On April 11th, 2025, NewEcoSmart hosted the webinar “Driving Change Through Green Skills”, bringing together experts, innovators, and stakeholders from across Europe to explore how green skills can drive sustainable transformation across industries. With a great participation and an exchange of ideas, the webinar was a great success and a powerful demonstration of how EU-funded projects are shaping the future of a greener, more inclusive Europe.
Green skills are increasingly recognised as a crucial element in the ecological and digital twin transition. The NES webinar showcased how education, innovation, and cross-sectoral collaboration are enabling new opportunities for individuals, SMEs, and regions to succeed in the green economy. Participants gained insights into how green skills promote environmental responsibility and improve employability, business competitiveness, and social inclusion.
The webinar featured presentations from a range of EU-funded projects, each addressing different aspects of the green transition:
- Guardians Project – presented solutions for empowering small- and medium-sized farms through digital innovation and sustainable governance models.
- FITT-NESS Project – shared how the project supports the furniture sector’s transition by strengthening clusters and SMEs working in age-friendly and eco-smart environments.
- Greenify Project – focused on equipping young women, especially from rural areas, with the STEM skills needed for green careers, supported by a toolkit and sustainability management module.
- ECO-BOOST Project – showcased the development of a Green Skills Toolkit for low-skilled VET learners, using gamification to enhance learning outcomes and inclusion.
- INSET Project – addressed industrial symbiosis and how digital tools and training programs can support circularity and capacity-building in enterprises.
- Green4ADU Project – highlighted pathways for low-skilled adults to enhance their green awareness, well-being, and employability through accessible education.
Two interactive breakout sessions provided space for participants to dive deeper into critical topics:
- Room 1: Explored key barriers to developing and implementing green skills across different industries.
- Room 2: Focused on integrating green skills into business operations and daily life for real, lasting change.
These discussions encouraged participants to share challenges and co-create solutions, highlighting the importance of dialogue and mutual learning.
The webinar showed that green skills are transformative—not only in addressing environmental challenges but also in advancing social equity and driving sustainable economic development. It also highlighted that EU collaboration is key, underscoring the importance of connecting projects, people, and policies to amplify impact across regions. Moreover, innovation in education and training emerged as a cornerstone of progress, with digital tools, co-creation, and inclusive methodologies playing a vital role in preparing individuals and industries for a resilient, green future.