The digital world has covered every aspect of our life. Especially after the COVID-19 pandemic spread all over the world, people had to carry out all communication and business online more than ever before. Growing with the digital world, digital marketing has a significant place because more consumers are becoming online every day. European Commission places great importance on digitalisation in agriculture. The EC organised EIP-AGRI Seminar covering Multi-level strategies for digitising agriculture & rural areas with the participation of 25 member countries in April 2019. Primarily, main components of a strategy for digitalisation and challenges to foster strategies in digitalising agriculture were issued. Additionally, inclusion of digitalisation in the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) Strategic Plan was discussed. They signed a declaration of cooperation on ‘A smart and sustainable digital future for European agriculture and rural areas’ to take a number of actions to support a successful digitalisation of agriculture and rural areas in Europe. It recognizes the potential of digital technologies to help tackle important and urgent economic, social and environmental challenges facing the EU's agri-food sector and rural areas.In order to succeed in digital marketing, individuals/enterprises need to recognize the importance of using the digital security of marketing as well as using various digital marketing channels. Conventional marketing methods can no longer reach people as much as digital marketing. Among people who will use the digital marketing methods to sell the goods or services, maybe the most vulnerable ones are the farmers, agripreneurs.Because the agricultural community is very weak in digital skills and accordingly in digital marketing; they are so defenceless to the digital threats like pishing, e-commerce fraud etc.; digital safety & security is vital for farmers-agripreneurs who will use online tools to sell the goods/services. Therefore, improving the digital skills of farmers, producers, peasants i.e. agripreneurs through ‘Safe Digital Agri Marketing’ skills is inevitable, and priority is given to increase the digital marketing skills of farmers including safety & security.The aim of the project is to contribute to digitalisation in agriculture and so improving the economic and environmental sustainability of the agricultural sector through improving farmers' digital marketing skills with digital safety & security. The objectives of the project that will be implemented by nine partner organisations from five countries are,-Establishing an innovative and sustainable educational e-learning platform and developing a curriculum/course on digital marketing with digital safety & security for agricultural and digital sector-Extending the competences of trainers and other personnel by using innovative tools and OERs-Increasing awareness on the online safe & secure marketing in agricultural sector-Opening new doors to farmers to evaluate their products and increase their income.In our project, we will produce innovative intellectual outputs that will be “Curriculum/Course for Safe Digital Marketing for Agripreneurs”, “E-Learning Platform with Modules & Training/Learning Materials”, “Agripreneurs' Safe Digital Marketing Guidebook and Toolbox for Safe Digital Marketing Strategy for Agripreneur”. During the development of the outputs;18 trainers/instructors will be trained to improve e-learning skills in designing & managing a course on LMS and in creating interactive contents. The survey will be applied to 200 farmers/peasants in partner countries for the need analysis. Testing will be executed with 200 farmers/peasants in partner countries.All results and intellectual outputs will be shared with 225 participants from stake holders in the multiplier events in five partner countries.Our project will produce an e-learning platform which will be open to all agripreneurs even other people in EU, program countries and worldwide. Any individual will be able to access freely to E-Learning Platform, Curriculum/Course, Agripreneur’s Safe Digital Marketing Guidebook and Toolbox for Safe Digital Marketing Strategy for AgripreneurBy implementing the project, we are expected below results and outcomes:-An innovative & sustainable educational methodology in the digital field for farmers will be developed.-Learning outcomes and a curriculum/course on digital marketing with digital safety & security will be developed for agricultural sector.-Trainers/instructors will extend their competences by using innovative tools and OERs.-Awareness on the safe & secure digital marketing in agricultural sector will be increased.-Outcomes will contribute to the digitalisation of agriculture and improvement of the economic & environmental sustainability of the agricultural sector.-Digital skills of farmers/agripreneurs in rural areas will be increased. Thus, productivity & efficiency will be improved.

<< Background >>CONTEXT OF THE PROJECTThe pace of technological & digital change is having a deep impact on the job market, therefore it is no longer enough for secondary VET systems to equip learners with technical and professional skills&knowledge. The digital transformation of workplaces requires new generations to develop interdisciplinary skills related to:- new digital technologies-transversal skills, such as: research, analysis & interpretation of data; teamwork & communication; problem solving &critical thinking.A further factor of complexity emerges from the increasing urge that EU industry receives from the sustainable production policies, as described by the UN Agenda 2030 Goals and by the European Green Deal. As the VET sector is the main source for the recruitment of the future workforce, there’s an urgent need to train green skills in VET as well, so that VET providers can support & pair the transition towards a greener industrial & manufacturing process.BEACON project addresses such challenges by promoting work-based, digital & green innovation in the curricula of VET systems, which more than other education systems train professionals to be immediately integrated into the labour market.The project envisages the experimentation of new training programs that enhance:- work-based learning, exploiting learning environments that reproduce the work processes- Incidental Learning, according to the informal learning model (Marsick-Watkins,1990) as well as to the problem-based & context-based learning approaches, which address the dynamic and everyday problems of the workplace- new digital technologies, using Beacon BLE technology as low-cost, low power & low maintenance HW devices integrated with a digital platform, a content management system (CMS) hosted on a server, and a smartphone/or tablet app to be downloaded for free by students & teachers, triggering Incidental Learning Paths.- simulation of green production & manufacturing processes in the learning environment, helping VET learners prepare for that sustainability mindset that’s needed for the EU economic growth & a smooth transition to the job marketWBL is meant according to the EU “Council Recommendations on VET” as well as to the EU ToolKit (www.wbl-toolkit.eu):-WBL means acquisition of knowledge & skills through action in a vocational or business context-WBL can take place in a company, or within a school classroom, targeting vocational or job-related learning meeting the needs of EU industry-WBL involves a variety of actors, from schools & training centres to managers and technicians in the workplace.TARGET GROUPS-VET learners in need to gain skills to support the twin digital & green transition of the job market, as well as transversal skills to drive innovation, while also preparing for a smooth entry in the job market-VET Teachers wishing to develop skills to design, test &validate for reuse new work-based & location-based training programs based on Incidental Learning in the workplace using Beacon technology.-VET School's courses of study offering work-based learning paths, to be involved in the experimentation of new training programs<< Objectives >>OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECTThe project aims at supporting VET systems in the development (design, testing &release of transferable OERs) of innovative Incidental Learning programs thanks to Beacon BLE technology.According to the WBL approach, the learning environment will be the work context, i.e. an area of activity with processes, technologies, products&organizational methods, which can be simulated (e.g. laboratories in VET schools), or real workplaces (companies).The training programs envisage that the students, inside a workplace specifically equipped with Beacon BLE facilities, face the solution of critical incidents, suitably prepared, occurring to them unexpectedly. Incidental Learning requires students to tackle problematic situations demanding the activation of critical thinking skills to find a solution.The project envisages the experimentation of innovative training programs based on Incidental Learning in VET supported by the BEACON BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) technology, deemed as “technology in use” able to combine digital technologies & work-based learning methodology as didactic tools for training and learning, aimed at achieving the following objectives:1)promoting WBL in VET through the implementation of situated learning environments simulating the actual workplace of industrial sectors relevant for the national economy of each country involved2) developing in EQF3-EQF4 secondary VET learners (digital natives), crucial skills in high demand by the current labour market, characterized by Digital Transformation and by recruitment policies looking for both digital and transversal skills, which relate to higher order skills in the digital age (research, analysis and interpretation of information) and to skills enhancing the entry into the job market (teamwork, communication, problem solving) – as the need for transversal skills, critical thinking & creative problem solving is also highlighted by the 2020 EU Skills Agenda, 2.5 “Skills to accompany the green & digital transitions in jobs”.3) enabling the VET sector to align itself to the Green Driver of Innovation, supporting EU business & manufacturing companies in their transition towards carbon neutrality by 2050, through low-energy & emission-free production models & circular economy, thanks to workplace Beacon-based simulation of sustainable production models – as promoted by the 2020 EU Green Deal, setting sustainability goals for all manufacturing sectors, with particular stress onto the energy-intensive ones (textile, electronics, building, mechanics & plastics), in line with the Sustainable Development Goals of UN Agenda 2030.<< Implementation >>Suitable pairs composed of VET providers and companies from the same industrial sector were intentionally involved, looking for country specific industrial sectors, as below:- Italy: FOOD production/ FOOD technology- Romania: ICT & digital services- Spain: Mechanical/Mechatronics/Automotive Manufacturing- Portugal: Textile/Clothes/Fashion ManufacturingIn addition to the 4 school-business pairs, the partnership counts on:- 1 Methodological Partner (Cisita Parma – P2, Italy), expert in the design, experimentation & validation of innovative training methodologies & learning program. Responsible for the design, monitoring & validation of the Incidental Learning Cycle as well as for the Quality Control & Dissemination Plans.- 1 Technology Partner (Baldaque & Alves, P5, Portugal), expert for the development, configuration and customization of Beacon Digital Integrated System.The Project will develop:-Result 1. Development of the full Beacon Digital Integrated System (responsible P5), consisting of:a. Beacon HWb. a digital platform for storage & transmission of sector-specific learning contents (CMS)c. an application for mobile devices (smartphones/tablets/pads) able to receive push notifications from nearby Beacons, downloading multimedia information related to the work-based, context-based Incidental Learning PathPR1 will also design the Incidental Learning Cycle, meant as a training program triggered by an unpredictable event/problem (artificially caused for learning purposes) requiring learners to face different Beacon-guided phases: 1) troubleshooting 2) analysis of the possible causes and search for clues 2) problem solving & testing of possible solutions; 3) validating or looking for alternative solutions 4) discussing the outcomes-Results 2-3-4-5Beacon-triggered, context-based & location-based Incidental Learning Programs. Each one will focus on sector & country specific Industrial Sectors (PR2 Food-ITA, PR3 ICT-RO, PR4 Mech – Spain, PR5 Textile PT), taking place in the school labs, training facilities or company’s workplace. Training activities of each PR will start from the Beacon signals triggering the Incidental Learning Cycle, and will focus on how make more GREEN & DIGITAL (drivers of innovation) any aspect related to PRODUCT / PROCESS / ORGANIZATION (meant as manufacturing context variables, also relevant for the VET sector).<< Results >>BEACON project's results & outcomes will boost the capacity of the whole partnerhip, especially of VET and sector-specific industrial sector, to attain goals set by EU Development Plan 2021-2027 with particular reference to: -WBL training approach, requiring learners to get familiar with the workplace processes, organizational logic & everyday problem solving. The development of work-based skills will benefit: Learners, being able to smoothly transition to the labour market after graduation; VET systems, which will be able to better match the job market demand offering more up-to-date training programs; Business&Industrial Sectors, able to co-design high-demand WBL training paths together with VET providers- Digital Skills integrated with the work-based learning environment, benefitting: Learners, being able to gain high-demand skills relevant for the job market; Trainers & Teachers, being able to upgrade their professional skills gaining up-to-date skills & teaching/learning methodologies; VET systems, which will be able to better match the job market demand offering more up-to-date training programs;- Green Skills integrated with the work-based learning environment, benefitting: Learners, being able to gain high-demand skills relevant for the job market; Trainers & Teachers, being able to upgrade their professional skills gaining up-to-date skills & teaching/learning methodologies; VET systems, which will be able to better match the job market demand offering more up-to-date training programs; Business & Industrial Sector, who will hire well-prepared workforce able to drive the transition to a more sustainable production model.