Circular economy competences, making the case for lifelong learning: the CYCLE project kicks-off

On 23-24 November 2017, the new European Commission funded Erasmus+ project CYCLE held its first partners’ meeting in Albacete (Spain). This project aims to promote the competences of adult learning professionals on the circular economy through a social e-learning environment.

The CYCLE project          

The CYCLE project aims to create a set of tools that support the introduction of circular economy competences in adult training, contributing to the creation of an attractive learning pathway for trainers and making up for the existing gap in this area.

The CYCLE project results will help trainers and facilitators providing any form of adult learning – formal and not formal –not directly linked to the labour market. Thus, the CYCLE project will connect an international network of NGOs, training institutions, local authorities, schools and civil society organizations ensuring that all learners acquire the key competences needed to deal with the challenges of sustainable resource management and the green economy.

The activities

As a first step, the CYCLE project will elaborate a pedagogical approach to the promotion of circular economy competences in adult learning. Starting by analysing competences for circular economy in the main education models in Europe, the project will then identify a core set of soft skills related to the circular economy and provide suggestions to integrate the circular economy in a lifelong learning approach

In developing social learning for the circular economy CYCLE will build an open learning platform to improve the knowledge and skills of trainers and adult learners in the field of the circular economy, by providing interactive and learner-centred training contents and a platform and meeting point for collaborative learning and the exchange of experience.

The scenario

Adult learning staff play a key role in making lifelong learning a reality. Adult learning professionals help learners to develop knowledge, skills and attitudes throughout their lives. Including transversal competences on the circular economy in adult education enhances active citizenship and sustainable production and consumption behaviours, together with a better capacity to deal with existing and future social, economic and environmental challenges. The role of adult trainers in providing transversally these competences in their training will enhance not only the training process, but will lead to a sustainable impact on adult learners, able to deal in an effective way with these threats and contribute to the creation of resilient communities and a sustainable environment.

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