Discover exciting opportunity at ALL DIGITAL! ALL DIGITAL is hiring the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)!

ALL DIGITAL is a leading pan-European association, representing member organizations that work to enhance digital skills. We believe that every European should be able to exploit the benefits and opportunities created by digital transformation.

Formally established in 2010 as ‘Telecentres Europe,’ the concept of ALL DIGITAL started at a meeting in Barcelona in 2007 between several European organizations partnering with Microsoft in equipping citizens with digital skills. It became clear there was a real need to establish cohesion at a European level to drive projects, policy changes, and growth in advancing towards digital inclusion for all European citizens. Fast-forward to today and ALL DIGITAL has become a dynamic, European, 100+ member organisation with a clear purpose and vision.

The position of Chief Executive Officer is primarily responsible for leadership, strategic direction, growth, and member stakeholder engagement. With its current CEO stepping down, ALL DIGITAL is seeking a capable leader with substantial networking and stakeholder management expertise, who can elevate its effectiveness and visibility as an organisation within the European policy landscape.

Candidates must have a background in, or a keen passion for, digital equity and education, demonstrable experience in navigating the EU policy landscape, and a track record of effective leadership.

ALL DIGITAL is at a turning point in its growth journey, and needs a charismatic, strategic CEO with the ability to help it harness the opportunities that rapid digital transformation present, whilst also building its visibility and diversifying its income streams.

The CEO will be based in Brussels, Belgium, and the role will be primarily office-based.

ALL DIGITAL are being assisted in this appointment by the executive search firm, Society. Applications should consist of a CV and covering letter, and these can be uploaded via Society’s website here. The deadline for receipt of applications is midday CEST on Friday, 2 August 2024.

For more information please consult the candidate pack.

We are committed to ensuring that anyone can access our application processes. This includes people with hearing, sight, mobility, and cognitive impairments. Should you require access to this document in an alternative format, wish to apply in a different format, or need any other reasonable adjustments made for you (including at interview), please contact us at inclusion@society-search.com. We also welcome suggestions or comments about any more general access improvements we should consider.

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Date: 19 June at 14.00-15.30

Join us by registering on Webex

Narrative

The ALL DIGITAL Weeks awareness-raising campaign ended on 31 May, marking another successful year of promoting digital education and inclusion across Europe. This year, we proudly reached more than 50.000 people across Europe.

With the invaluable support of our national coordinators, the campaign was effectively sustained and promoted throughout Europe. These coordinators, who are current members of ALL DIGITAL, played a crucial role in connecting with local organizations dedicated to enhancing digital skills in their respective countries. They ensured the campaign’s visibility, managed local partnerships, and monitored performance at the national level.

Embracing the campaign’s motto, “Enhance Your Digital Skills,” our national coordinators organized and promoted a variety of events, conferences, courses, and training sessions that equipped diverse population groups with essential digital skills and education. These initiatives aimed to boost digital knowledge and skills in the eight core areas covered by our themes.

The national coordinators organised and promoted events, conferences, courses and training aimed at increasing digital knowledge and skills of their participants in the areas covered by the 8 core themes:

• • Digital Skills for employment, entrepreneurship and innovation (reskilling and up-skilling for all from basic to advanced skills)
  • Digital Skills in “Equity, Diversity and Inclusion’’ – from basic to advanced (migration, democratisation, gender gap, ethnicity
  • DigComp, DigCompEdu and Digital Skills Certifications
    (MyDigiSkills, European Digital Skills Certificate, DigComp Hub)
  • Digital media literacy and disinformation
  • Cybersecurity and safer internet
  • Digital Skills for Environment and Sustainability
    (reference to Twin Transition, GreenComp, SDGs)
  • Digital Skills for specific sectors
    (education, cultural and creative industries, transportation, health…).
  • The application of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in education and training
    We invite you to hear the inspiring stories from our national coordinators and discover the significant impact the campaign had across Europe. Join us in celebrating the achievements of the ALL DIGITAL Weeks campaign and continue to support our mission of empowering all individuals through digital education and inclusion.

DRAFT AGENDA

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ALL DIGITAL Awards 2024: Best use of GenAI in Education

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description:

Are you a teacher, trainer, or facilitator with a passion for innovation in education? Do you thrive on exploring new technologies to create engaging and effective learning experiences for your learners? If so, we invite you to showcase your creativity and expertise!

The new category of ALL DIGITAL Awards 2024 is dedicated to celebrating the innovative use of Generative AI tools in educational content creation*.

Whether you’re using the power of AI-generated texts, images, or simulations, we want to see how you’re using it to enrich teaching and learning activities.

We’re seeking submissions that push the boundaries of educational content creation while promoting inclusivity, accessibility, and ethical use of AI.

*Educational content refers to any material, resources, or information designed specifically for learning purposes. It encompasses a wide range of formats, including text, images, videos, presentations, interactive simulations, and more. Educational content aims to convey knowledge, skills, and concepts to learners, either independently or as part of a structured learning experience. This content can cover various subjects, topics, and levels of complexity, catering to diverse learners’ needs and preferences. Educational content may be created by educators, instructional designers, content developers, or generated through automated processes such as Generative AI. Its primary goal is to support and enhance the teaching and learning process, facilitating comprehension, retention, and application of knowledge and skills.

Competition: Interacting with GenAI – Production of educational content

The Interacting with GenAI competition invites teachers, trainers, and facilitators to create innovative educational content on the topic of interacting with Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI). The aim is to promote knowledge and understanding of AI and to develop practical skills in using generative AI tools to create educational material.

Content requirements

• Content must be created using generative AI tools.
• Content must encourage critical reflection on the ethics and social implications of AI.

Apply here: https://share-eu1.hsforms.com/1uoSMCLcqQH-ctXf6iQAmIwf3rsa

 Deadline: 15 July 2024

 Selection: Jury

 Assessment criteria:

• Innovation and Creativity
• Impact on Learning
• Ethical Considerations
• Alignment with the DigComp 2.2 Framework

Innovation and creativity:

The effectiveness of the content to engage learners and foster dynamic and interactive learning will be assessed.

Impact on learning:

The impact of the content on learning objectives and learner engagement will be assessed, including the measurement of these impacts.

Ethical considerations:

How the content encourages learners to think critically about the ethics and social implications of artificial intelligence will be assessed.

Alignment with the DigComp 2.2 Framework:

How the content supports the digital competencies outlined in the DigComp 2.2 framework, how the content contributes to shaping citizens capable of critically, consciously and responsibly using AI-driven digital technologies and improving understanding of AI, its potential and limitations will be assessed.

Submit your nomination today and stand a chance to be recognised for your outstanding contributions to the use of GenAI in education.

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Green at You Padlet

Scaffold Exercise – Round 2:  

ALL DIGITAL Weeks Padlet

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Description: The national coordinator campaigns will be evaluated through the answers to the following questionnaire. The jury will evaluate the answers according to qualitative and quantitative evaluation criteria, assigning each answer a mark ranging from 1-5. More information are available on the ADWeeks2024 website.

Questions that will serve to evaluate the best campaign in relation to impact, quality and engagement:

• Have you fulfilled all required tasks in the ALL DIGITAL application form for the national coordinator role?
• What was your social media impact/outreach (overall numbers)?
• Total amount of posts, likes, shares, comments, engagement (note: add number for each social media channels you used)
• Number of policymakers, national and local partners, stakeholders reached and involved?
• Number of events organised? (note: by your organisation and organisation you involved in your country)
• Overall number of participants in the country (during online and live events)
• How many entities/organisations uploaded events on the map of events in your country (this criteria will be evaluated accounting the country population)?
• Have you had any press engagement? If yes, what kind of results did you have?
• Share the list of articles, blog for the ADWeeks website promoting the events, training and resources created in your country. (The jury evaluation gives extra points for this activity)

Apply here

Deadline: 30 June 2024

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria: impact, quality, innovation

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The national and local events  will be evaluated by assessing the following questions, which will serve as evaluation criteria. Only events organised and submitted till the 31st of May will be considered to compete for the award. The jury will evaluate the answers according to qualitative and quantitative criteria assigning each answer a mark ranging from 1-5. More information is available on the ADWeeks2023 website.

Questions that will serve to evaluate the best event:

1) Is your event related to the main themes of the campaign?
2) Number of participants in the event (note: to provide screenshot with number of participants or list of participants for in-person event/s) (criteria: impact)
3) What type of training have you offered? Which skills were taught during the training? What information was delivered through the course/event? (criteria: quality)
4) Does your event have any new feature, new format, different perspective? (criteria: innovation)
5) Is the content exploitable and/or transferrable to other organisation or countries? If yes, how? (criteria: innovation)
6) How many people have you reached through social media? (note: how many views, likes, shares? – add screenshots) (criteria: impact)

Apply here

Deadline: 30 June 2024

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria: impact, quality, innovation

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Description:  

The Digital Educator function underpins the concept that education and training on digital competences must be delivered by skilled and qualified people. It is a sign of the maturity that the sector has achieved as a result of the ever-increasing use of digital technology, especially after the pandemic. 

The digital educator role embraces the range of people facilitating the digital training/empowering process in digital competence centres. Teachers, trainers, tutors, facilitators, moderators, assistants to all of them, instructional designers and volunteers are eligible, as long as they have been selected by an organization in one of the above roles and they work directly with users teaching and supporting them. Each centre may have a different name for this role.

Digital competence centres would have no success without their hardworking digital educators, who are in the first line of digital inclusion by eradicating the fear of using new technologies, thus bringing technology into people’s lives. They bring people online, take the fear of technology away, and teach them the right behaviour, opening new perspectives, enabling better jobs, and enhancing their communities.

Digital educators can be employed or be volunteers, but they work directly with users teaching and supporting them.

Apply here

Deadline: 30 June 2024

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Quantitative results: Number of years worked, people trained/supported in relation to the scope of the centre, courses taught/developed if applicable.
• Professionalism and dedication: Demonstrated expertise on delivering digital education and on empowering people to use new technologies; unique approaches to teaching.
• Social impact: Outcomes of work, how the trainees’ lives have changed, results of the training, such as jobs found, stayed in workforce, new businesses established, new processes introduced, etc.

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Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: Changemaker is a term coined by the social entrepreneurship organization Ashoka, meaning one who desires change in the world and, by gathering knowledge and resources, makes that change happen. Changemakers seek the only change that really matters – social change, striving to reach as many people as possible.

Digital changemakers are committed individuals who aim to transform society with the help of digital tools and technologies. They lead the refocusing and adjustment of existing ICT for learning and inclusion initiatives towards a more effective support of citizens. Examples: leaders of digital competence centres and networks, ICT educators, job and entrepreneurship mentors, digital entrepreneurs and founders of ICT companies, community leaders, policy makers.

Apply here

Deadline: 30 June 2024

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Achievements: Contribution to community development, support of digital skills enhancement, employability and entrepreneurship.
• Social change and impact: Improving digital skills / reducing digital gap at national / regional level.
• Leadership: Interaction/co-operation with partners, resource mobilization.

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Nomination:

Description: A digital resource is an online product for educational benefit, contributing to enhancing digital skills or providing an organisation with a useful tool to use with the customers or by customers directly. It should be free to use and be sustainable beyond its development (or funded) period.

The resource can be developed by:

• an ALL DIGITAL member organisation;
• a consortium within a project where a member organisation is a partner;
• or an external company, if the member organisation uses it routinely within their training programmes.

Examples include, but are not limited to: a self-assessment tool, an educational game, a serious of instructional videos, an online training course or MOOC.

Apply here

Deadline: 30 June 2024

Selection process: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: the resource addresses digital skills in a new way; proposes new solutions for enhancing digital skills and employability perspective; is unique in offering opportunities to upgrade skills.
• Impact: the initiative has demonstrated evidence of positive impact on users (on their digital/entrepreneurial skills level; on their employability perspectives).
• Scalability: the resource can be easily adapted to other audiences and/or localised.
• Sustainability: the initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

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Embrace the chance to make a significant impact in the ever-evolving digital landscape. Detailed job descriptions and application instructions can be found in the links below. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to join a forward-thinking team dedicated to driving digital inclusion.

Apply now and become a key player in shaping the digital future! 

– Project Officer

– Events and Project Officer

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On 18 April the College of Commissioners adopted the proposal for a Council Recommendation on improving the provision of digital skills in education and training. The proposal constitutes Action 10 of the Digital Education Action Plan (2021-2027) (DEAP). ALL DIGITAL approves of the proposal and urges the Spanish Council Presidency, which has taken office 1 July, to further its swift adoption. The proposal relates closely to and complements the proposal for a Council Recommendation on key enabling factors for successful digital education and training under Action 1 of the DEAP (Find ALL DIGITAL’s position on this proposal here). The proposal on improving the provision of digital skills addresses the development of digital competences within education and training settings, which complements the other proposal’s topic of using digital methodologies, tools and content in education and training.

ALL DIGITAL approves of the proposed Council Recommendation on improving the provision of digital skills in education and training and urges Member States to reach a swift agreement on their adoption, as well as a strong commitment towards their subsequent implementation. We stand ready to continue to support the European Commission and Member States in their initiatives towards the inclusive and accessible development of digital skills for all.

Read the full statement here.

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On 18 April the College of Commissioners adopted the proposal for a Council Recommendation on the key enabling factors for successful education. The proposal is the result of the Structured Dialogue under Action 1 of the Digital Education Action Plan (2021-2027) (DEAP). ALL DIGITAL warmly welcomes the proposal and urges the Spanish Council Presidency, which has taken office 1 July, to further its swift adoption. The proposal relates closely to and complements the proposal for a Council Recommendation on improving the provision of digital skills in education and training under Action 10 of the DEAP (Find ALL DIGITAL’s position on this proposal here). The proposal on key enabling factors thereby covers the interpretation of “digital education” in the sense of using digital tools in the provision of education and training, complementing the other proposal’s view on the development of digital competences within education and training settings.

While a few points of possible improvements to the proposed recommendations exist, namely the recognition of informal and non-formal education and training as an essential factor itself, the inclusion of civil society actors in all stakeholder cooperations, and an explicit reference to adequate funding for teachers and trainers’ capacity building efforts, ALL DIGITAL approves of the proposed Council Recommendations and urges Member States to reach a swift agreement on their adoption, as well as a strong commitment towards their subsequent implementation.

Read the full statement here.

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The winner for this category is Toolbox Digitally Inclusive Neighbourhood! Congratulations!

Category: organisational

Finalists:

Partneing Starter, Romania
PartneringStarter is a cutting-edge tool revolutionizing Partnership Brokering practices. By engaging libraries, local authorities, NGOs, and various stakeholders, it fosters comprehensive partnerships through a unique partner-matching service. With active participation from 20 libraries, 10 NGOs, and public institutions in Romania and the Balkans, PartneringStarter is driving cohesive community growth.
PartneringStarter provides simple, efficient digital tools for managing cooperation networks, consortium partners, and local action groups. Available in English, our platform’s scalability is poised to serve stakeholders across diverse geographies.

Territories DigitalEX, Spain
Territorios DigitalEX serves as a comprehensive guide to grasp the effects and potentials of digital transformation in rural and urban areas. This platform, dedicated to “smart territories and towns,” offers enlightening content to shed light on developmental strategies. A central feature is the immersive 360º virtual tour, guiding visitors through an imaginative town that mirrors our region, showcasing practical applications of intelligent solutions across various domains. This captivating tour serves educational and entertainment purposes, facilitating a thorough understanding of digitized towns.
The platform empowers individuals to comprehend smart territories in an era marked by the rise of the Internet of Things. With meticulous organization, Territorios DigitalEX provides instructive and pragmatic information, including a map of smart solutions in Extremadura adaptable for replication in other regions using OpenStreetMaps. This versatile resource is designed to globally raise awareness about the concept of smart territories and their functional mechanisms, inviting all to embark on an enlightening journey to explore the transformative realm of digital landscapes.

Spain’s Charter of Digital Rights, Spain
The resource at hand is a digital adaptation of the “Charter of Digital Rights,” initially introduced by the Spanish Government in July 2021. This Charter, developed in collaboration with experts from the public and private sectors under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, is designed to protect citizens’ digital rights.
This adaptation ensures that the Charter’s content remains accessible, comprehensible, and inclusive to all, including individuals with intellectual disabilities. This tailored approach aligns with international guidelines, and the resource encourages easy understanding of the Charter’s principles. Its potential influence is evident through substantial website visits since its unveiling, demonstrating its relevance and prospective impact.

Toolbox Digitally Inclusive Neighbourhood, Belgium
In collaboration with e-inclusion teams from Kortrijk and Antwerp, an “Ideal Digitally Inclusive Neighbourhood” framework has been created. This framework emphasizes five key pillars: ensuring access to digital devices, providing individual and group counselling, offering digital exercise options, and establishing effective coordination.
Based on experiments conducted in three cities, 28 actionable strategies have been distilled into a comprehensive toolbox, accessible both physically and online. These strategies are categorized for scalability, variations, and success factors, serving as an adaptable resource for enhancing digital inclusion initiatives.
This toolbox is not only a foundational resource within Flanders but has also been integrated into the “digital inclusion coach” training program. Its practical approach allows for the prioritization of specific pillars, ensuring gradual progress towards achieving a Digitally Inclusive Neighbourhood. The concept’s adaptability makes it transferable to other regions, potentially facilitating cross-regional exchanges of effective practices and inspiring broader digital inclusion efforts. Regular updates and practical insights are available through the toolbox’s ongoing online presence.

MIMBUS DISCOVER, France
MIMBUS DISCOVER is a groundbreaking virtual reality solution that immerses users into various trades, enabling them to experience and identify their talents firsthand. From electricians to chemists, mechanics to production line operators, users engage in lifelike trade scenarios, performing exercises and receiving real-time feedback. All user decisions and actions are tracked, providing recruiters with skill-based insights to identify and recruit top talent.
Distributed in over 50 countries, MIMBUS DISCOVER is tailored for vocational training centres and companies seeking to introduce professions and uncover new talents. Launched in 2020, it has already reached around 100,000 users. Beyond vocational institutions, this tool can help people explore different work environments and find suitable roles.

Les Bons Clic, France
Les Bons Clics is a user-friendly digital platform designed to enhance digital skills for various audiences. Accessible on smartphones, tablets, computers, and desktops, it offers a range of interactive training courses for daily digital services. The platform serves as a hub for digital helpers seeking educational resources on digital inclusion and their role, while digital learners can access over 100 courses covering topics like basic computer skills, e-health, and more. With a community of over 60,000 digital caregivers and 12,000 social organizations, Les Bons Clics has become a pivotal resource, hosting more than 1.5 million annual consultations. Its success is underscored by its broad impact, supporting over a million beneficiaries and expanding its reach to extra countries such as Belgium and Switzerland under the name “1,2,3 Digit,” providing easy-to-use, interactive resources for enhanced digital inclusion.

SkillUp Game MOOC, Czech Republic
The Erasmus+ project SkillUp Game is dedicated to enhancing the competence of “problem-solving in a technology-driven environment” through the integration of gamification, serious games, LARPs, and facilitation in educational programs. This initiative produces methodological outputs and MOOCs, available for educators and lecturers to further develop their skills. The project and MOOCs specifically support lecturers working with individuals having low qualifications, classified as distance informal education. The MOOC, built upon the project’s methodology, prioritizes practical understanding and application of knowledge. Pilot tests across Europe demonstrated that incorporating games and game elements into training improved participant motivation, engagement, and learning outcomes. This methodology, adaptable and versatile, aids in training new educators and is readily applicable to new subjects, fostering engagement and facilitating efficient learning. The potential applications of this approach are extensive, and its language translation poses no barriers.

RIDE – Reach Inclusion Through Digital Empowerment For Migrant Women, Belgium
The RIDE project is dedicated to fostering the inclusion of migrant and refugee women into the digital labor market. This initiative provides specialized courses and training, enabling re-skilling and upskilling in the digital sector, facilitating their entry into the workforce. Training takes place in multiple European cities and is delivered both online and in-person. The project caters to a diverse range of target groups including HR managers, educators, career guidance professionals, trade unions, and policymakers, while the Interactive Crowd Map of RIDE connects migrant and refugee women with supportive services throughout Europe, aiding their integration into the digital job market.
The RIDE project’s impact has garnered positive recognition through evaluations and discussions, with lasting effects anticipated. The project’s resources are versatile and easily adaptable to diverse audiences, allowing for translation and customization as needed. While human resources might be required for material adaptation, the freely available online resources facilitate seamless implementation.

Kyiv Digital, Ukraine
Launched in January 2021, the Kyiv Digital app initially served as a transportation platform and evolved into a citizen-centric governance tool in Kyiv. With the outbreak of the Ukraine invasion in February 2022, the app transformed to provide up-to-date information, becoming a reliable source during crisis times. Kyiv’s mission is to create an innovative state, offering comprehensive online services for citizens and businesses. With 2,413,237 users (almost the entire adult population of the city), Kyiv Digital has revolutionized city governance, ensuring inclusivity, transparency, and citizen-focused services. Even during the war, Kyiv demonstrates digital inclusion, showcasing the app’s role as an essential tool for critical information dissemination. The city serves as a model for innovation and collaboration, actively sharing expertise and fostering partnerships for mutual growth in smart city development, digital infrastructure, and e-governance.

Nomination: by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation

Description: A digital resource is an online product for educational benefit, contributing to enhancing digital skills or providing an organisation with a useful tool to use with the customers or by customers directly. It should be free to use and be sustainable beyond its development (or funded) period.

The resource can be developed by:

• an ALL DIGITAL member organisation;
• a consortium within a project where a member organisation is a partner;
• or an external company, if the member organisation uses it routinely within their training programmes.

Examples include, but are not limited to: a self-assessment tool, an educational game, a serious of instructional videos, an online training course or MOOC.

Selection process: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: the resource addresses digital skills in a new way; proposes new solutions for enhancing digital skills and employability perspective; is unique in offering opportunities to upgrade skills.
• Impact: the initiative has demonstrated evidence of positive impact on users (on their digital/entrepreneurial skills level; on their employability perspectives).
• Scalability: the resource can be easily adapted to other audiences and/or localised.
• Sustainability: the initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

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The winner for this category is Natalija Budinski! Congratulations!

Category: Individual

Finalists:

Rubén Dario Mancera Morán, AUPEX, Spain

Rubén has spent over 22 years passionately fostering knowledge and digital empowerment. With a broad scope of expertise, he orchestrates workshops, seminars, and conferences centred on digital projects and their integration into daily life. At the forefront of more than 75 digital competence centres in Extremadura, Rubén orchestrates crucial initiatives like EU CodeWeek and the Digital Social Lab, driving exploration of digital enabling technologies. His multifaceted approach extends to technical training, elevating his team’s capabilities as e-facilitators. A true innovator, Rubén amplifies digital proficiency through inventive methods. Notably, he initiated projects that bridge Extremadura and Ibero-America, promoting free software and combating digital disparity. Amid the pandemic, he exhibited remarkable solidarity by leading 3D printing efforts to provide essential supplies. With an impressive track record of over 391 programming and robotics workshops, Rubén’s resolute dedication has transformed Extremadura’s digital landscape, making him an invaluable asset in the realm of digital transformation. His technical leadership extends even to cultural events, evident in his contribution to the internationally acclaimed Mérida Holy Week website and the development of the “Location SSM” app, solidifying his impact beyond digital realms.

Mihai Peca, ICDL Romania

Mihai Peca stands as a prominent digital changemaker with an impressive 11-year commitment to enhancing digital literacy among seniors and vulnerable communities. As a dedicated trainer, Mihai has played a pivotal role in training over 500 individuals through collaborations with various providers. Notably, he has contributed significantly to the ICDL Digital Citizen program, aiding approximately 150 elderly individuals in overcoming digital isolation and embracing online services that have enriched their lives. Mihai’s versatile approach is evident as he tailors training to digitally illiterate learners and fellow trainers seeking to empower at-risk individuals. He demonstrates unwavering involvement across all project phases, from curriculum design catering to diverse age groups to adaptable evaluation strategies. His adept use of pedagogical techniques tackles learning challenges effectively, and he maintains active collaboration with organizations and public institutions dedicated to aiding vulnerable populations. Mihai’s courses have bridged the digital divide for newcomers, enabling independent computer and digital device usage, online communication, access to healthcare services, secure financial transactions, and critical information acquisition, ultimately elevating their quality of life.

Natalija Budinski, Petro Kuzmjak School, Serbia

Natalija is a head teacher deeply engaged in educational innovation, particularly within the STEM realm. With an emphasis on merging art and technology, she has authored approximately 50 papers focusing on STEM education and innovative projects. Natalija’s unique approach involves collaborative efforts with artists and museums to integrate STEM subjects with art, dance, and poetry, recognizing their positive impact on student well-being. She holds a commendable record of coordinating technology-supported projects through partnerships with European schoolnet, Ministries of Education, and other governmental bodies. Recognized globally for her contributions, Natalija’s accolades span from esteemed European schoolnet awards to being selected consecutively as one of the world’s top innovative Microsoft teachers. Beyond her classroom endeavors, she established the “ruSTEM” association to champion education in rural and vulnerable communities. Natalija’s pursuit of knowledge has led her to international experiences in Austria and the USA, where she honed her skills in inventive STEM teaching methodologies and technology integration. Her creations, from online language lessons to projects addressing internet safety, underscore her commitment to enriching education through technology. Notably, Natalija’s leadership extends to coordinating Erasmus plus projects and initiatives fostering inclusive STEM education, exemplifying her role as a transformative force in the digital education landscape.

Amador Parrado Salamanca, Vuela Guadalinfo Montemayor, Spain

Amador Parrado Salamanca demonstrates an unwavering commitment to social innovation and inclusion. Operating within the context of AIL Vuela Guadalinfo, his journey began with a focus on leveraging 3D technology to transform lives. Notably, with AIL, he spearheaded projects like crafting personalized 3D plastic covers for paediatric oncology patients, designing functional ortho-prostheses for ALS patients, and constructing prehensile arms for those in need. Amador’s drive for innovation is evident in his collaboration with various institutions and his ability to garner support and engagement from the community. The fruits of their labour are tangible, with a multitude of successful initiatives improving the lives of individuals facing challenging circumstances. Their work, spanning over 15 years, has brought about real change, fostering independence, autonomy, and a sense of normalcy for those they serve.

Laurent Da Dalto, Mimbus, France

Laurent Da Dalto has long been a driving force in the field of immersive learning and digital transformation. With a steadfast dedication to enhancing vocational training, he initiated his journey by pioneering the creation of the first welding motion simulator in collaboration with an Education Specialist. Recognizing the challenges faced by vocational training centres, he established MIMBUS in 2011 as a comprehensive solution to bridge workforce gaps and tackle unemployment, where now is CEO. Laurent’s role as a thought leader extends beyond technological innovation; he advocates for the global implementation of immersive learning to empower learners and improve accessibility, even for those with disabilities. Notably, his involvement with international organizations such as UNESCO and the International Labour Organization underscores his commitment to driving inclusive education and economic development. Through initiatives in Pakistan, France, Africa, and Ukraine, Laurent and his team have harnessed immersive technologies to empower marginalized communities and facilitate skills development. With MIMBUS’ expansive reach across 30 countries and over 1000 training centres, combined with projected sales growth, Laurent Da Dalto’s impact as a digital changemaker is unmistakable.

Davide Dattoli, Talent Garden, Italy

Davide Dattoli stands as a prominent digital changemaker, renowned for his influential leadership in the technology sector. As the founder and CEO of Talent Garden, a platform for the digital technology business community, Dattoli’s journey began with the establishment of Viral Farm in 2010 and later expanded to include senior consultancy roles within prominent media groups. His pivotal creation, Talent Garden, has evolved into a network of 26 campuses across eight countries, fostering digital inclusion, skills advancement, employability, and entrepreneurship. Dattoli’s approach has garnered recognition for its transformative impact on local communities, solidifying Talent Garden’s reputation as a hub for collaboration and digital education. Collaborations with entities like Hyper Island and Digital Magics showcase his commitment to enhancing digital capabilities and driving positive change in the industry. His inclusive leadership fosters an environment of open communication and community building, ensuring a vibrant digital ecosystem that empowers startups, freelancers, and corporations alike. Through Talent Garden, Dattoli has not only connected individuals across Europe but has also contributed significantly to the training of thousands in digital skills, making him a true driving force in the realm of digital transformation and education.

Marisa A. Gliosca, PunTIC Omnia, Spain

Marisa A. Gliosca has over two decades of experience in digital inclusion and social integration. As Technical Director of Andromines, she has been at the forefront of pioneering efforts to bridge digital gaps for marginalized individuals, particularly within the prison context in Catalonia. Marisa’s leadership is evident in her role overseeing the Punt TIC Òmnia initiative within prisons, establishing computer labs with repurposed materials and spearheading digital literacy courses and cultural revitalization activities. Collaborating extensively with various entities and local stakeholders, Andromines has successfully engaged more than 9,300 participants in eco-transformative projects across 13 Òmnia centers within prisons. Marisa’s approach extends beyond accessibility, encompassing job creation opportunities through the reuse of computers, furthering her commitment to societal empowerment. Her leadership is underscored by her involvement in pioneering programs incorporating virtual reality and educational robotics, enriching educational opportunities for detainees. Marisa’s persuasive communication skills and resource mobilization prowess have amplified the impact of digital inclusion initiatives. Her dedication has yielded remarkable results, enhancing digital skills, fostering partnerships, and creating positive change within marginalized communities.

Mercè Carreras, PuntTIC La Florida, Spain

Mercè Carreras is Technical Principal at the Petit Pont residential centre in La Florida, Hospitalet de Llobregat. Her visionary approach emphasized community integration, participation, and alliances through community interventions. Transitioning to the technical principal, she played a pivotal role in establishing the AEMA Foundation, which focuses on impactful social innovation projects involving young people. A remarkable project under her leadership is the C-Plan, designed as a digital training space for La Florida’s youth. By hiring and training young e-facilitators who were neither studying nor working, the project has effectively accompanied more than 10,000 citizens in digital procedures and facilitated free training for over 1000 neighbours. Carreras’ methodology empowers young people, giving them responsibility and decision-making authority. With a multicultural team, the project creates intergenerational bonds, fosters leadership, and gains support from public administration and private companies. The success of PuntTIC La Florida is a testament to community-led initiatives becoming drivers of participation, showcasing Carreras as a true catalyst of digital transformation within her community.

Marina Stanojlovic Mircic, Ljuba Nesic school, Serbia

Marina Stanojlovic Mircic has been instrumental in revolutionizing education through innovative technology integration. Leveraging Microsoft products and platforms, such as Minecraft, Sway, and Flipgrid, she has been driving personalized learning experiences in Italian and Civics classes. Particularly commendable is her seamless adaptation to hybrid teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic, conducting impactful online lessons through Zoom and Skype, garnering substantial student engagement and parental approval. Noteworthy achievements include recognition in the STEM Discovery Campaign and a focus on promoting 21st-century skills through project-based classes, critical thinking, and peer collaboration. As a coordinator for professional orientation and sustainability projects, Marina fosters active parent involvement and instils civic consciousness among her students. Her commitment extends to international collaborations, reflected in her roles as school coordinator of AFS Intercultura and engagement in the Erasmus+ program. With a six-year streak as a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert, Skype Master Teacher, and Scientix Ambassador, she continually imparts her expertise as a trainer, conference presenter, and influencer in the field of education.

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: Changemaker is a term coined by the social entrepreneurship organization Ashoka, meaning one who desires change in the world and, by gathering knowledge and resources, makes that change happen. Changemakers seek the only change that really matters – social change, striving to reach as many people as possible.

Digital changemakers are committed individuals who aim to transform society with the help of digital tools and technologies. They lead the refocusing and adjustment of existing ICT for learning and inclusion initiatives towards a more effective support of citizens. Examples: leaders of digital competence centres and networks, ICT educators, job and entrepreneurship mentors, digital entrepreneurs and founders of ICT companies, community leaders, policy makers.

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Achievements: Contribution to community development, support of digital skills enhancement, employability and entrepreneurship.
• Social change and impact: Improving digital skills / reducing digital gap at national / regional level.
• Leadership: Interaction/co-operation with partners, resource mobilization.

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The winner for this category is Fatima Silva Parra! Congratulations!

Category: Individual

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Candidates:

Pascal Cousseran, Elecentros PunTIC Omnia, Spain

Pascal Cousseran an IT Social Center Responsive at PunTIC Omnia who leverages ICT to boost individuals’ self-confidence and success through technology experiences. He manages an IT center, providing comprehensive training and guidance, and fosters community integration through digital events. Pascal’s learner-centric approach tailors IT skill development to personal interests, encouraging multimedia creation and sharing on social platforms. His methods lead to increased tech confidence, empowerment, and self-esteem among trainees. Acting as a social educator and motivator, Pascal creates an inclusive IT environment for collaborative skill-building. His Connecta’t training aids unemployed individuals, boosting their self-esteem and job prospects through self-crafted materials and social campaigns.

Peca Mihai, ICDL, Romania

Mihai Peca is a trainer at ICDL Romania with a six-year track record in crafting, presenting, and imparting IT&C training programs. His focus extends to cutting-edge technologies, particularly 3D printing. Mihai employs a student-centered pedagogical approach, customizing methods like brainstorming, dynamic lectures, and real-case studies to cater to diverse learning needs. He’s an influential figure in both education and technology events, having conducted workshops in schools, public libraries, and even as a guest speaker. His dedication extends to projects like “3DUTECH” and “Girls Champions in 3D,” where he has played a role in shaping the training experience. Mihai’s impact is palpable, seen in over half of his almost 600 trainees being teachers, significantly shaping Romania’s technology education landscape. His approach doesn’t just stop at training but expands into organizing national 3D modelling and printing competitions with themes of societal significance.

Natalija Budinski, Petro Kuzmjak School, Serbia

Natalija Budinski is a teacher at the Petro Kuzmjak School and serves as an external advisor to the Ministry of Education and a British Council trainer. Focusing on educational innovation, she has authored approximately 50 papers dedicated to STEM education and earned recognition from institutions including European Schoolnet and the Serbian Centre for Science Promotion. Her outstanding contributions led to being selected among the world’s top Microsoft teachers for two consecutive years. Natalija established the “ruSTEM” association to promote rural STEM education and received a Fulbright scholarship to enhance her expertise in technology and media literacy. She creatively integrates STEM and technology with art activities in her teaching, exemplified by projects such as online language lessons and safe digital tool usage. Notably, her project “Stem Identities and Food Culture” intertwines food science, technology, and resilience-building through art. Her dedication resulted in her school being awarded a Makerspace classroom, equipped with advanced tools like 3D printers, drones, VR devices, and microbits, enhancing technological education.

Fatima Silva, Folk-High-School Association of Extremadura, Spain

Fátima Silva Parra is an e-educator and facilitator specializing in imparting digital skills through interactive and adaptable methods. Based at AUPEX’s Digital Skills Programme for Employability in Extremadura, she aims to enhance citizens’ employability in the digital landscape. Fátima focuses on working with unemployed individuals and entrepreneurs, tailoring her teaching approach to their specific needs and inspiring positive attitude shifts. She employs participatory techniques and knowledge-sharing strategies, integrating practical tools such as case studies, group projects, and digital adaptations of traditional materials to foster analytical skills. By incorporating ICTs, online resources, self-designed video tutorials, and e-learning platforms, she encourages participants to explore new tools for their digital advancement. Fátima’s innovation extends to using augmented reality, gamification, and online platforms to enrich the learning experience. Her unrelenting commitment creates supportive and motivating environments that facilitate both personal and professional growth. Thanks to her efforts, learners have acquired vital digital skills, boosted their confidence with technology, and cultivated an adaptable mindset to thrive in the digital realm.

Laia Sanchez Casals, Citilab, Spain

Laia Sanchez Casals is a collaboratory responsible at Citilab renowned for her multifaceted role at Citilab. As a co-director of the Social MediaLab, she seamlessly intertwines media literacy with citizen innovation. Laia’s expertise shines through her management and training in numerous local and European projects centered on digital and media literacy for various age groups. Her participation in European initiatives like Vision Project Youth in Action, Mind the Gap, JamToday, and the ICity project has been instrumental. She developed the innovative 3H methodology, a cornerstone of her Innova’t training promoting digital social innovation. Laia is also a facilitator, designer, and coordinator of diverse programs, such as RIEC, Agent Digitals Esportius Course, and SeniorLab. Her advocacy for citizen innovation, artful integration of technology and media, and profound commitment to education make her a distinguished digital educator.

Isma Monfort Vulcanite, Salesians Saint Jordi – PES La Mina, Spain

Isma Monfort Vialcanet is a digital educator Punt Òmnia with a unique background as a former documentary photographer and TV camera. He has channeled his expertise into meaningful projects at ‘Salesians Sant Jordi – PES La Mina’. Transitioning from his earlier roles, Isma became the e-facilitator at ‘Punt Òmnia’ in 2021, focusing on bridging the digital divide and fostering community initiatives. His approach entails adapting to the specific needs of the population, which often lacks access to conventional educational resources. Isma’s initiatives encompass diverse activities, from facilitating robotics for children to conducting digital courses for adults. By making technology accessible, such as through robotics and 3D printing, he breaks barriers and ignites interest in subjects previously perceived as inaccessible. Isma’s efforts in nurturing inclusivity and fostering a sense of belonging are particularly evident in his robotics team, where he ensures every participant plays a meaningful role, embodying the spirit of collaboration.

Description:  

The Digital Educator function underpins the concept that education and training on digital competences must be delivered by skilled and qualified people. It is a sign of the maturity that the sector has achieved as a result of the ever-increasing use of digital technology, especially after the pandemic. 

The digital educator role embraces the range of people facilitating the digital training/empowering process in digital competence centres. Teachers, trainers, tutors, facilitators, moderators, assistants to all of them, instructional designers and volunteers are eligible, as long as they have been selected by an organization in one of the above roles and they work directly with users teaching and supporting them. Each centre may have a different name for this role.

Digital competence centres would have no success without their hardworking digital educators, who are in the first line of digital inclusion by eradicating the fear of using new technologies, thus bringing technology into people’s lives. They bring people online, take the fear of technology away, and teach them the right behaviour, opening new perspectives, enabling better jobs, and enhancing their communities.

Digital educators can be employed or be volunteers, but they work directly with users teaching and supporting them.

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Quantitative results: Number of years worked, people trained/supported in relation to the scope of the centre, courses taught/developed if applicable.
• Professionalism and dedication: Demonstrated expertise on delivering digital education and on empowering people to use new technologies; unique approaches to teaching.
• Social impact: Outcomes of work, how the trainees’ lives have changed, results of the training, such as jobs found, stayed in workforce, new businesses established, new processes introduced, etc.

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Your participation in the consultation is valuable. The views of experts and stakeholders will make it possible to analyse needs and design the EDSC and governance option that best meets the needs of the stakeholders across the EU, ultimately generating valuable recommendations for EDSC implementation.

Take part in the EDSC Feasibility Study! Participation in the consultation process is open to anyone interested. Registration closing date: December 2nd, 2022.

The process envisages different consultation activities, including surveys, interviews and workshops, to gather multiple perspectives on how the EDSC should be shaped according to the needs of different stakeholders. Both individuals and organisations registered through the form will be invited to take part in the different consultation and validation processes that will occur throughout the overall feasibility study.

The EDSC feasibility study is led by NTT Data, Empirica, All Digital. The contracting authority is the European Commission, Directorate General Joint Research Centre.

More information is available at https://edsc-consultation.eu/

#edscconsultation #DigComp

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Category: Individual

Finalists:

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: Changemaker is a term coined by the social entrepreneurship organization Ashoka, meaning one who desires change in the world and, by gathering knowledge and resources, makes that change happen. Changemakers seek the only change that really matters – social change, striving to reach as many people as possible.

Digital changemakers are committed individuals who aim to transform society with the help of digital tools and technologies. They lead the refocusing and adjustment of existing ICT for learning and inclusion initiatives towards a more effective support of citizens. Examples: leaders of digital competence centres and networks, ICT educators, job and entrepreneurship mentors, digital entrepreneurs and founders of ICT companies, community leaders, policy makers.

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Achievements: Contribution to community development, support of digital skills enhancement, employability and entrepreneurship.
• Social change and impact: Improving digital skills / reducing digital gap at national / regional level.
• Leadership: Interaction/co-operation with partners, resource mobilization.

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APPLICATION FORM

(If you don’t see the form below, please fill it in here)

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Category: organisational

Finalists:

Nomination: by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation

Description: A digital resource is an online product for educational benefit, contributing to enhancing digital skills or providing an organisation with a useful tool to use with the customers or by customers directly. It should be free to use and be sustainable beyond its development (or funded) period.

The resource can be developed by:

• an ALL DIGITAL member organisation;
• a consortium within a project where a member organisation is a partner;
• or an external company, if the member organisation uses it routinely within their training programmes.

Examples include, but are not limited to: a self-assessment tool, an educational game, a serious of instructional videos, an online training course or MOOC.

Selection process: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: the resource addresses digital skills in a new way; proposes new solutions for enhancing digital skills and employability perspective; is unique in offering opportunities to upgrade skills.
• Impact: the initiative has demonstrated evidence of positive impact on users (on their digital/entrepreneurial skills level; on their employability perspectives).
• Scalability: the resource can be easily adapted to other audiences and/or localised.
• Sustainability: the initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

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APPLICATION FORM

(If you don’t see the form below, please fill it in here)

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Category: Individual

Finalists:

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: The “e-facilitator” term embraces the range of people facilitating the digital training/empowering process in digital competence centres, including trainers, tutors, moderators, assistants, etc. – each centre may have a different name for this role.

E-facilitators can be employed or be volunteers, but they work directly with users teaching and supporting them.

Digital competence centres would have no success without their hardworking e-facilitators, who are in the first line of digital inclusion by eradicating fear of using new technologies, thus bringing technology into people’s lives. They bring people online, take the fear of technology away, and teach them the right behaviour, opening new perspectives, enabling better jobs, and enhancing their communities.

Selection: Jury

Assessment criteria:

• Quantitative results: Number of years worked, people trained/supported in relation to the scope of the centre, courses taught/developed if applicable.
• Professionalism and dedication: Demonstrated expertise on delivering digital education and on empowering people to use new technologies; unique approaches to teaching.
• Social impact: Outcomes of work, how the trainees’ lives have changed, results of the training, such as jobs found, stayed in workforce, new businesses established, new processes introduced, etc.

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APPLICATION FORM

(If you don’t see the form below, fill it in here)

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Maybe you deleted your last interview recording by mistake? Or, you published your article before it was ready? Digital skills are not a given. In fact, every 2 out of 3 Europeans with low digital skills will need successful upskilling by 2025 to reach the targets set in the EU Digital Education Action Plan, a new study says.

Download here

ALL DIGITAL, HUAWEI, supported by EY, have collaborated to raise awareness about the digital skills gap ahead of the release of their new study. With the help of a quick quiz, every European can see what digital skills they can improve. The quiz aims to map and personify the digital skills gap with 6 distinct personas: The Lost Investigator, The Silent Communicator, The Clumsy Creator, The Exposed Protector, The Disconnected Programmer, The Confused Problem-solver.

The inspiration for these personas comes from the findings of the joint White Paper on digital skills and talent in the European Union. The study has been presented at a launch event on 27 April 2022 at Solvay Library in Brussels before a community of experts.

Carlos Zorrihno, Member of the European Parliament and Silent Communicator, thinks that:

“Every European citizen can benefit from digital upskilling and reskilling initiatives. Regardless of how skilled and experienced we are, each and every one of us lacks particular digital skills as the quiz illustrates. We need to act now and take concrete action steps to boost lifelong learning, in an integrated perspectival, combining technological, social and emotional skills.”

While the White Paper explores in-depth the root causes of the digital skills gap in regards to ICT talent, the quiz raises awareness of our digital skills shortages and allows for a broader understanding of the problem. The White Paper also reveals possible solutions and concrete actions that key stakeholders can take to bridge the digital skills gap.

Chiara Riondino, Head of Unit Vocational Education and Training European Commission and Disconnected Programmer, believes that:

“We need a stronger drive and further investment in digital upskilling to equip people with the skills that are urgently required if we want to achieve fair and successful digital and green transitions. Governments, industry and education and training providers should work together closely to make it happen.”

The White Paper is structured around five particular areas of opportunity:

• Improve and increase ICT education and learning opportunities
• Prioritise talent within companies: up/re-skilling
• Encourage and support women in ICT
• Drive collaborative digital skills ecosystems
• Invest in the digitalisation of public services

Peter Palvolgyi, Chief Executive Officer at ALL DIGITAL and Clumsy Creator, believes that:

“The White Paper on Digital Skills in Europe is an extremely insightful report that highlights strategies and initiatives to address the digital skills gap in the EU. It pays special attention to actions needed by industry and policymakers to ensure our European youth receives the skills they need to be successful in the modern digital economy.”

The study sheds light on some alarming findings – nearly 1 out of 5 employed ICT specialists had low overall digital skills, while almost 80% of the digital skills gap is due to digital skills mismatch, indicating there is an urgent need for digital upskilling.

Tony Jin, Huawei’s Chief Representative to the European Institutions and Lost Investigator, says:

“We are working with our partners worldwide to develop a more robust digital talent ecosystem and drive broader digital inclusion. We believe that digital talent will play an essential role in advancing the digital economy. We will invest EUR 150 million in talent programs over the next five years, and we expect to benefit more than three million more people. We want to bring the benefits of digital technology to everyone.”

In 2008, Huawei began launching talent development programs called Seeds for the Future, including scholarships, technology competitions, and digital skills training. The company has since benefited 1.54 million people from over 150 countries. In 2021, Huawei launched the Seeds for the Future Program 2.0, which is part of its ongoing efforts to further develop talent.

The EU study is one of the four talent White Paper series, covering Spain, South Africa and China. The other three papers will be released separately in May.

Quiz: https://www.europeandigitalskills.eu/quiz/

White Paper: https://www.europeandigitalskills.eu/white-paper/

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Building on LLLP’s Annual Theme “The changing nature of evaluation in education and its impact on learners’ wellbeing“, the LLLWeek will take place in a hybrid form on the week of 29 November, in Brussels.

While the European Parliament is yet to open its doors for events and seminars, LLLP members will bring their concerns directly to European institutions through 12 different online workshops!

This year, the LLLWeek is hosted by MEP Victor Negrescu (S&D, ROM), a champion for lifelong learning! In his words:

“Lifelong learning is the key for the long-term sustainable recovery of Europe. We need to invest in people and make the EU the global hub for education and learning for all, by developing high-quality standards, evaluating them and ensuring their full implementation across Europe. Accessible, qualitative and inclusive lifelong learning are central features in providing wellbeing in education and training for learners and educators”.

If interested to join civil society organisations, policy-makers, and education stakeholders in this trademark event, for as many events as you find valuable to your activities : register here

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The objective of the course was to provide participants with knowledge and guidance on how to design a successful funding application for the Call Erasmus+ KA2 Cooperation Partnerships in the field of adult education, with a focus on digital skills development. The training included interactive and hands-on sessions on the different steps required to develop a project proposal, delivered by expert mentors and tutors form EGInA (Laura Cremonte and Altheo Valentini) and from ALL DIGITAL (Barbara Quarta and Peter Palvolgyi). The week was also rich in cultural experiences, such as a visit and dinner in a beautiful olive oil mill in the Umbrian countryside, two guided tours of Assisi and Bevagna and several tastings of fine local gastronomy.

Participants acquired both theoretical knowledge and gained practical experience in designing project proposals. Divided into small groups, they completed different tasks related to the planning and writing a project proposal by using the different tools and templates made available by the organizers.

Participants learnt about the Erasmus+ Programme and the Cooperation Partnerships Call for proposals. They learnt how to: (i) accomplish the essential procedures to submit a proposal; (ii) design an innovative project idea in the field of adult education; (iii) produce a detailed project work plan; (iv) plan a sound project management and quality assurance; (v) organise and describe dissemination and exploitation activities; and (vi) produce a balanced budget.

The training was evaluated very positively by all the participants and was also an excellent networking opportunity! New partnerships for potential funding applications were established between the participating organisations. Participants are now ready to work on real proposals to be submitted in the freshly opened Erasmus+ Call for proposals 2022.

ALL DIGITAL and EGINA wish our participants good luck for the proposals in preparation!

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Social Hackademy Labs are grass root laboratories that utilize co-creation methodology for empowering young people with digital and transversal skills and developing digital solutions for various issues on local, national, European or global level. The Labs are a manifestation of Social Hackademy Methodology which was developed with a support of Erasmus+ programme of the European Union. The Labs feature training courses on digital skills and Social Hackathons.

The Social Hackademy Award 2021 was organized during the Social Hackademy International Conference that took place on 15 October 2021 during ALL DIGITAL Summit 2021. The winner was selected from national winner of Social Hackathons organised in Foligno, Montpeiler, Rijeka and Patras.

The winner was selected by a special jury panel composed experts in digital skills development, ICT, social entrepreneurship, co-creation processes and project development. The jury panel members for Social Hackademy Award 2021 were:

• Alessia Sebillo, Executive Director at Diesis
• Alexander Knoth, Chief Digital Officer & Head of Section Digitalisation at German Academic Exchange Service
• Barbara Quarta, Chief Programme Officer at ALL DIGITAL
• Milan Stajčić, Advisor for Development of Digital Services at Out of the Box International
• Tiana Zignani, Programme Officer at Public Libraries 2030

Four teams competed for the Social Hackademy Award 2021:

1. Winner of the Social Hackathon Rijeka (Croatia)

Team name: IT Girls

Team members: Marija Siladjev, Lana Prar

Short description of the solution:

Mobile app Fenix App – Mood Tracker aims to help people with different mental difficulties to keep track of their moods and activities that led to these moods in order to help them focus on the positive. It also provides tips and has additional options that allow users to achieve and maintain a state of remission and mental stability.

2. Winner of the Social Hackathon Montpellier (France)

Team name: Feminist Surge

Team members: Nicolas Prodhomme, Sarah Truffert, Roxane Cabit, Fatima Melkaoui, Julien Pablo and Violeta Rodríguez Porras

Short description of the solution:

The team developed a website that offers information, guidance, advice and support for people that are victims of violence and/or social exclusion because of their gender, minority status, identities and age in city of Montpellier. In addition to that, the website used by local collective called #NousToutes34 also support the work of the collective by providing directory of supporting structures (legal and psychosocial, medical), Lien Hello Asso (fundraising link) and membership site.

3. Winner of the Social Hackathon Patras (Greece)

Name of the team: The Coding Gang

Team members: Lazarinis Lefteris, Kostaras Fotis

Short description of the solution:

The Coding Gang has created an application to help the environmental problem caused by weeds destroying the local flora. The application has three main dimensions.

First, it informs the user about problems that have been identified near their location. It detects the user’s location and displays markers on a map with nearby problems. Clicking on a marker displays a brief description of the problem.

The second dimension concerns the user’s ability to inform the environmental organization of the existence of a problem. The application allows the user to take a photo and a video of the problem and email or post them along with some description of the problem and the location.

The last option displays general information about the purposes of the environmental organization and about the problem that the application deals with.

4. Winner of the Social Hackathon Umbria (Italy)

Team name: #Zerohunger2

Team members: Andrea Emili, Giacomo Torti, Scharon Torretti, Alberto Fecchi, Alessandro Masci

Short description of the solution:

Project Alimenta’s objectives are to (1) use open data from FAO to design virtual villages with the aim of showing local social and economic issues in developing countries and (2) raise awareness about different and difficult contexts and issues in the world (especially in developing countries). The solution targets young people, in particular video games players and communities of players. Alimenta is app that uses gamification, real world simulation and auto-learning. Through the app players learn and discover contexts and situations of villages in developing countries that are struggling with food production and supply, water supply and related economical and social issues. The game itself aims to educate and boost the imagination of solutions to real issues and can also promotes donations. Players from real villages are also enabled to support the project and FAO by updating real data/information.

Video links: https://youtu.be/5CzjjARki78

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Tackling disinformation is a challenge for all of Europe’s societies and can only be tackled cooperatively. Digital literacy is a key competence for all citizens which is becoming a prerequisite to take part in societal life and not be left behind.

Providing teachers and educators with adequate guidance is an essential building block in this endeavour, which the Expert Group and the European Commission seek to undertake. All Digital’s track record in this field is evident in our contributions to projects such as Amelie, CRAL, Biblio and ICT for the Elderly.

More information on the kick-off meeting available here.

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External speakers offered inspiration and reflection on the key concepts embedded in the project’s methodology. The keynote speeches by EU Youth Coordinator Biliana Sirakova and Michela Magas, Chair of the Industry Commons Foundation and innovation advisor to the European Commission and the G7 leaders opened the event with insightful and inspiring inputs that set the tone of the conference.

We learnt from the newly created European Coordinator of Youth Activities within the European Commission Biliana Sivakova about  EU’s plans and support for upskilling young people and including them in the shaping of the future of the EU, announcing the European Year of Youth 2022, and stressed that  ‘’When supporting young people in their personal and professional development we have to focus on the development of different sets of skills and competencies as done in the EU Code Week and your Social Hackathon. Both initiatives combine the development of digital skills and soft skills like creative thinking, teamwork, problem-solving, etc.’’

Michela Magas, Chair of the Industry Commons Foundation and innovation advisor to the European Commission and the G7 leaders explained and showcased how innovation impacts and changes our societies. We understood how effective digital skills can be to create and innovate. She mentioned:  ‘’The idea of co-creation has now entered high-level policy. All disciplines need to join forces in order for us to stimulate and facilitate societal transformation. One of the ways on how to do that is to transfer best practices developed in the grass-root community through innovation, hands-on sessions and learning to a high policy level. The agenda of the conference featured presentations of the methodology and tools developed in the project that supports its implementation.

Project partners also shared results and findings from methodology piloting that took place in Croatia, France, Greece and Italy.

Very interesting examples of young digital experts who developed their digital innovative projects have been presented during the Social Hackademy Award ceremony and the first winner was announced at the event: Team Alimenta #Zerohunger 2 from Italy was the most convincing in terms of local community impact, social relevance and innovation, transferability and openness and adherence to the SDGs.

The event was rounded up with panel debate on the potential and critical elements of co-creation methodologies for solving various societal challenges and empowering young people with Arjana Blazic (DigiEduHack), Dr Ping Kong (Heritage & Education), Salvatore Nigro (JA Europe) and Thomas Matthew (European Youth Forum).

We had the chance to experience how a HackAd workshop might work to unite and put together people from remote and achieve significant results,  delivering solutions to real world issues.

Altheo Valentini, ALL DIGITAL Chair, highlighted that ‘’In social hacking, the focus is not on the event and the contest but rather on educational progress. That is why we  [Social Hackademy consortium] positioned hackathon as a part of training and learning experience.’’

To conclude with the words of Ivan Mušanović, trainer and project manager from CTK Rijeka, who lead the upscaling of the methodology: “The Social Hackademy methodology stands out because it enables young people to create something concrete while learning skills that are beneficial for them. Together this gives them a sense of accomplishment.”

YT link: https://youtu.be/msYLOsXdxCQ

00:00:00 Opening
00:01:40 Welcome from Altheo Valentini, Chair of the Board of ALL DIGITAL 00:07:30 Welcome from Peter Palvolgyi, CEO of ALL DIGITAL KEYNOTES: 00:11:00 Address from Biliana Sirakova, EU Youth Coordinator, European Commission, Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture 00:27:36 Address from Michela Magas, Chair of Industry and member of President Von der Leyen’s New European Bauhaus High Level Round Table, Commons Foundation
01:00:26 Social Hackademy and me
01:02:05 Valentina Canonico, association ATLAS
01:06:30 Ivan Mušanović, trainer, CTC Rijeka
01:12:15 Roxane Cabit, trainee and hacker from France
01:19:23 Dina Arvanitaki, trainee and hacker from Greece
01:28:50 Co-creation: Empowering young people for the 21st century 01:30:20 Ivan Mušanović, Project Officer, CTC Rijeka
01:43:50 Altheo Valentini, CEO, EGINA
02:03:16 Tiana Zignani, Project Officer, Public Libraries 2030
02:06:30 Social Hackademy Awards #Zerohunger 2 (winners of Social Hackathon Umbria) The Coding Gang (winners of Social Hackathon Patras) IT Girls (winners of Social Hackathon Rijeka) Feminist Surge (winners of Social Hackathon Montpeiller)
02:47:50 PANEL DISCUSSION:From developing a solution to actual implementation Arjana Blazic, DigiEduHack Ping Kong, Founder, Heritage & Education Salvatore Nigro, CEO, Junior Achievement Europe Thomas Matthew, Board Member, European Youth Forum
03:46:30 Mini Hack session

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See Manifesto (2021 version) in English in .pdf

Introduction

Digital competences are essential to how we live, learn and work. The confident and critical use of digital technology
is key to supporting lifelong learning, active citizenship, employability, and inclusion. Citizens can wield their
digital competences to access information and support, access new learning and employment opportunities, be creative and
entrepreneurial, find new opportunities and to help others.

To deliver on this potential ALL DIGITAL has worked with our network of digital competence centres and stakeholders on a
new version of the ‘Manifesto for enhancing digital competences in Europe’.

The Manifesto sets out key principles and recommendations on how to maximise the impact of education and training in
digital competences for all European citizens.

Digital skills and jobs are a key action area in the EU’s digital strategy (2019 – 2024) and the 2030 Digital
Compass supported by a variety of initiatives announced as part of the European Skills
Agenda, European Education Area and Digital Education Action Plan. The Manifesto seeks to
contribute to dialogue, implementation, and co-operation on these and other actions to deliver Europe’s digital
future; its realisation is a strategic priority of ALL DIGITAL.

At the core of the Manifesto is the belief that education and training in digital competences in Europe must become more
consistent and cohesive.

The Manifesto calls on EU institutions, Member States, and stakeholder organisations, as well as ALL DIGITAL and its
members, to take action and find new ways to co-operate at EU, national, regional and local level to deliver on the
ambition of this Manifesto.

This Manifesto includes key principles and recommendations under 5 main areas:

1. The education and training offer

2. Access to education and training

3. Quality of education and training

4. A European approach to digital competence

5. Sustainability and development

We invite organisations working in the field of digital skills to ENDORSE THE MANIFESTO

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Category: organisational

Nomination: by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation

Description: A digital resource is an online product for educational benefit, contributing to enhancing digital skills or providing an organisation with a useful tool to use with the customers or by customers directly. It should be free to use and be sustainable beyond its development (or funded) period. The resource can be developed by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation; by a consortium within a project where a member organisation is a partner; or by an external company, if the member organisation uses it routinely within their training programmes. Examples include, but are not limited to: a self-assessment tool, an educational game, a serious of instructional videos, an online training course or MOOC.

Selection process: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: the resource addresses digital skills in a new way; proposes new solutions for enhancing digital skills and employability perspective; is unique in offering opportunities to upgrade skills.
• Impact: the initiative has demonstrated evidence of positive impact on users (on their digital/entrepreneurial skills level; on their employability perspectives).
• Scalability: the resource can be easily adapted to other audiences and/or localised.
• Sustainability: the initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2021

APPLICATION FORM

(If you don’t see the form below, please fill it in here)

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Category:

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: Changemaker is a term coined by the social entrepreneurship organization Ashoka, meaning one who desires change in the world and, by gathering knowledge and resources, makes that change happen. Changemakers seek the only change that really matters – social change, striving to reach as many people as possible. Digital changemakers are committed individuals who aim to transform society with the help of digital tools and technologies. They lead the refocusing and adjustment of existing ICT for learning and inclusion initiatives towards a more effective support of citizens. Examples: leaders of digital competence centres and networks, ICT educators, job and entrepreneurship mentors, digital entrepreneurs and founders of ICT companies, community leaders, policy makers.

Selection: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Achievements: Contribution to community development, support of digital skills enhancement, employability and entrepreneurship.
• Social change and impact: Improving digital skills / reducing digital gap at national / regional level.
• Leadership: Interaction/co-operation with partners, resource mobilization.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2021

APPLICATION FORM

(If you don’t see the form below, please fill it in here)

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Category: Individual

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: The “e-facilitator” term embraces the range of people facilitating the digital training/empowering process in digital competence centres, including trainers, tutors, moderators, assistants, etc. – each centre may have a different name for this role. E-facilitators can be employed or be volunteers, but they work directly with users teaching and supporting them. Digital competence centres would have no success without their hardworking e-facilitators, who are in the first line of digital inclusion by eradicating fear of using new technologies, thus bringing technology into people’s lives. They bring people online, take the fear of technology away, and teach them the right behaviour, opening new perspectives, enabling better jobs, and enhancing their communities.

Selection: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Quantitative results: Number of years worked, people trained/supported in relation to the scope of the centre, courses taught/developed if applicable.
• Professionalism and dedication: Demonstrated expertise on delivering digital education and on empowering people to use new technologies; unique approaches to teaching.
• Social impact: Outcomes of work, how the trainees’ lives have changed, results of the training, such as jobs found, stayed in workforce, new businesses established, new processes introduced, etc.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2021

APPLICATION FORM

(If you don’t see the form below, fill it in here)

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One of the last acts of the Open-AE project was the organisations of final multiplier event. Initially planned as a half day event in Brussels where project partners from Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Belgium would meet and present the project results to stakeholders (policy makers and educators inn the field of education and training) in Belgium. Due to COVID-19 pandemics the face-to-face event was moved online.

The event, organized on 20 October, was opened by ALL DIGITAL CEO Renato Sabbadini, who was followed by a panel debate with:

• Véronique Guisen (CABAN DIBAC, Digital Public Space, Director of the “Saint-Gilles Web Workshops”),
• Francesc Rambla (Centre de Telecomunicacions i Tecnologies de la Informació),
• Frédéric Colignon (Popular Digital University, Brussels Linux User Group (BxLUG) and member of ABELLI) and
• Luca Pagliaricci (Centro Studi Città di Foligno)

The panel discussed the use of free and libre (FLOSS) technologies in non-formal adult education. Initial presentations were followed by a discussion among panelists which was moderated by Leonor Afonso from Foundation Ynternet.org. You can watch the panel debate here.

After the panel debate representatives of the project consortium presented the project results. They were accompanied by trainees who participated in the piloting of the Open-AE Curriculum.

Analysis Report

Florian Ruymen from MAKS vzw presented Open-AE Analysis Report (watch Florian’s presentation here) which was the starting point of addressing the priorities of the Open-AE project which are:

• to promote access and learning through open educational resources (OER);
• to promote Open Source (OS) technologies in the non-formal educational sector to support the upskilling of adult educators and learners;
• to address adult trainers working in the non-formal educational sector to reinforce digital skills and competences.

The objective of the analysis was to establish a foundation for the development and contextualization of the Open-AE Curriculum and the Open-AE Toolkit, and for the delivery of the training itself providing an adequate contextualization of the expected methods and tools. This was done by (1) desk research (to collect all open educational resources used in non-formal adult education in each of the participating countries and select those that can be used in the implementation of the Open-AE curricula) and (2) field research (done by conducting focus group interviews with 8-10 participants selected from facilitators and training providers in the field of non-formal adult education providers). The analysis from the desk and field research showed poor results in terms of elements directly related to non-formal adult education offers (shortage of trainings for educators, shortage of structured courses exclusively based on open resources, scarce or often missing reference to DigCompEdu etc.) and incredible amount of open resources relevant for the Open-AE project. More detailed explanation of the findings are available in the Analysis report.

Based on the result of the research, and in particular the training needs and area of interest of trainers a preliminary syllabus was drafted to serve as a training scheme to the course curriculum. The following crucial elements for designing the syllabus modules and the linked learning objectives were identified:

1. Necessity of a reference to the theoretical and political framework of FOSS technologies and resources to cope with the general lack of awareness;
2. Reference to DigCompEdu to support a standardized European framework for trainers upskilling,
3. Design of the modules with a direct link to the area of competences trainers believe to be crucial for their job;
4. Design of the learning outcomes taking into account the available resources on the field.

Research and analysis enabled setting up a consistent and qualified pedagogical and didactic framework for the development of the Curriculum and Open-AE Toolkit. and design the piloting phase of the project. Check the Open-AE Curriculum here and the list of modules that are included in the Open-AE Course here.

Open-AE Curriculum and Toolkit

Leonor Afonso from Foundation Ynternet.org presented the Curriculum and Toolkit (watch her presentations here). In the introduction she emphasized that the project partners developed the Curriculum and Toolkit with the learner and learning process in the centre. This was translated to the Open-AE Toolkit which is built in a way that people can contribute to it and can also be responsible for their own learning process. Open-AE Toolkit is a compilation of 18 training scenarios. These scenarios aim to guide trainers and learners during the training period in both the face-to-face classes and online exercises. Together with open educational resources they form an Open-AE Academy platform. The scenarios are available in 6 languages (English, Dutch, French, Italian, Spanish). The Open-AE Academy is complemented by SlideWiki where learning materials (presentations or other) are stored and documented online. SlideWiki is an open-source and open-access platform that employs crowdsourcing methods to support the authoring, sharing, reusing and remixing of open courseware. With the selection of the platforms used for hosting the Toolkit, Open-AE project implements the one of the main principles which is to give learners the power to decide what they want to learn and how.

Open-AE Piloting and Feedback

Esther Subias from Collectic presented the results of Open-AE piloting in Belgium, Italy, Spain and Switzerland (watch her presentation here). The piloting should have been implemented from March to July 2020 through a blended training course, but this was impossible due to COVID-19 pandemic, therefore partners had to transfer all training activities online. Training activities were implemented through various channels and platforms project partners used to establish a support system for learners, create national learning communities and provide access to learning materials and training activities (webinars, video conversations, etc.). Project partners agreed to pilot all of the scenarios. To achieve that, they divided the scenarios among themselves to make sure all were tested. Piloting participants were adult trainers, e-facilitators and also some teachers and IT experts with very different experiences in adult learning (from 3 to 22 years). The length of the piloting course was at least 60 hours. Despite the COVID-19 situation, the completion rate of the piloting course among participants was 50%. Every participant who finished the training received a personalized certificate that reflects the content of the training.

Difficulties and weaknesses we detected were:

1. The transformation from blended to online course with very little time for this transformation and
2. Group activities were not as successful as planned due to the experience not being the same in online setting.

The feedback from the participants also helped project partners to identify the strengths of the Open-AE training course which are:

1. Well constructed training materials that are relevant to the trainee
2. Training helped participants to acquire greater understanding of the open source framework and FLOSS culture
3. Participants didn’t just learn about new tools to develop digital competences but also about communication tools that can be used in online teaching
4. Creating space and moments for community building was appreciated and proved as a correct strategy.

Overall assessment of the piloting showed that it was successful as it provided complementary knowledge that advanced competences of adult educators in the field of digital skills learning and introduced them to the world of open source technologies and FLOSS culture which enables them to deliver high quality training in non-formal adult education sector. The organisation of the training content and activity provided a great opportunity to create or strengthen an active community around the topic of FLOSS and was also assessed as a fun activity.

Project partners invited trainers and trainees from Belgium, Italy, and Switzerland to share their piloting experience with the participants of the final conference. Testimonials were presented by:

• Chiara Borsini (trainer) -> watch her testimony here
• Kate Jackson (trainee) -> watch her testimony here
• Brahim Jerhoum Haissoune (trainee) -> watch his testimony here

What’s next?

Last to speak was Borut Cink from ALL DIGITAL who presented Guidelines for transferability and up scaling of Open-AE project results (watch his presentation here). The document targets policy makers and educators in the field of non-formal adult education and presents the reasoning for mainstreaming and up scaling of open technologies and FLOSS culture to non-formal adult education. Guidelines extrapolated from partners experiences and expertise in the field topped by project results and lessons learned during the project implementation.

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Category:

Nomination: by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation

Description: A digital resource is an online product for educational benefit, contributing to enhancing digital skills or providing an organisation with a useful tool to use with the customers or by customers directly. It should be free to use and be sustainable beyond its development (or funded) period. The resource can be developed by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation; by a consortium within a project where a member organisation is a partner; or by an external company, if the member organisation uses it routinely within their training programmes. Examples include, but are not limited to: a self-assessment tool, an educational game, a serious of instructional videos, an online training course or MOOC.

Selection process: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: the resource addresses digital skills in a new way; proposes new solutions for enhancing digital skills and employability perspective; is unique in offering opportunities to upgrade skills.
• Impact: the initiative has demonstrated evidence of positive impact on users (on their digital/entrepreneurial skills level; on their employability perspectives).
• Scalability: the resource can be easily adapted to other audiences and/or localised.
• Sustainability: the initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2020

APPLICATION FORM

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Category:

Nomination: by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation

Description: A cooperation project is a project where two or more ALL DIGITAL member organisations have worked together to develop (for example, but not limited to) a training programme, a new methodology, a learning product, a campaign or event to enhance digital skills, that benefits all partners and creates a greater impact or improved learning outcome.

The project must have been undertaken with at least two ALL DIGITAL member organisations. It can be a completed or ongoing project, but it must have a finite timeframe and specified objectives.

Selection process: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: The unique feature of the project; its difference from other comparable projects.
• Impact: Demonstrated impact on users, number of users, and impact on organisations.
• Transferability: The initiative can be potentially implemented by other member organisations for their own benefit.
• Sustainability: The initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

Back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2019

APPLICATION FORM

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Category:

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: Changemaker is a term coined by the social entrepreneurship organization Ashoka, meaning one who desires change in the world and, by gathering knowledge and resources, makes that change happen. Changemakers seek the only change that really matters – social change, striving to reach as many people as possible. Digital changemakers are committed individuals who aim to transform society with the help of digital tools and technologies. They lead the refocusing and adjustment of existing ICT for learning and inclusion initiatives towards a more effective support of citizens. Examples: leaders of digital competence centres and networks, ICT educators, job and entrepreneurship mentors, digital entrepreneurs and founders of ICT companies, community leaders, policy makers.

Selection: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Achievements: Contribution to community development, support of digital skills enhancement, employability and entrepreneurship.
• Social change and impact: Improving digital skills / reducing digital gap at national / regional level.
• Leadership: Interaction/co-operation with partners, resource mobilization.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2020

APPLICATION FORM

The post ALL DIGITAL Awards 2020: Best digital changemaker appeared first on ALL DIGITAL.

Category:

Nomination: by an individual or an organisation

Description: The “e-facilitator” term embraces the range of people facilitating the digital training/empowering process in digital competence centres, including trainers, tutors, moderators, assistants, etc. – each centre may have a different name for this role. E-facilitators can be employed or be volunteers, but they work directly with users teaching and supporting them. Digital competence centres would have no success without their hardworking e-facilitators, who are in the first line of digital inclusion by eradicating fear of using new technologies, thus bringing technology into people’s lives. They bring people online, take the fear of technology away, and teach them the right behaviour, opening new perspectives, enabling better jobs, and enhancing their communities.

Selection: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Quantitative results: Number of years worked, people trained/supported in relation to the scope of the centre, courses taught/developed if applicable.
• Professionalism and dedication: Demonstrated expertise on delivering digital education and on empowering people to use new technologies; unique approaches to teaching.
• Social impact: Outcomes of work, how the trainees’ lives have changed, results of the training, such as jobs found, stayed in workforce, new businesses established, new processes introduced, etc.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2020

APPLICATION FORM

The post ALL DIGITAL Awards 2020: Best e-facilitator appeared first on ALL DIGITAL.

 “You will lead the work on implementing and updating our skills agenda, focusing on identifying and filling skills shortages and supporting reskilling as part of the just transition. You should explore the idea of individual learning accounts for people of working age, enabling adults to accumulate training entitlements and use them for quality-assured training.”

In addition to citizens, governments and industry this statement about Individual Learning Accounts (ILAs) has great significance for Adult Learning Providers across Europe.

In late 2019 the OECD published a detailed analysis report entitled ILAs: Panacea or Pandora’s Box. This is a significant review of several functioning models around the world and their approaches to implementation.

In the report ILAs are defined as “virtual, individual accounts in which training rights are accumulated over time. They are virtual in the sense that resources are only mobilised if training is actually undertaken.”

The OECD report summarises the history and the opportunity presented by ILAs. “ILAs were originally introduced with the objective of boosting individual choice and responsibility with regards to training and to increase competition among training providers and thus the quality and relevance of training provision.”

Image from the OECD report

An early model for ILAs was introduced in the UK in the late 1990s.  The scheme was closed after only 18 months as a result of a significant fraud, with non-existent learners being registered to draw down funding. Today’s identity technology could and should easily prevent such simplistic fraud, but the technology revolution is also a driving factor in the renewed need for such schemes.

According to the OECD report, there are numerous models and examples from around the world, but the only real example of an ‘Individual Learning Account’ (as opposed to more popular voucher schemes) is the French ‘Compte Personnel de Formation’ (CPF). The OECD cites CPF “as an interesting new approach which could boost training participation in a new world of work”. The digital transformation of the workplace and employment practices in general have created a huge and ever-shifting demand for skills training. But it is also creating new challenges, particularly around making training rights “portable” from one job or employment status to another. In this digital job market ILAs could have a huge impact on the digital skills gap countries are facing, supporting competitiveness and economic development.

The European Economic and Social Committee are preparing a response to Commissioner Schmit’s  Mission Letter, but there is already action from elsewhere within the European Commission to explore the concept of Individual Learning Accounts in a new Erasmus+ Key Action 3 fund just announced to test ILAs in member states.

The business community and citizens may have a mixed view of the ILA concept, depending on how it is implemented, and there is a concern that ILAs do not necessarily target those most in need. This issue is highlighted in the OECD report as one of the key challenges, and one which ALL DIGITAL would encourage member states to consider carefully to ensure that any scheme is fully accessible to those most in need.

ALL DIGITAL is currently also delivering ‘Digital Skillshift’, a project designed to upskill citizens facing digital transformation in the workplace in France, Germany, and Italy. The project is supported by J.P. Morgan.

The project partner in France, Simplon.co is a registered training provider for CPF and may use it for eligible trainees. The evaluation is due to complete at the end of 2020 and will include comparisons of the training models in each country, potentially with and without the use of ILA type funding.

ALL DIGITAL is hosting an event on 18 February 2020 in Brussels entitled Individual Learning Accounts in the 2020s. The event will explore the models and opportunities that derive from implementing ILAs across Europe. ALL DIGITAL will welcome Commissioner Schmit and Stefano Scarpetta of the OECD to present and explore the topic together with an expert panel.

The expert panellists include Antoine Saint-Denis from the Ministry of Employment in France (responsible for CPF), Brikena Xhomaqi from the Lifelong Learning Platform, Robert Plummer of Business Europe, and Eva Maydell MEP. The panel will be moderated by Hanka Boldemann from J.P. Morgan Global Philanthropy. They will discuss benefits and implications for national governments, the education sector, industry and employers, and society as a whole.

The agenda for the event is here and the event will be live-streamed from 10h30 CET on 18 February. Questions to speakers and panellists can be asked on Twitter using #ILAs2020s and tagging @AllDigitalEU.

by Ian Clifford

References

• Commissioner Schmit’s Mission Letter
• OECD – ILAs: Panancea or Pandora’s Box
• OECD – Policy brief
• Compte Personnel de Formation
• Erasmus+ Key Action 3
• Digital Skillshift Project
• “ILAs in the 2020s” Event Agenda
• Livestreaming of the event on 18 February
• #ILAs2020s
  

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The training course will take place in Foligno, a town in the beautiful Umbria Region of Italy, characterized by hills, mountains, valleys and historical towns such as  Perugia and Assisi, a World Heritage Site. With a bit more than 60,000 inhabitants, Foligno is the third town of the Umbria Region, the so-called “green hearth of Italy”.

The area offers tourists a rich cultural heritage, archaeological, medieval and spiritual tourist attractions and a fascinating landscape. Several cultural events, such as traditional fairs and music festivals take place throughout the year and make the region a pleasant place to visit in any season.

You will discover that Foligno and its surroundings can offer more than you can expect and it is a very good and quiet place to carry out training activities, as well as a strategic location to reach more Umbrian venues, like Assisi, Perugia, Spello, etc.

HOW TO GET THERE

From Perugia

The closest airport to Foligno is the “San Francesco D’Assisi” Umbria-Perugia International airport, which is mostly served by Ryanair flights from London Stansted, Malta and Brussels Charleroi. If you are lucky and you find suitable flights with the meeting dates, then the host partner will be outside of the airport waiting for you and will drive you to your accommodation.

From Rome

Most of participants will land in Rome (Fiumicino or Ciampino) and, depending on the arrival and departure times, they get one of the numerous trains that, in max 2 hours, can bring them directly to the “Foligno” train station, from where the host partner will organize transfers to your accommodation.

VENUE

The group will be accommodated in the countryside of Foligno, Bevagna, at “Il Poggio dei Pettirossi”, where most of the training activities will take place. Breakfasts, lunches and dinners are included and will be served at the same location.

The host partner will organize for participants transfers from Foligno train station to the hotel and back and transportation for all the activities and trips.

Back to the information about the training course

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On 10-11 October 2019, ALL DIGITAL will organise its 12^th annual summit in Bologna, Italy. The event is co-hosted by our Italian members ART-ER, Lai-Momo  Open Group in collaboration with Emilia-Romagna Digital Agenda and supported by Golinelli Foundation.

ALL DIGITAL Summit 2019 will tackle two distinctive but equally important themes for our network. Basic digital skills for everyone have always been at the core of our work ever since the digital inclusion leaders met more than 10 years ago to establish a European network. STEAM skills are, on the other hand, a newer topic on the advanced side of the skills spectrum with increasing importance where digital competence centres have a key role to play.

Do you think basic digital skills and STEAM skills meet? And if yes, where? In the digital competence centres, of course. And in an ever growing number of schools, too!

In recent years, our ALL DIGITAL network has evolved and grown. New organisations have joined, and new topics are emerging. STEM (and now STEAM) skills is one of them, steadily making its way into our digital competence centres through fab labs, maker spaces, robotics, digital creativity activities. Our role is to make these technologies available to everyone, regardless of their social and economic status, educational level, geographic location and background. At the same time, basic digital skills and digital literacy remain a top priority for us, because we know that way too many people in Europe are still unable to perform very basic operations with digital devices (43% of them, which is about 200 million people).

This is why, this year, we are addressing these two topics together – on Day 1 we will look into ground-breaking forward-looking ways to turn digital competence centres into STEAM hubs supporting everyone to develop high-end skills, while on Day 2 we will remind ourselves that our job to ensure basic digital literacy for everyone is far from done.

Keep posted to know more about ALL DIGITAL SUMMIT 2019.

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As such the UMI-Sci-Ed conference was primarily valuable to the educational community, VET providers, career support organisations, educational authorities and policy makers. Around 50 practitioners from these groups attended the first day of the event at the L42 venue in Brussels. The event compromised a range of different discussions, plenary sessions and practical demonstrations, engaging these organizations and demonstrating tools and approaches that work.

During the event the project was explained in detail, results provided, and partners went into details about different areas of the project, and the future of the project was also explored. Two invited keynote speakers gave perspectives on the project and IoT in general, as well as a view of policy direction in this area. There were also practical demonstrations of the UDOO kit and the Platform and presentations from each partner organisation.

At the beginning of the conference the project video was shown to delegates, and then Achilles Kameas and Ioannis Zaharakis from CTI gave an overview of the UMI-Sci-Ed project followed by inspiring presentations by Alexa Joyce from Microsoft and Erik Ballhausen from the EACEA of the European Commission. They respectively explored the wider role of IoT in inspiring science education, and looked at policy direction within the EC.

Following this, practical demonstration were held by project partners.  Luca Tavanti from CUBIT explained the components of the UDOO kit and then Athanasios Iosifidis from CTI described in detail the tools and learning scenarios held on the platform. Ian Clifford from ALL DIGITAL then gave a short presentation about UMI and ALL DIGITAL Week with the case studies of the UDOO kit in action in Croatia and Spain.

This was followed by a series of short project partner presentations starting with Jacqueline Kehoe from Cork Institute of Technology talking about the piloting and communities of practice. Jarkko Lampiselkä from the University of Helsinki described the ‘spin-off’ benefits of engagement with a construction contractor. Monica Divitini from Norwegian University of Science and Technology then talked about the evaluation, Stefano Giordano from the University of Pisa described the pedagogy of the project and Luca Tavanti from CUBIT covered the Market Exploitation.

The closing session was led by Achilles Kameas who summed up the day and the lessons learned from the project and talked about the future plans for the ‘umbrella’ organisation.

During the second day, held in conjunction with the ALL DIGITAL General Assembly 2019, more details for the future model for the project was proposed to the 60+ participants by Achilles Kameas of CTI, the newly elected Chair of the ALL DIGITAL Board.

Delegates also took part in an interactive ‘game show’ about UMI and IoT with the winning member, José Antonio González Martínez of Somos Digital of Spain receiving a UDOO kit to take back to his organisation.

The ambition for the UMI-Sci-Ed project is for the results, tools and models to be adopted widely by the ALL DIGITAL members and beyond.

The project partners include a range of technological institutions led by the Computer Technology Institute and Press “Diophantus”(CTI) with the Cork Institute of Technology(CIT), the Consortium of Ubiquitous Technologies(CUBIT) and academic organisations including the University of Helsinki (UH), the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and the University of Pisa (UNIPI). ALL DIGITAL(AD) completed the partnership supporting with dissemination activities.

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Category:

Nomination: by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation

Description: A digital resource is an online product for educational benefit, contributing to enhancing digital skills or providing an organisation with a useful tool to use with the customers or by customers directly. It should be free to use and be sustainable beyond its development (or funded) period. The resource can be developed by an ALL DIGITAL member organisation; by a consortium within a project where a member organisation is a partner; or by an external company, if the member organisation uses it routinely within their training programmes. Examples include, but are not limited to: a self-assessment tool, an educational game, a serious of instructional videos, an online training course or MOOC.

Selection process: jury

Assessment criteria:

• Innovation: the resource addresses digital skills in a new way; proposes new solutions for enhancing digital skills and employability perspective; is unique in offering opportunities to upgrade skills.
• Impact: the initiative has demonstrated evidence of positive impact on users (on their digital/entrepreneurial skills level; on their employability perspectives).
• Scalability: the resource can be easily adapted to other audiences and/or localised.
• Sustainability: the initiative has ensured some means of funding or a business model in the medium to long term to be able to maintain its operations and outcomes.

back to ALL DIGITAL Awards 2019

APPLICATION FORM

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