European incursions onto the narrow isthmian pass that divided and connected the Atlantic and Pacific oceans made it a strategic node of the Spanish Empire and a crucial site for early modern globalization. On the front lines of the convergence of four continents, Old Panama offers an unusual opportunity for examining the diverse, often asymmetrical impacts of cultural and commercial contacts. The role of Italian, Portuguese, British, Dutch, and French interests in the area, as well as an influx of African slaves and Asian merchandise, have left a unique material legacy that requires an integrated, interdisciplinary approach to its varied sources. Bones, teeth and artifacts on this artery of Empire offer the possibility of new insights into the cultural and biological impact of early globalization. They also invite an interdisciplinary approach to different groups’ tactics for survival, including possible dietary changes, and the pursuit of profit. Such strategies may have led the diverse peoples inhabiting this junction, from indigenous allies to African and Asian bandits to European corsairs, to develop and to favor local production and Pacific trade networks at the expense of commerce with the metropolis. This project applies historical, archaeological and archaeometric methodologies to evidence of encounters between peoples and goods from Europe, America, Africa and Asia that took place on the Isthmus of Panama during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Forging an interdisciplinary approach to early globalization, it challenges both Euro-centric and Hispano-phobic interpretations of the impact of the conquest of America, traditionally seen as a demographic catastrophe that reached its nadir in the so-called seventeenth-century crisis. Rather than applying quantitative methods to incomplete source material, researchers will adopt a contextualized, inter-disciplinary, qualitative approach to diverse agents involved in cultural and commercial exchange.

Ports are enclaves that generate employment, wealth, and economic impact. The training of qualified professionals is the key to ensuring the viability and competitiveness of the port industry.The VET_LOGICC project will reinforce the Vocational education and training (VET) system on two Latin-American coastal countries (Costa Rica and Colombia) relevant for the maritime transport and international trading thanks to a 3-axis methodology based on Education &innovation, governance and the relationship with the labour market. VET_LOGICC will contribute to the development, employment and economic growth in Colombia and Costa Rica by means of developing an inclusive and sustainable network of educational and sectoral institutions as well as better equipped individuals and organizations in the transport, logistics and port sectors thanks to an innovative methodology based on: Curriculum Review & Development, Skills training on Terminals and Port Operations, Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Digitalization and International Mobility. VET_LOGICC will transfer to Costa Rica and Colombia the successful experience in training that the ports of Valencia and Rotterdam have had for more than 30 years (supported by three experienced European entities on education and innovation: Fundacion Valenciport, STC International and CINOP). Two technical vocational educational institutions, Sena (Colombia) and CunLimon (Costa Rica) will be acting as end user of the VET program with the purpose of i) enhancing the skills and knowledge of the instructors and students, ii) having a better link with the industry and iii) establish long-term partnerships, between the EU and Latin America. The Colombian University Uninorte will facilitate the link between both Latin American VET entities and the European educational bodies. The knowledge generated will be expended and replicated among Europe and Latin American countries thanks to an outreach campaign.

The participation of Women in STEM in the Latin-America region is a very complex problem in which necessarily call for actions from different actors, such as governments, private sector, families, as well the different levels of education (since childhood to higher education). In order to make concrete contribution, Higher Education Institutions need to focus on those needs and situations in which it has certain influence for making real progress, such as:- Significant minority of Women choose and access to STEM programs at tertiary level. The lowest rates appears in science and engineering programs. - Data is scarce, showing a need for analytical and systematic methods, which reflect actual participation of women in STEM at HEIs. - Tertiary studies with a high math component such as STEM seem to be excluded from the studies options by girls in secondary schools. - Lack of bridges between public policy and institutional actions led by HEIs. In this way, and aligned to the Erasmus + Capacity Building priority for improving management and operation of higher education, in terms of access to and democratization of Higher Education, the W‐STEM Project aims at Improving strategies and mechanisms of attraction, access and guidance of Women in Latin-American STEM Higher Education programs. For achieving this main objective, W-STEM project, will • Measure the gender equality in enrolment and retention rates in STEM programs.• Implement Universities’ policies, strategies and organizational mechanisms for improving attraction, access and guidance at undergraduate levels in STEM programs. • Promote STEM studies vocation and choice in girls and young women in secondary schools as well as guidance in the first year of the STEM program. • Develop an online training package for Higher Education Institutions to implement effective strategies to enhance attraction, access and guidance of Women in STEM programs.

<< Background >>O-City project has developed a virtual platform, called O-City Planet, which comprises a web application O-City World (o-city.org) and an e-learning platform with the aim to stimulate their orange economy. The O-City World is an online application to visualize the natural and cultural heritage of our cities through multimedia items (photo, videos, animations, …) that will be developed as educational projects in the classrooms of training centres and institutions.<< Objectives >>O-City pursues 3 objectives:Digital transformation of traditional economic sectors through the training of professionals and the economic promotion of cities by cultural tourism.Introduction of innovative educational tools through training plans in both professional and personal skills designed to facilitate the work of teachers in their classrooms.Discovery and promotion of the culture, heritage, traditions and natural environment of the world's cities.<< Implementation >>In the O-City project two major tools have been implemented:The World of Cities O-City.org, a responsive web application to visualize the natural and cultural heritage of cities. This (distributed management) application involves different actors such as municipal public managers, university heads, teachers, etc.The O-City educational platform, designed for teachers, which offers open courses distributed in 4 training modules in business, technical (multimedia), cultural and soft skills.<< Results >>E-learning platform: creation of 17 courses aimed to teachers, with activities that can be directly used in the classrooms. The 6 technical courses include how to implement E-SCRUM as agile methodology to be used in Project-based learning (PBL). We had 214.222 visits to our courses from June 2021 to December 2021.O-City World: there are 139 cities, 27 Universities, 433 heritage elements and 149 creative items represented. 518 students have been involved in the development of city nodes.

Population growth, increased prosperity and rapid urbanization are bringing global demand for natural resources to a point increasingly beyond the Earth’s carrying capacity. Together with climate change, those pressures are causing significant environmental degradation in many parts of the planet. Latin America is particularly vulnerable. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) constitute urgent calls and drivers for higher education to be part of future generations of engaged citizens aware of their role in creating fair and healthy societies.The Change the Climate project addresses three main needs: environmental management at all levels of higher education activities, integration of environmental management with sustainability strategies and institutional quality management, and customized strategies for sustainability in education. The project’s main goal is to increase Latin-American University’s contribution to Sustainable Development, through the implementation of environmental systematic practices and quality processes in alignment with the UN SDGs, improving the management and operations of higher education institutions. The project will deliver tools and guides for environmental impact analysis and SDGs mapping in campus operations and educational activities. An environmental management system will be implemented in each partner university decreasing their environmental impact; sustainability awareness will be assessed thoughout the academic communities; strategies for sustainability in higher education will be developed for curricula improvement; and a common open online course on sustainability will be created in English, Spanish and Portuguese.The project’s impact will reach stakeholders beyond the project partnership at local, regional and national levels contributing to behavioural change for sustainable futures.