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Green4ADU Webinar Sparks Dialogue on Green Jobs and Adult Empowerment

https://www.wittenborg.eu/green4adu-webinar-sparks-dialogue-green-jobs-and-adult-empowerment.htm

Participants Discuss Learning and Professional Opportunities in Connection with Environmental Issues

On 15 October, Wittenborg hosted the online webinar ‘Green4ADU – Empowering Adult Learning’. The insightful and dynamic event brought together industry and community leaders to discuss green careers, inclusive energy initiatives and the project’s new e-learning pathway for adult learners. 

Led by Wittenborg, Erasmus+ project Green4ADU aims to educate adults seeking to enhance their environmental skills and employability. The initiative includes the educational institutions Apostolina Tsaltampasi Kai Sia EE, SME (Greece), CEIPES ETS (Italy), Interchange Non-Profit gUG, NGO (Germany) and BB&R (Spain).  

The webinar featured guest speakers Dr Szymon Krupiński, co-founder and COO of WasteAnt, and Athanasia Ioannidou, director of the Greek Association of Women Entrepreneurs (SEGE) and a member of WEnCoop, the world's first 100% female-led energy cooperative. 

During his talk, Krupiński explained that WasteAnt is using AI and automation to reshape waste management, from analysing complex, high-volume waste streams to improving plant efficiency and safety. He also discussed the professional competencies valued by WasteAnt, adding that since the company’s beginning, it has been focused not only on technical skills, but also on the openness to learn and grow.  

“We also look for good organisers, people who do not necessarily have very high technological skills but can run projects and an office, people who have got organisational talent. And, of course, we look for people of all ages who have contacts with the local businesses. As a start-up, we offer lots of flexibility in terms of how you work. Many of our colleagues work from home, from other cities and sometimes even from other countries,” he said.  

Next, CEIPES EU project manager and developer Giuditta Parini demonstrated Green4ADU’s multilingual and free Moodle platform. It allows adults to navigate six short modules – plastic pollution, global warming, primary resources, collection and recycling, biodiversity loss and a capstone linking green topics to the job market – at their own pace. Parini highlighted the platform’s multimedia character, featuring written content, videos and interactive activities.  

Green4ADU Webinar Sparks Dialogue on Green Jobs and Adult Empowerment 
“Because environmental challenges are very linked and deeply connected with social and economic challenges, we aim to connect environmental issues with labour market issues. Our goal is to enhance our users’ transversal skills and provide them with a platform that can also give practical skills for daily life and for green jobs – a tool that is accessible even for disadvantaged groups and as experiential as possible.” 

The session also featured a presentation by Athanasia Ioannidou, who discussed the trajectory of WEnCoop, Europe’s first 100% women-led energy cooperative. Ioannidou underlined that the organisation is a broad-based energy community located in Greece, combining clean energy production with gender equity and equality and community empowerment. 

“Our mission is to foster a new generation of women from all backgrounds who are both entrepreneurs and energy producers. As an energy cooperative, we develop and operate photovoltaic parks, and those parks are co-owned by our members. We also provide training opportunities and training programmes in energy efficiency and sustainability. Beyond the infrastructure, we empower our members with the knowledge, tools and community support to take leadership roles in the clean energy community.” 

According to Wittenborg Erasmus+ Project Administrator and Researcher Jian Liu, the webinar’s outcome was very positive. “Attendance and participation were strong, and the live demo validated that our Moodle platform is easy to access and that short, visual modules plus quick quizzes fit adult learners’ needs. The spotlight speeches highlighted demand for practical, job-relevant green competencies. Coming next, the project partners are aligned on using upcoming local workshops to gather learner feedback and improve usability and assessment.” 

Liu added that the project is on a good development journey, with solid coordination. “The e-learning platform is live with core modules and partner work packages are feeding content, workshops and dissemination as planned. The next priorities are structured user testing in each country, and stronger links to employment services and Vocational Educational Training providers, so that our learning outcomes translate into real opportunities for adult learners.” 

WUP 30/10/2025 
by Ulisses Sawczuk 
©WUAS Press 

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