Dear all,
As every year in early January we would like to inform you about our last year’s activities and the latest developments.
In 2015, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of our blinc network during the REVEAL conference with 80 guests from 15 countries that took place in Mechelen, Belgium in the wonderful premises of our partner Trendhuis.
A good opportunity to look back at ten exciting years of joint development:
- Foundation of the cooperative in 2005 in Marseille with the ACT! project,
- Development of the cube concept in 2007,
- Creation of the LEVEL5 validation approach in 2008,
- Foundation of the REVEAL network in 2010 and
- Further development of LEVEL5 into a competence oriented learning approach which also involves the planning and validation of informal and non-formal learning from 2012 onwards.
Starting from 2012 we have constantly customised and contextualised our approach and the related instruments in various informal learning areas: in mobility actions, volunteering, intercultural and entrepreneurial learning programmes, European project works and various learning on the job settings. We have piloted LEVEL5 in different sectors in continuing professional developments, for instance in the service sector, in HR development, CSR or in CPD projects for educational professionals.
By the end of 2015, we successfully implemented our methodology and created innovative learning and validation solutions in 17 LLP or ERASMUS+ projects worth more than 4.5 Mio €.
Five REVEAL conferences were carried out and two my-VITA awards were given for 15 European best practice projects.
In 2015, the projects COMBINE and PROVIDE were accomplished. Their basic ideas will further evolve. We intend to further develop the PROGRASS approach (capacity building in the framework of nature and climate friendly recovery from energy from unused biomasses) in new projects as well as our activities related to the professional development of educational personnel.
Five projects started in 2014 and will last until 2016: PROMOTE, IMPACT, THREE C, VALLEY and EILEEN; all involving the LEVEL5 approach as planning and validation approach for competence oriented learning.
PROMOTE, as one of the very few knowledge alliances deals with promoting key competences (such as entrepreneurship, learning to learn or active citizenship) at the interface of academia and business. IMPACT is about the connection of learning technologies and validation software and about increasing the attractiveness of ECVET.
THREE C is a school project on “Competences for the Circular Economy”.
VALLEY is our first project in the YOUTH sector and deals with competences acquired in volunteering, while EILEEN is focusing on intercultural competences in European enterprises.
Three other projects have recently started (last quarter of 2015); SASSI, VALMOPRIS and EELLSS; dealing with innovative learning and validation in regard to “Silver Agers at the job”, “Learning in Prison” and “Soils as learning labs for schools”.
As we agreed in Mechelen in October 2016 we are about to open a Project Lab for our members, partners and friends for the new ERASMUS+ funding call.
There are a number of project proposals relating to the following topics:
- Refugees in Europe
- Intercultural learning
- Combating xenophobia
- Education on climate change
- Inclusion
- Promoting competence oriented learning
- Learning technologies and informal learning
- Quality approach in KA1 (mobility) courses
- Cultural heritage / story telling
We warmly invite you to participate in project proposals and/or come forward with your own ideas.
Please register to the platform (in the institution “Project Lab” if you are interested to participate. When registering do not forget to give a short reason why you want to participate – we use this as spam detection.
With our best wishes for a peaceful, happy, successful year 2016.
Yours
Tim