VET in Urban Centres 2nd Partner Meeting
30/05/2018
On May 22-24, 2018, all partners involved in this Erasmus+ KA2 project gathered in Kranj (Slovenia) to share their last developments in the context of this initiative, and to collect best practices featuring the interaction of VET schools, urban planning authorities and the private sector in the Gorenjska region.
Project partners have already started to collect best practices in their respective regions within their organisations, and the meeting in Kranj allowed them to agree on a common process based on the work they have carried out, led in this case by Agenzia Umbria Ricerche with the support of Barcelona Activa. This first step will set the basis for setting up a local cooperation model including VET in the development of urban centres and an educational VET programme with the same aim.
During this second meeting, partner representatives visited different municipalities that provided good examples of how the interaction between education centres, local governments and businesses has helped developing lively and sustainable urban centres. The first stop was Bled, where participants were introduced to the local Higher School for Tourism apprenticeships system and international approach, as well as to local community projects focused on environmental education in schools, the engagement of unemployed young people as experts for sustainable tourism, the collaboration with the Faculty of Architecture in urban planning, and a sustainable mobility plan under the motto “if you plan cities for cars and traffic, you get cars and traffic; if you plan for people and places, you get people and places.”1
The following day, a local art and craft centre and a technical VET school were visited in Škofja Loka, and partner representatives were hosted by Tržič’s city mayor at the town hall, where several projects — led by local NGOs and schools — were presented. During this visit, participants also got to know from the inside a successful initiative by Ljudska Univerza Tržič: an entrepreneurship school for the local community, targeted at all ages and aimed at promoting entrepreneurial spirit among its citizens. The award-winning local museum, which hosts activities for children involvement in the local community, was also one of the stops of the visit. During the same day, a creative centre was visited in Kranj: Layer House, a private initiative that has contributed to the city’s artistic development and cultural awareness.
The last day of discussions was hosted by Kranj School Centre (project partner), a public education institution that covers five sectors in the area: Secondary School for Electrotechnics and Informatics; Secondary School for Economics, Services and Civil Construction; Specialist Grammar School; Vocational College; and Intercompany Education and Training Centre (MIC). Local projects featuring the involvement of VET students in their local communities were also presented with a global approach during the day.
In short, these days allowed the project partners to get a closer vision of Gorenjska region’s best practices and needs, to add new perspectives to their research and discussions, and to keep on developing the project intellectual outputs. The next meeting of the project will take place in October 2018 in Barcelona (exact dates to be confirmed soon).
