From Soil to Society: How Seville’s rE-dESIGN Workshop Proved That Regeneration Starts with People

In late September, the Seville Chamber of Commerce became the meeting ground for farmers, social entrepreneurs, policymakers, and educators determined to rethink what “sustainability” really means. The occasion was the rE-dESIGN Transnational Workshop, part of the European project fostering resilient, green, and digital agri-food systems across southern Europe. Under the theme “Integrated Social Agriculture: Inclusion, Community Services, and Sustainability,” the workshop gathered partners from Spain, Greece, and Italy for two days of learning, exchange, and field visits — and, most importantly, to witness how social economy principles can bring regeneration to life.

Seeds of Inclusion and Innovation

The opening session, hosted at the Ayuntamiento de Dos Hermanas, set the tone: sustainability is not only about protecting nature, but about building fair, inclusive communities.

Participants presented local initiatives and good practices, each showing how social and environmental goals can strengthen one another. Among the most inspiring cases was Flor de Doñana Biorganic, a company proving that ethical business and agricultural excellence can grow in the same soil. Employing 99% local staff — over 80% of whom are women — Flor de Doñana has become a symbol of regenerative agriculture in Andalusia. Beyond its organic berries and environmental credentials, the company stands out for something rarer: a culture of dignity and shared prosperity. Flexible working hours, fair pay, and participatory decision-making aren’t slogans here — they’re everyday practice.

The Power of Social Enterprises: BioAlverde

The workshop’s first visit took participants to BioAlverde, a social and labour integration enterprise created by Cáritas Diocesana de Sevilla. There, the group saw regeneration in its purest form — people once excluded from the job market now cultivating organic fields, running local markets, and even reimagining sustainable fashion. BioAlverde embodies the spirit of the social and solidarity economy, showing that environmental impact and human dignity are inseparable. Its message was simple and powerful: “No sustainability without inclusion.”

Olive Trees and Heritage at Fundación Juan Ramón Guillén

The second day led participants to the Fundación Juan Ramón Guillén, an organisation devoted to preserving Andalusia’s olive-growing heritage while driving rural innovation. Set among centuries-old olive trees, the Foundation’s Olive Heritage Centre demonstrates how culture, education, and sustainability can merge. Through training programs for young people and women, environmental awareness campaigns, and responsible tourism initiatives, the Foundation connects tradition and modernity, ensuring that rural life remains vibrant and viable. Here, regeneration is not just about land — it’s about rooting the future in community values.

Andalusia as a Living Laboratory

Complementing the visits, representatives from AGAPA (Andalusian Agency for the Management of Agriculture and Fisheries) and the Seville Chamber of Commerce presented regional initiatives that make Andalusia a model of green transition. Projects such as Andalhuerto, Biodistricts, and Rural Energy Communities highlight how collaboration between government, businesses, and citizens can transform rural economies. As one participant put it: “What’s happening in Andalusia isn’t just sustainable farming — it’s a social renaissance powered by innovation and cooperation.”

A New Vision for the Agri-Food Sector

By the close of the workshop, one conclusion was clear: the future of food systems will be built by communities that care — about their soil, their workers, and their neighbours. From Flor de Doñana’s fair-labour model to BioAlverde’s circular economy approach and Fundación Guillén’s olive heritage work, each story reinforced a shared belief: social economy is not a side project — it’s the backbone of real sustainability. As the rE-dESIGN partners move forward, Seville’s workshop leaves a lasting reminder — that regeneration begins not in policies or technologies, but in people willing to collaborate, create, and care.

#SocialEconomy #Innovation #RegenerativeAgriculture #Inclusion #rEDESIGNproject #GreenTransition #SevilleChamber

Social Agriculture Takes Root in Sicily

Palermo Workshop Highlights Innovation, Inclusion, and Rural Sustainability

From June 17 to 18, 2025, the hills of Ventimiglia di Sicilia played host to a vibrant exchange of ideas, best practices, and community spirit, as partners and stakeholders of the rEdESIGN project gathered for a transnational workshop on Integrated Social Agriculture.

The event was hosted by GAL Metropoli Est and attended by participants from Greece, Spain, and Italy – all united by a shared vision: empowering rural areas through social entrepreneurship and sustainable food systems.

Project rEdESIGN at a Glance

Mr. Konstantinos Androulakis from ECTE (European Centre in Training for Employment) addressed a clear message: social farming is more than a trend – it’s a tool for resilience.

Through his presentation, attendees learned that rEdESIGN:

  • Supports social enterprises in the agri-food sector across Crete, Sicily, and Andalusia.

  • Promotes sustainable agriculture, community-based services, and job creation.

  • Is building a European network of local and regional actors who prioritize the social economy.

Sharing Stories, Challenges & Solutions

The workshop’s highlight was a lively session where project partners presented one strength, one challenge, and one lesson learned from their experiences. Topics included:

  • Inclusion of NEETs, people with disabilities, and migrants through farm-based learning.

  • Cooperation between municipalities, schools, and cooperatives to create meaningful services.

  • Creative funding ideas – from EU grants to community-based models like social vouchers.

Facilitated discussions explored how social farms can serve as learning spaces, care centers, and sustainable businesses – all at once.

Field Visits: Learning from the Land

Participants visited:

  • The shared gardens at Giardini di Palazzo Filangeri

  • The youth-led Museo delle Spartenze

  • An immersive beekeeping lab

  • Alesi Farm’s pet therapy initiative

These visits showcased how Sicilian social farms are already creating inclusive, therapeutic, and educational experiences.

Co-Creating the Social Agriculture Toolkit

On Day 2, participants rolled up their sleeves to begin building the  Toolkit, a practical resource for regions across Europe. Through group brainstorming and co-design, they identified:

  • Core values like accessibility, sustainability, and community empowerment

  • Essential skills and governance models

  • Challenges to overcome, especially around funding and scalability

This session laid the groundwork for the project’s future outputs in Work Packages 4 and 5.

Final Thoughts

The workshop closed with reflections from local and international voices. Their takeaway? Social agriculture is a powerful connector of people, skills, land, and hope.

As rEdESIGN moves forward, the insights from Palermo will help sow the seeds for lasting impact across Europe’s rural communities.

101169928 — rEdESIGN — SMP-COSME-2023-RESILIENCE

A Knowledge Triangle in Action: Crete Sparks a Regional Model for Smart Skills in the Buildings sector

Herakleion, Crete – May 7, 2025

 On May 7, Crete’s Knowledge Triangle—uniting vocational education, research, and industry under the SEBCoVE project—marked its transition from planning to piloting with a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and a suite of new initiatives aimed at reshaping the region’s energy workforce.

This event, a convergence of companies, researchers, and VET providers, wasn’t just a ceremonial milestone. It was a working meeting where microcredentials were dissected, future challenges were aired openly, and new collaborations took shape—solidifying Crete as a leading model for others in the Smart Electricity for Buildings (SEB) sector across Europe.

From Fragmentation to Flow: Building the Triangle

Before SEBCoVE’s intervention, Crete’s VET and energy sectors faced common European challenges: outdated curricula, limited cooperation between educators and innovators, and companies struggling to find workers with relevant, up-to-date skills. The Knowledge Triangle model—co-designed with stakeholders using a design thinking approach—offered a fresh start.

“The gap between training and market demands was growing,” said Konstantinos A., a veteran vocational educator and one of the key figures behind the Cretan pilot. “We needed a structured, continuous way to talk to each other—and SEBCoVE gave us that space.”

Using empathy-based workshops, local actors created vivid personas—like “The Strategic VET Reformer,” “The Knowledge-Driven Innovator,” and “The Collaborative Innovation Catalyst”—that embodied Crete’s stakeholders. These were more than fictional sketches; they helped participants understand each other’s motivations and barriers, paving the way for practical cooperation.

The MoU: A Commitment to Continue

At the heart of the May 7 meeting was the official signing of the regional Memorandum of Understanding. The document lays the foundation for ongoing collaboration, clarifying roles, sharing responsibilities, and enabling access to joint funding and resources.

“Signing the MoU wasn’t just symbolic,” noted Prof. K. Emmanouel from the Hellenic Mediterranean University. “It was an act of ownership. We are not just beneficiaries—we are now co-creators of the SEB skills ecosystem.”

Microcredentials: Short Courses, Big Impact

Among the most discussed elements were the modular microcredentials developed through the SEBCoVE roadmap. These stackable units—covering topics like smart metering, IoT systems in buildings, and energy data analytics – are designed to be flexible, industry-relevant, and EQF-aligned.

Yet the discussion revealed tensions, too. Industry leaders pointed to the slow pace of curriculum reform and the need for real-time feedback mechanisms. “We want graduates who can hit the ground running,” said Stylianos V., president of the Electrical Installers Association of Heraklion. “That means short, hands-on training—updated as the technology changes.”

The pilot’s adaptive learning framework includes regular feedback loops and KPIs, but challenges remain in integrating these into national qualification systems and ensuring recognition across sectors.

Breaking Silos, One Initiative at a Time

Three new initiatives launched at the Herakleion meeting aim to address these issues head-on:

  1. A Regional SEB Innovation Forum will convene annually to align VET, research, and industry developments.

  2. A Microcredential Validation Board will oversee the evolution and accreditation of training units.

  3. A Stakeholder Dashboard will publicly track engagement and performance metrics across the Triangle.

These are supported by a governance structure featuring a Joint Steering Committee and thematic working groups, ensuring the system evolves in response to technological and market shifts.

A Blueprint for Europe?

While Crete takes the spotlight, it is not alone. Parallel efforts in Italy, Spain, and North Macedonia are following the SEBCoVE roadmap, adapting it to their regional realities. In Italy, the pilot is leveraging diverse regional VET strengths; in the Basque Country, the challenge is linking a strong industrial base with training centers; and in North Macedonia, capacity building is underway in a rapidly modernizing energy sector.

What sets Crete apart is its agility: despite limited resources, the region has succeeded in forging genuine collaboration, rooted in trust, dialogue, and shared urgency.

Looking Ahead

As the SEBCoVE Knowledge Triangle pilot enters its next phase, Crete offers a compelling example of how structured collaboration can turn fragmentation into innovation. From microcredentials to governance reforms, the region is proving that even in a small island setting, big systems change is possible—when education, industry, and research move together.

For Europe’s energy transition, it’s a hopeful signal from the South

MOBUILDING Project Kicks Off in Valladolid: A Strategic Push for Cross-Border Mobility and Excellence in VET

Valladolid, Spain – April 2025
The city of Valladolid hosted the launch of the MOBUILDING project, a new Erasmus+ policy experimentation initiative aiming to enhance apprenticeship mobility in the building sector across Europe. The kick-off meeting, held on April 9–10, 2025, brought together a dynamic consortium of partners from across Europe, including policymakers, VET providers, and stakeholders from the construction and smart electricity sectors.
Hosted by the Regional Directorate for Vocational Education and Training of Castilla y León (EDUCACYL), the two-day meeting marked the official start of a project that aspires to tackle the legal, structural, and cultural barriers limiting cross-border mobility of apprentices in the construction industry—a sector that employs 18 million people and contributes around 9% to the EU’s GDP.

Breaking Barriers to Build Skills
Led by INFODEF (Spain), the MOBUILDING project seeks to:
  • Identify and address obstacles to mobility in apprenticeships.
  • Develop a European Platform for Apprenticeship Mobility in the building sector.
  • Enhance outreach and quality in learning mobility experiences.
The kickoff meeting set the strategic framework for project implementation, with presentations of the draft work plans across all work packages—from mapping mobility barriers (WP2), led by ECTE , to supporting hosts and sending organizations (WP3), enhancing outreach (WP4), ensuring quality assurance (WP1), and disseminating outcomes (WP5).

Kick-Off Meeting for Erasmus+ VET Project in Kahramanmaraş: A Milestone for Professional Growth

The Erasmus+ project titled “Creation of E-Guidance via an Innovative Set of Toolkit for Professional Know-How Enhancement at VET” (Project Number 2024-1-TR01-KA220-VET-000246582) successfully held its kick-off meeting on April 28-29, 2025 at Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam University (KSU) in Türkiye. This significant event brought together representatives from eight partner organizations, including KSU, TSOML, LPU, HMKU, INFO, ECTE, ZIK, and ALOES, laying the foundation for a collaborative and impactful initiative in vocational education and training.

The two-day meeting aimed to set the tone for the project’s ambitious goals, which focus on enhancing the professional know-how of VET (Vocational Education and Training) professionals through innovative digital tools and training modules. The agenda was packed with crucial discussions, including partner introductions, development of a gamification module, financial planning, social media strategy, dissemination, and the creation of a dedicated project web page. These topics reflect the project’s commitment to providing cutting-edge resources that bridge knowledge gaps and improve the overall quality of vocational training.

Participants had the opportunity to engage in interactive sessions, strengthening their professional networks and exchanging valuable insights. The collaborative atmosphere encouraged open communication, ensuring that each partner’s unique perspective contributes to the project’s success. Discussions also covered the technical and financial challenges of implementing the project, fostering a shared understanding of the project’s long-term impact.

Beyond the formal sessions, the meeting also included cultural activities that provided participants with a deeper appreciation for the local culture of Kahramanmaraş, reinforcing interpersonal bonds and promoting mutual understanding among the diverse group of attendees.

As the project progresses, it aims to empower VET professionals by providing cutting-edge resources and innovative solutions that address the evolving needs of the education sector. The next steps include refining the gamification module, finalizing the financial framework, and expanding the project’s online presence to reach a broader audience.