<< Objectives >>PONICS VET Expanded aims to support the development of a VET curriculum (EQF 5) on hydroponics-based agriculture and hydroponics technology. Knowledge, skills, and competencies will be mapped to ISCO-08, ESCO, EQF, NQFs, and EU frameworks. The curriculum will be designed according to the ECVET structure of modular units and sets of learning outcomes, and its qualification assessed, transferred, validated, and certified in relation to the ECVET key principles.<< Implementation >>PONICS VET Expanded will define a new VET curriculum on hydroponics-based agriculture and hydroponics technology based on modular units of LOs, a Massive Open Online Course on hydroponics-based agriculture, a Blended specialisation course, and a work-based learning period for 30 VET learners.<< Results >>PONICS VET Expanded aims at increasing the employability of VET learners in the hydroponics sector, supporting the upskilling and reskilling of a qualified and mobile labour force. Moreover, it aims at filling the skills gap in the hydroponics technology labour market, fostering the uptake of digital skills in the agricultural sector, and increasing its attractiveness.

The project aims to enhance the professional profile of African VET teachers and trainers in the field of agriculture and rural development by offering online, face to face and work based learning opportunities. In order to do so, SEED4AFRICA will support the establishment of an international network of VET – Vocational Education and Training – providers in three different countries (Italy, Belgium and Spain) and four Sub-Saharan countries (Nigeria, Benin, Kenya and South Africa) with the potential to furtherly extend within the EU, as well as in the whole southern African region. Project activities will promote the enhancement of VET quality and attractiveness, with a specific focus on smart, digital and sustainable farming, in particular by:- adapting and transferring the results of three good practices financed by the Erasmus+ programme for the design of innovative training approaches and materials in agricultural education, namely: SEED - Smart Entrepreneurial Education and training in Digital farming; PONICS VET - Hydroponics Agricultural Technician; LiveAdapt - Solutions for the adaptation of Extensive Livestock to Climate Change.- enhancing communication and cooperation among VET providers, at local and international level, exchanging good practices, initiatives and tools, also with the organization of job shadowing and technical visits for African VET teachers and technical staff in the schools of the ENNE National Networks represented in the project;- innovating the provision of VET programmes encouraging the collaboration between educational institutions, public authorities and private companies, especially through the conduction of contest based initiatives, such as hackathons and innovation bootcamps, where mixed teams of VET students and Agriculture stakeholders will co-design digital and entrepreneurial solutions for societal challenges linked to the Sustainable Development Goals of the Agenda 2030.

CONTEXTS Hydroculture has a key role to play in food provision and tackling global challenges such as water scarcity, food security, urbanization and reductions in energy use and food miles. The EU acknowledges these challenges through its Common Agriculture Policy and policies on Water Protection, Climate Change, and Social Integration. A European approach is required in the globally emerging hydroponics research field building on the foundations of Europe’ s status as a global centre of excellence and technological innovation in aquaculture and hydroponic horticulture. Given the subject, to achieve high levels of performance in this project (actually aimed also at increasing employability in agriculture and rural development) it is necessary to foreseen also a common system in the jobs implementation. The European credit system for VET (ECVET) is one of the most important common European tools to support and increase European mobility. This aims to transform skills and competences into new job opportunities. OBJECTIVES The project aims to the objectives of the strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training (ET 2020), including the corresponding benchmarks, of smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and its education and employment headline targets through better labour market integration, especially, in agriculture sector it aims at improving jobs in the food processing, food retail and food services. After that, one of main indirect objective is in relation to diversification actions and creation and development of a new professional role: the Hydroponics technician. PARTICIPANTS-NUMBER-PROFILE Target group will participate particularly to the following activities: - Survey collection a total of 180 rural and semi-urban farmers interviewed - Pilot test a total of 20 rural and semi-urban farmers involved The indirect target group of the project are all the private and public entity committed to Green jobs and vertical agriculture sector at local level. In particular: - Public offices for sustainable agriculture promotion - Organizations active in the promotion of rural farming and ecofriendly methodologies - Integrated systems for sustainable agriculture promotion ACTIVITIES Intellectual Output 1 HYDROPONICS VET: A GUIDE FOR HYDROPONICS PROFESSION IN EUROPE Intellectual Output 2 Toward qualification of new occupation: Hydroponics technician Multipliers Events Hydroponics technician demonstration event METHODOLOGY - E-learning tools - pilot training with small group of learners RESULTS - transparency and recognition of skills and qualifications: ECVET for Hydroponics technician will facilitate employability and mobility; - enhancing access to training and qualifications for all, with a particular attention to the low-skilled, through continuing VET, notably by increasing accessibility of continuing VET, validation of non-formal and informal learning, promoting work-place learning, providing for efficient and integrated guidance services and flexible and permeable learning pathways; - arising competencies in vocational and adult training, helping to enhance food production as well as create employment for EU rural and semi-urban farmers; - intervening in the sustainable lifestyle achieving the goals of training responsible citizens for Europe 2020; - applying ECVET to vocational and adult training into agriculture fields aimed at rural development. - allowing farmers to be trained on topics such as innovative and economically, socially and environmentally sustainable. IMPACT The project will create a model for the development of hydroponics approach for rural and semi-urban farmers with the skills to plan the sustainable economic development of their businesses. LONGER TERMS BENEFIT It is expected that sustainability can be achieved at different levels: • at European level: promotion through European network channels and conferences; • at local, regional and national level: promotion of results and outputs by project partners in their countries; ongoing promotion of activities through cross-sectorial partnerships; it is also expected that the cross-sectorial partnerships in the five countries will continue after the course of the project. An exploitation strategy with free-for-use issues will be developed by the end of the project. The consortium members will sign an Intellectual Property Right Agreement, that will regulate the shared property of the results and will be attached to a comprehensive Exploitation Plan. Exploitation activities go beyond dissemination activities, as they aim at adapting existing products to other beneficiaries or systems than those for which they were initially conceived. This adaptation requires supportive and regulated work, and for this reason exploitation activities have developed either through further transnational projects, or through key organization able to implement these types of activities.