In the last forty years, Europe has become a multicultural, multilingual and pluri religious society. To cope with these changes, there is a need to develop intercultural attitudes to be able to manage the cultural differences that increasingly characterize schools, job places, social services and public spaces. However, intercultural skills cannot be improvised as they need specific training and a self-reflective attitude. The Cohen Emerique’s intercultural approach invites trainers, educators, volunteers and migrants to live these cultural differences and shocks as an opportunity to become aware of everyone’s cultural points of view and to share them in order to promote dialogue and mutual understanding. 

The Take Part project aims to support business development and employment growth through training designed for 24 employers, staff involved in the human resources management and responsible for corporate welfare and/or social corporate responsibility, and leveled on competence building, to ensure companies greater productivity together with the desire to enhance workers well-being.

The ICT4TCN project aimed to use the existing IT skills and competences of third country nationals to meet some of the actual needs of the ICT industry in terms of specialised human resources. It aimed to support the social inclusion and empowerment of vulnerable groups (third country nationals) through equal access to employment (as third country nationals enjoy less opportunities for employment compared with EU nationals). 

Care2Enterpreneurship (C2E) was an Erasmus + project that aimed at promoting entrepreneurship education and social entrepreneurship among young people in the care sector.  Social entrepreneurial competences, such as business and strategic planning with a social dimension, were the main pillar of the capacity building course curriculum to be developed for the young potential entrepreneurs of C2E.

The PROMYSE project aimed to promote social entrepreneurship in the health/social care sectors as an alternative pathway to youth self-sustainability, by developing the social entrepreneurship and business skills of unemployed youth, with relevant educational or professional background in the health/social care sectors, and by raising awareness on the benefits and added value of social enterprises to the community as a whole. 

The project aims at establishing and testing a strategy for cooperation between public and private funding for the development of specific local/regional financial tools supporting social enterprises. A model/guideline for cooperation at EU level will be elaborated, involving ethical financing players, representatives of the beneficiaries and public authorities, and it will then be tested at local level in two regions, Puglia in Italy and Västra Götaland in Sweden.

MESSE is an INTERREG IVC project seeking to improve the effectiveness of regional development policies for economic growth and quality of social entrepreneurs in Europe. DIESIS carried out a research in all nine project regions (Veneto Region/Italy, Region of Attica/Greece, Hannover/Germany, Andalusia/Spain, Romania, Hampshire/UK, Sofia/Bulgaria, Hungary, East Sweden Region/ Sweden) on the features of social entrepreneurship (legal information, funding, marketplaces, education and networks and/or umbrella organisations). www.messe-project.eu

A4I was a European project that aimed at enhancing the services and assistance to third-country nationals provided by organisations of the civil society establishing a trade union / social enterprises transnational network providing services and facilities for integration of third country nationals. In particular, the project set up a trade union/social enterprises transnational network for ‘assistance for integration’ (A4I) of third-country nationals and a pilot action based on transnational partnership between trade unions and their associations of migrants located in 6 countries. The A4I project addresses as well the issue of entrepreneurship as a means of integration. For that reason, organisations of the social economy were associated to the project. Representatives of associations of social enterprises took part in all phases of the project enriching integration facilities with element that may be of use to migrant entrepreneurs or migrants who wish to start an enterprise. More precisely, within the context of A4I Project, DIESIS supported the work of ISCOS CISL to better fulfil its tasks in the development of the research and trainings of the A4I project, bringing the Social economy perspective. http://www.unionmigrantnet.eu

AGROECVET project aims to activate and implement ECVET in the European agricultural sector. Such a system would encourage mobility amongst employees and would encourage exchanges of best practices. Increased European mobility would result in a better skilled and highly experienced workforce rendering positive results for the competitiveness of the EU’s agricultural sector. The project brings together various actors within the field of education and the agricultural industry. The project partners include VET providers, enterprises, social partners and non-profit associations operating in the agricultural sector, and also public authorities having legislative competence on agriculture and on VET. It is expected enhance mobility of agricultural workers; generating new opportunities for farmers to take up training programs, attend training periods abroad, and pursue new opportunities. www.agroecvet.eu

The “Facility Management” constitutes an important economic sector in European countries, with a significant occupational relevance. In this sector, qualifications are often not clearly defined in terms of learning outcomes but also frequently regulated, in terms of access to the training and qualification opportunities, in a way that, in fact, is very limiting as regards mobility beyond the VET systems “borders”. The concrete implementation and use of the ECVET principles allows, as demonstrated by several previous LdVToI and DoI project (cfr., Highlight the Competences, Certified VET Safety Trainers, etc.) that transparency and recognition of learning outcomes and qualifications can be ensured beyond these VET systems “borders”. Thus, this project aims to put in transparency and recognise the learning outcomes characterising facility management professions, applying and implementing European tools and frameworks EQF and ECVET, through the preparation, organisation and ensuring of transfer of methods, guidelines and associated tools aiming at the implementation and use of ECVET principles experimented within the LdVToI and DoI project which have concretely started the ECVET process. http://www.inthemiddle-leonardo.com

The project intends apply and ensure the people working or learning in tourism sector the possibility to obtain the recognition of learning outcomes characterising the “heritage interpretation” activities and the qualification of “European Heritage Interpreter”. The project aims to apply the principles of the European Qualification Framework – EQF and of the European System of Credits for Vocational Education and Training – ECVET for the benefit of such persons, defining and formalising at European level the characteristic learning outcomes and the qualification in order to permit acquisition, transparency, evaluation, accreditation and certification of them through the borders of territories, sectors and VET systems

SEN project seeks to build the capacity of the actors who form part of the ESF system to achieve the objectives of the ESF and of the Europe 2020 strategy. More specifically it seeks to equip them to promote and implement projects involving social entrepreneurship, social enterprises and the social economy. The partners comprise ESF Managing Authorities and intermediate bodies from nine EU Member States and regions (PL, UK – England and Scotland, IT – Trentino and Lombardy, BE Flanders, CZ, GR, CY, SE and FI), together with representative or service organisations from the social economy. DIESIS acts as project facilitator.

Download the final publication here.

For more information, please contact dorotea.daniele@diesis.coop

TransCSR aims at the transparency and acknowledgement of CSR skills in the tourism sector of at least six European countries using the tools of the ECVET system (European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training) and the EQF (European Qualification Framework). As a result of the project transparency on the basis of the ECVET system will ultimately valorise all kind of professional CSR qualifications on the labour market on local, regional, national and European level. Obstacles to mobility of tourism professionals are therefore removed, employability increases, and the shortage of skilled professionals in regards to CSR declines.

COMETA evolution is a European project that aimed at developing and testing an agreement based upon ECVET for mutual acknowledgment of credits among partner organisations. The model was an adaptation of the one developed within LLP-LDV “Highlight the competences” but builded also on the results of LLP-LDVs “Care Talents” and “ECC”, concerning validation of competences and basic skills. COMETA focused on geographical mobility (between partner countries and within regions in the same country) and on professional mobility between different professional profiles of the social sector. It identified a set of soft skills common to a cluster of social profession and development of tools and means for mutual recognition.

The project was co-financed by the European Commission, DG Education and Culture, Lifelong Learning Programme. www.cometa-evolution.eu/

The project aimed at putting in transparency and recognise across Europe the learning outcomes and the qualifications of the professional figures in the health tourism sector and well-being. The main aim of Health Tourism was to define and validate professionals competences through a system of credits recognised at first within the partnership countries (Belgium, Hungary, Italy, Romania and Slovak Republic) and at EU level. It was expected that these activities could enhance the mobility of health tourism professionals, contributing to the emergence of generally accepted qualifications and training standards.. www.ecvet-healthtourism.eu/

S-DEED project wants to analyse and point out factors of success resulting from social dialogue practices that have provided answers to these three main challenges within a context of economic democracy. Nonetheless, its aim goes beyond the collection of good practices, as it also aims to spread good practices to a larger public, together with a set of conclusions selecting factors of success and policy options. In particular, the project wants to offer social partners and local administrations inputs on how to improve the quality of human capital in their area improving employability, encouraging entrepreneurship or making their companies better equipped to a sustainable development in highly competitive markets. The partnership is composed by trade unions, business representative organisations, research institutes and technical organisations both at EU and national level (Belgium, France, Italy, Spain and United Kingdom). DIESIS cooperates in the coordination of the studies and is in charge of the Monitoring and Evaluation System (EMS).

The main purpose of the project was to provide support to public authorities in the Czech Republic in implementing social entrepreneurship by the means of TESSEA activities based on sharing experience and knowledge with transnational partners. Project objectives were the transfer of know-how from the partners, its application for the Czech public administration, dissemination of know-how among TESSEA members and providing support to TESSEA members and to the Club of Social Entrepreneurs. The Thematic Network for Social Entrepreneurship TESSEA is an opinion platform which associates more than 250 corporate bodies and individuals. TESSEA provides its members information, space for opinion exchange, supports common interests and negotiates with public authorities representatives and politicians. The project was funded from the Operational programme Human Resources and Employment and the State budget of the Czech Republic.   

The project partners (VET providers, enterprises and non profit associations operating in the field of nature-based tourism) work together to put in transparency and recognise the learning outcomes characterising the nature-based tourism professions, applying and implementing the European tools and frameworks EQF and ECVET. This project brings together partners from Italy, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Latvia and Spain. DIESIS is responsible for WP 8 with focus on dissemination. DIESIS is involved in different activities and in the dissemination of results.

SD.COOP.COMM was the first project aiming at exploring industrial relations and promoting social dialogue involving trade unions and consumer’s and retailers’ cooperatives in the European Union. The project enjoyed a large and qualified partnership composed by Trade unions federations, Trade unions, Co-operative representative organisations and Technical Organisations from several EU Countries (Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Slovakia). DIESIS was in charge of the organisation of the studies, as well as providing research and technical assistance.

The project aimed to boost active women in SMEs and innovative practices for the promotion of the figure of the co-entrepreneur woman in European SMEs and in industrial relations. The project brought together key stakeholders and experts on this theme such as trade unions, research centres, social economy organisations at European and national level (Italy, Spain, France). The partnership analysed national collective agreements focusing on three components: 1) innovative forms of access to leadership positions 2) training 3 ) and the reconciliation of private / professional life.

The network, composed by ESF managing autorities of different EU countries and regions (PL, CZ, IT Lombardy, BE Flanders, FI, UK England, SE), facilitated exchanges of experiences and knowledge at European level between countries that have already implemented a clear policy toward the sector of social economy and the new countries operating in this field. The network’s goal was to focus on the instruments – known and widespread in advanced countries – which needed to be developed and improved.The network was also an opportunity to develop common solutions and recommendations at the EU level in the fields of finance, public procurement and Public Social Partnerships, social services of general interest, social franchising and social added value.

The project verified in which terms the information and consultation of employees enhanced social dialogue in SMEs in the aftermath of the crisis in order to encourage the spreading of innovative practices. More specifically, the project realised a study based on specific companies’ cases in Europe. The partnership was composed by 27 organisations from 10 EU Countries and 4 EU umbrella organisations. Diesis supported the management of the project and was in charge of the evaluation, organisation of transnational activities and events.

The aim of the European project ‘Access to Rights and Civil Dialogue for All’ was to examine how European Union (EU) citizens residing in an EU member State other than their own participate in the democratic life of their country of residence and of the EU as a whole. Furthermore, the project aimed at increasing the information available to European citizens residing in a member state other than their own, provide them with incentives to vote and stand in municipal and European elections, and raise awareness about fundamental rights and the fight against racism and xenophobia. Moreover, as the presence of women in key political decision-making positions is often low, the project seeks to address the cross-cutting issue of the need to strengthen the participation of women’s associations of EU citizens residing in member states other than their own. This project was developed in 5 different countries, examining the living conditions of the larger EU migrant’s communities in each country.

Promoted by Legacoop Servizi, the main goal of this project was to establish a concrete plan to create a ECS among companies from 3 countries (France, Spain, Italy) in the service sector. Activities resulted in a public European seminar and four national workshops, in the production of training modules and studies to improve the level of information, consultation and participation of employees, particularly by improving the implementation of European Directive 2002/14 and Directive 2005/56.

The project aimed at supporting the inclusion of employee financial participation (EFP) in the EU policy agenda in response to the most pressing EU challenges. A large partnership identified best practices to improve policy making and policy implementation while at the same time monitoring and reporting on Member State progresses in promoting EFP. The project established a network that promotes Financial Participation of Employees and spreads knowledge of European policies, mechanism of PRO EFP. Documents related to this issue are online (www.proefp.eu) and available to a large public. A series of 9 national workshops as well as 3 day conferences called “the week of Financial Participation” have been held. The project involved key EU and national stakeholders, social partners and institutions to promote a culture of social dialogue, partnership in a context of economic democracy. To this end the project directly contributed to the implementation of the Open Method of Co-ordination (OMC). DIESIS was the project coordinator. www.proefp.eu

The project focused on entrepreneurial restructuring and anticipation in worker and social cooperatives and other employee-owned enterprises (cooperativisation of enterprises in crisis, entrepreneurial projects linked to the modernisation of the products or processes, R&D, foresight initiatives etc). Countries involved in the project were Italy, Spain and France. The project was led by CECOP with the support of DIESIS and Soficatra. Its main result was a book on “Beyond the Crisis: Cooperatives, Work, Finance. Generating Wealth for the Long Term”.

The project VALID-INFO focused on some specific types of competences/skills based on non-formal and informal training such as “ethic” competences and “relational” competences. Its main aim was to transfer and adapt a set of standards (model) for validation of non-formal and informal learning from other Member states to the Communauté Française de Belgique (CFWB) and to create a a guide for the recognition and the certification of the competences acquired by non-formal and informal training. The partnership included training institutes from Italy, Germany, Belgium and Poland. It was coordinated by PLS with the support of DIESIS, which also handled the evaluation and drafting of the final guide (a vademecum containing “Guidelines, advices, instruments and paths for the mapping, evaluation and valorisation of competences gained through non-formal and informal learning”).

The purpose of ONE was to create a flexible and free of charge software environment allowing the formation of contract agreements in order to supply complex and integrated services as a virtual organisation (or coalition). The consortium included research centres, universities, IT SMEs, facility management companies from different countries (IT, UK, IE, ES, BE, RO, CH). DIESIS together with Italian and French Cooperatives adapted the business negotiation model to the needs of co-operative enterprises and made an “on line” test and disseminated the tool in the co-operative world.

The project focused on the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) on Social Protection and Social Inclusion. It aimed at promoting awareness of the OMC, discuss its impact in the three participating countries (BE, BG and RO) and explore ways to strengthen it. The project was coordinated by PLS with the support of DIESIS, which also realised the evaluation and the final publication (“Social Inclusion and the Open Method of Coordination: Issues and Prospects”).

SCEW was a transnational cooperation project aiming at promoting the exchange of information and good practices aimed at creating favourable conditions for setting up information, consultation and participation structures within social cooperatives. The project, led by the Polish organization NAUWC (National Auditing Union of Workers’ Co-operatives) had as partners both in Eastern (PL, BG, CZ) and Western (IT, FR) countries in order to favour transfer of knowledge. European cooperative organisations and trade unions provided a relevant contribution. Diesis contribution, in support of the project leader, consisted in the coordination of the final publication and the evaluation of good practices.

SCEW was a transnational cooperation project aiming at promoting the exchange of information and good practices aimed at creating favourable conditions for setting up information, consultation and participation structures within social cooperatives. The project, led by the Polish organization NAUWC (National Auditing Union of Workers’ Co-operatives) had as partners both in Eastern (PL, BG, CZ) and Western (IT, FR) countries in order to favour transfer of knowledge. European cooperative organisations and trade unions provided a relevant contribution. Diesis contribution, in support of the project leader, consisted in the coordination of the final publication and the evaluation of good practices.

This project had the specific objective to recommend to companies relevant practices and tools aiming at promoting diversity in companies, considering national and/or regional particularities including the way CSR is perceived in the companies of their country/region. The project associates several types of partners coming from Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Germany and Romania. The project was coordinated by PLS with the support of DIESIS for what concern the Italian and Spanish partners. Furthermore DIESIS was in charge of the evaluation.

The project was conceived in the framework of the implementation of European directives concerning information, consultation and participation of workers, in particular the Directive 2002/14 and Directive 2005/56. It focused on improving the level of information, consultation and employee involvement in worker cooperatives. Through various activities – such as a European conference, three national training and information workshops and an Internet portal – the project aimed also at promoting exchanges to facilitate and foster the creation of new European Cooperative Societies. It involved partners from Italy, France and Spain. DIESIS coordinated the project with Legacoop.

The project “RES en Coopérative” was conceived in the light of the French government decision to promote the setting up of new legal and financial instruments boosting the transfer of businesses. The project was divided in 4 actions: Action 1-Permanent implementation of the Proficiency, Intelligence and Documentation Center (national action); Action 2- Promotion of the Transnational Workgroup, in collaboration with the European Confederation of Co-operatives and Worker-Owned Enterprises (CECOP) (transnational action); Action 3 – Employees information and awareness-raising concerning the employee buy-out in co-operative as employment solution (national action); Action 4 : national and European Communication about “RES en Coopérative” (transnational action). The transnational Working group contributed to the improvement of mutual knowledge concerning business’ transfer and recovering into co-operative companies in the European context. The partnership was composed by CGSCOP (French Federation of Workers’ Co-operatives), European Confederation of Co-operatives and Worker-Owned Enterprises (CECOP), DIESIS, Confesal, Coceta as well as national French and Spanish trade unions. Transnational exchanges highlighted the added value that transformation in cooperatives and worker-owned enterprises can provide to employees jobs progress. In this framework, a guide of good transnational practices (En, It, Es) was realised by Diesis.

The main goal of this project was to contribute to initiate a social dialogue at the European level on active ageing between trade unions and social partners of the social economy. The project involved European and national partners from Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Italy (CGIL, CISL and LEGACOOP) and Spain (CGIL, CISL, ICOSI, LEGACOOP, PODKREPA,) and had the support of CECOP and ETUC. DIESIS coordinates the project AGEIN promoted by CONFESAL and contributed in the final publication “Social dialogue as a tool to fight against age discrimination in employment”.

The project reached the objective to set up a joint monitoring committee made up of ETUC and CECOP in order to: 1) Identify, monitor and follow up the establishment of SCEs and the implementation of their structure of information, consultation and participation of workers, 2) Supervise the practices related to information, consultation and participation of workers in national worker cooperatives in the European union at large; 3) draft and disseminate a systematic study of systems of information, consultation and participation of workers in worker cooperatives in different member States in application of Directive 2002/14/CE. 4) draft and disseminate a study of best practices in worker cooperatives concerning the existing systems of information, consultation and participation of workers, training systems aimed at promoting them. The final publication “The involvement of workers in worker cooperatives, social cooperatives and other worker-owned enterprises in Europe” was published in several EU languages.

This project aimed to enhance the active participation, involvement and contribution of women to the growth and development of the Palestinian economy and society through the provision of an integrated training program that combines personal empowerment, vocational training and skill enhancement. Further, the project strove to promote the cause of peace in the region by fostering the sharing of practical knowledge and experience and direct economic cooperation between Palestinian, Israeli and Italian women. DIESIS provided support and training to Israeli and Palestinian organisations.

The project, funded by DG Employment, with the participation of ANCST LEGACOOP, CGSCOP, CONFESAL, COCETA and CECOP, aimed at preparing the implementation of the regulation on the creation of the European Cooperative Society. It involved the main workers’ cooperative organisations in Europe and its umbrella body CECOP. DIESIS supported Legacoop in the coordination of the project.

The project, which joined together local partners such as the “Maison de l’Emploi et de la Formation de Cherbourg” in France and INFORCOOP in Italy and transnational networks (CECOP, RETIS and DIESIS), aimed to collect good practices from the European Employment Strategy to facilitate their transfer and implementation to new member States. The project was funded under the Call for Proposals VP/2005/011.

The project aimed to create a support for professionals who work in the field of adult education (and mainly with parents of children in early ages) by helping parents in the exercise of “Active Citizenship” for the promotion of children rights.

The project, coordinated by Inforcoop in the framework of the Leonardo da Vinci programme, foresaw the identification of the key skills of the manager of small and medium-size co-operatives and the set up of on-line training modules. It involved partners from Italy, Sweden and France. DIESIS coordinated the transnational work.

The project, coordinated by Inforcoop involves as partners DIESIS, IFGT Adapep (French training institute) and the Czech Federation of Co-operatives. It analysed the skills of the “planner of EU projects” , created flexible training modules and tested a virtual community of Eu project planners from different Member States.

The project, funded by DG Environment and coordinated by DIESIS, involved 9 countries (Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Ireland, UK, France, Greece, Denmark, Spain, Germany). The project aimed at developing social enterprises in the recycling sector. A research and a broad dissemination of social enterprises good practices aimed at sensibilising public and private actors on the role and potential of social enterprises in the recycling sector and at identifying new forms of partnerships and joint-ventures among local authorities, social and private enterprises