level of awareness about the environmental impact of the tourism industry. The second consisted of the development of the website itself, as well as the production of supporting literature (user’s manual, manual for teachers). The development of the functionalities of the online tool has to match the needs of the target group in order to achieve a user-friendly product. After the completion of the online tool it is to be popularized among professionals and key stakeholders. A teacher’s manual will be produced and sixty teachers from Bulgaria, Estonia and Finland will undergo a training course and receive certification. They will then introduce the online tool in their respective schools, thus starting the first communities of users. Meanwhile wider recognition and use of the online tool will be sought through the familiarization of tourism SMEs with the tool and the advantages it can bring for them and meeting with key stakeholders (schools, representatives of professional organisations of the tourism industry, government officials, centres for professional education).The project is expected to raise the awareness of future tourism professionals about the environmental impact of the industry and familiarize them with the existing best practices. As a result of the use of the interactive online tool, the students will be able to make competent managerial decisions, specific to the particular case that they are being applied to. The involvement of real SMEs in the educational process, through the provision of case studies will strengthen the links between vocational education and the industry. By being able to reflect upon and find solutions to existing issues in the tourism industry, the students will gain valuable skills. The use of innovative technological solutions for educational purposes and the strengthening of the relations between vocational schools and businesses will modernize educational practices and make them more relevant to the actual needs of the labour market. In the long term, the existence of tourism professionals familiar both with the operational challenges of tourism SMEs and the best environmentally sustainable managerial practices will contribute to the development of a more sustainable, and therefore more competitive, European tourism industry."

H2-SEAS initiative is an Innovation Action targeting the overarching objectives of the topic HORIZON-MISS-2023-OCEAN-01-05. The initiative proposes a novel, fully-integrated hydrogen-electric fishing vessel to accelerate a sustainable and accessible transition to clean and efficient power for small-scale fishing fleets. Based on hydrogen fuel cell technology, the prototype will demonstrate increased energy efficiency and an environmentally friendly solution for the marine environment: zero emissions and low sound pollution. The project will be implemented by the design, construction, and operational demonstration of a hydrogen-electric fishing vessel, to test and validate its resilience in the harsh marine environment. The outcome will be complimented by the gathering of technical competencies provided by the Latvian Maritime Academy (Riga Technical University) and the Latvian shipyard AtoZ, which are in charge of major activities of hull design, engineering, building, and testing. Genevos, a French SME leader in the integration of hydrogen technologies in the maritime sector will provide the complete energy system engineering, including certified Hydrogen Power Modules, gas integration design and installation. In parallel, survey and research activities will be undertaken by the Estonian Tallinn Centre of the Stockholm Environment Institute and the Latvian Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences to report on regulation and barriers for small-scale fishing ship decarbonisation and to assess the environmental impact of the H2-SEAS initiative on the marine environment. The Distance Education Study Centre (Riga Technical University) will implement and maintain effective project management to create and lead dissemination and exploitation of results forming long-term synergies to broaden hydrogen fuel cell energies for small-scale fishing ships perspectives and meet the European Green deal objectives and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.

<< Background >>The VINCI multi-disciplinary partners applied for this project as they have an interested in contributing in the fight against climate change by focusing on the tourism sector. There are many human activities that are contributing to the generation of CO2 emissions and thus to the climate change problem. The European Commission has as a matter of fact launched the 'Green Deal' action plan with the intent of making the EU's economy more sustainable by turning climate and environmental challenges into opportunities and making the transition just and inclusive for all. As clearly outlined in this action plan, the main economic actors i.e. EU businesses, consumers and citizens, are expected to be the driving force behind this transition towards a low-carbon and climate resilient continent. One of the EU's economic sectors that contributes to CO2 emissions and that thus needs to take action to help reach the ambitious EU's 2030 Green Deal target of reducing gas emissions by at least 55% is the tourism sector. The behavior and decision making of tourism stakeholders such as passengers, travel agents, hotels, tour operators etc. involved in the three main phases of travel tourism i.e. (i) preparing to travel (ii) mobility/travelling phase and (iii) activities at the destination phase, need to be increasingly re-aligned with low carbon activities. The transition towards the 2030 goals also provide an opportunities to individuals that want to be entrepreneurial in this sector. Such an entrepreneurial drive needs to be amplified to help unlock the jobs potential vested within a low carbon tourism economy.There is thus an urgent need to address these issues by making these tourism stakeholders aware that they are implicitly contributing to climate change challenges and to thus train them with 'basic skills that help foster low carbon tourism’ activities as well as with best practices and other actions that can be executed to help control and offset CO2 emissions. Tourism stakeholders need to understand the link between Climate Change, Tourism & Transport, Low Carbon Footprint Energy Sources and concepts of how to designing Low Carbon Tourism Travel Paths and Options. At the same time, many of these tourism sector stakeholders are too busy to attend training courses to help them learn the fundamentals of 'low carbon tourism'. To compound the issue more, VET trainers/tourism mentors lack relevant training resources on ''basic skills of low carbon tourism (LCT)'' that can help them explicitly target and reach out to tourism learners and stakeholders. In addition, EU citizens travelling as tourists need guidance on decisions they can make to help them follow a 'green travel path'. There is thus a need to provide VET trainers/tourism mentors with a set of innovative training resources they can use with such tourism stakeholders/learners to help them learn at their own pace, time and location.<< Objectives >>The VINCI project thus aims to foster a shift towards low carbon tourism (LCT) and foster related entrepreneurship across a number of EU Member States. To do so, the VINCI project brings together a number of partners from across Europe, purposely chosen in such a way to ensure a good mix and balance between experts in Climate Change/Sustainability, Tourism, Entrepreneurship, work-based training, VET Curriculum development/pedagogy and digital technologies (AR/VR and m- / e-Learning). In addition, given tourism and related economic activities vary across Europe’s Geographic spread, the VINCI consortium brings together partners from Northern Europe down to the very South. Together, these VINCI partners have thus set the following objectives to help reach the overall project aim:OB1: development of an innovative curriculum to help fosters low carbon tourism activities and amplify related entrepreneurship;OB2: raising awareness through 'best practice' case-studies of how tourism stakeholders can generate less CO2 emissions in all three phases of travel tourism;OB3: develop a set of modular training resources on low carbon tourism activities and related entrepreneurship, some of which will be Augmented and/or Virtual Reality based to better engage learners;OB4: development of the VINCI Toolbox consisting of a repository of digital training resources on LCT, including an m-/e-Learning platform to help stakeholders acquire skills on LCT even at their place of work & home;OB5: development of a Trainer's Guide e-book intended to recommend to VET trainers, specific training units and/or training styles relevant to different tourism sector stakeholders;OB6: to disseminate in both the partner countries and other EU Member States, awareness on the concept of LCT as well as the VINCI project results that can exploited by the project's target groups that includes VET trainers/tourism mentors, VET learners as well as tourism sector stakeholders including entrepreneurs.<< Implementation >>As detailed in the VINCI proposal, to reach the set objectives, the project will, through a three-phase implementation methodology, execute a number of activities summarised below:(a) It will pool the multi-disciplinary expertise of the members of the partnership by organising regular virtual meetings (ZOOM/SKYPE) and also 4 transnational F2F project meetings. These meetings will collectively help decision making regarding the design, implementation and review of the set project results with respects to quality and knowledge transfer effectiveness;(b) It will take a number of actions such as consulting associate partners, VET training stakeholders etc. that will help shape the development of the individual project results;(c) Partners will collectively work through a division of tasks, to use their expertise to develop the project’s three (4) main results.(d) Organize an online training session to help project partner staff learn how to develop AR and VR educational content;(e) Organize internal peer reviews of project results to ensure the necessary quality is reached;(f) Seek external reviews of project results mainly through demos to associate partners and feedback obtained from participants in multiplier events;(g) Organize project management activities such as setting up internal reporting templates to report on status of project deliverables, financial spending etc to ensure timely corrective action can be taken where necessary. These will be enshrined in bilateral agreements to be endorsed between the partners and the coordinator.(h) Partners will setup various dissemination channels in the form of a project webpage, digital newsletter, social media channels and even organise six multiplier events (one in each partner country) to spread awareness of both the VINCI project and more importantly, the openly available project results that include the VINCI Digital Toolbox with the set of resources by which knowledge on Low Carbon Tourism and related Entrepreneurship can be spread by VET Trainers/tourism mentors and acquired by VET Learners/tourism stakeholders;<< Results >>On completion, the VINCI project will deliver the following key results (R):R1: An Innovative Curriculum To Foster knowledge on Low Carbon Tourism concepts and amplify related Entrepreneurship;R2: A Set of Twelve AR/VR Enhanced Case-studies of how stakeholders can generate less CO2 emissions in all three travel phases involved in the tourism sector;R3: The VINCI 'Low Carbon Tourism and related Entrepreneurship' Digital VET Toolbox;R4: The VINCI Trainers Guide e-Book on Low Carbon Tourism and related Entrepreneurship;Thus by the end of the project, VET Trainers of tourism stakeholders will have a set of modular resources they can use to effectively train learners (staff members of tourism related organisations) according to their own learning style and needs. These will include augmented and/or virtual reality (AR/VR) enhanced training resources, that are intended to engage learners with a more visual and interactive way to learning on LCT. In addition, the VINCI Toolbox will provide travelling tourists with resources they can use to help them make 'green travel path' decisions during their travel phases. Needless to say, during the initial stages of the project, the VINCI partners will generate a Project Management Plan, a Quality Assurance Plan and also a Dissemination and Exploitation Plan to ensure both quality of results as well as project impact/knowledge sharing effectiveness.The project will also result in at least one multiplier event in each partner country targeting VET trainers and in particular tourism sector stakeholders including relevant associations and staff members, to make them aware of the VINCI project and its openly available training resources and m-Learning Toolbox. The project will also result in a number of dissemination outputs including a project webpage, social media presence, digital newsletters and articles in local media of partner organisations all aimed at raising knowledge on the concept of 'low carbon tourism' and of course the resources being made available by the VINCI project.

The EU has defined smart and sustainable growth as one of the priorities (EU Strategy 2020). An essential part for reaching these priorities is innovation. Innovation structures and support measures are being established and provided at the EU and at various levels in its member states. However, recently there is more attention to bottom-up rather than top-down innovation: for example, innovative, new business and project development which is based upon ventures from creative and business class: students from universities, technical, art and business schools. This approach has been employed in several places and has a good innovation potential. The project is based on the knowledge transfer idea from countries where there are established efficient, bottom up innovation structures and platforms, such as in the Netherlands and Denmark. The partners who represent countries with lower innovation capacities (Latvia, Estonia and Cyprus) wanted to learn from this experience, test the approaches and establish similar labs in their countries.Project objective was to raise bottom-up innovation capacity for the benefit of sustainable and socially responsible growth in Estonia, Latvia and Cyprus, based on the experiences from Denmark and the Netherlands. To reach the project aim, the project defined the following sub-objectives:1) To learn about student based innovation labs in the Netherlands and Denmark;2) To transfer, mutually learn and disseminate knowledge about student based innovation labs;3) To establish cross sectoral, student-based innovation platforms (Innovation labs) linking universities, intermediaries (innovation and sustainability agents), local industries and stakeholders; 4) To link education with practical innovation projects by engaging university students and teachers to work on practical, multidisciplinary sustainability and social issues on the selected practical issues, creating together new innovative projects or ventures which benefit the issues of sustainability or social challenges, as a part of their bachelor or master education;5) To develop and carry out 4-5 student projects for Innovation labs in each partner university;6) To disseminate project results.Regarding number and profile of participants, there were 8 organizations in the partnership: Foundation for Society (FS, NGO, Latvia); SEI Tallinn (SEIT, NGO, Estonia), Interfusion Services Ltd (IFSS, SME, Cyprus); Vidzeme University (VA, university, Latvia); Sticthing NHL (NHL,university, the Netherlands); Aalborg University (AAU, university, Denmark), Cyprus University of Technology (CUT,university, Cyprus) and Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA, university, Estonia).Description of activitiesThe project carried out preparatory, implementation and dissemination activities: feasibility studies, prepared innovation lab (further – innolabs) development plans for universities; run staff training and study visits to the NL and DK; established innolabs in operation and tested them by running student projects in LV, EE and CY universities; run various dissemination and engagement activities, such as workshops, presentations; conference; website, student project contests and others). Each innolab in partner universities in EE, LV and CY run its first round of student innovation projects. Two methodological materials for establishment of innolabs and running them in universities have been produced.Results and impact attained- The innovation capacity has been raised in LV, EE and CY by establishment of innolabs in these universities, raising the competitiveness of the participant universities of their staff and students, the local regions, and the clients and stakeholders of these innolabs;- New knowledge generated during staff training events;- New business opportunities and creativity has been promoted and new links and relationships with clients of innolabs established;- The students have increased their skills of working together, producing results, presenting their results which shall help them into their working lives; - Sustainable innovations - emergence of innovative products, services, initiatives have been generated, for example, a product for Sports Ident company was produced by the VA student team,- Methodological materials produced will help other innolabs to be established and to be improved.Potential longer term benefits are achieved through ensuring the continuation of the innovation labs operation in future. This has been achieved by the top-management approved innolab development plans in the universities of LV, CY and EE. Therefore it is a well-grounded expectation that established innolabs will continue to work in future and will result in new, innovative activities, products, services, spin-offs and start-ups, thus raising innovation capacities, economic attractiveness and sustainable development of local regions and stimulating bottom-up innovation for the EU organisations at international level.