Call: Partnerships for Innovation - Forward-Looking Projects - Cross-sectoral priorities

This Key Action supports:

• Partnerships for Cooperation, including Cooperation Partnerships and Small-scale Partnerships;
• Partnerships for Excellence, including Centres for Vocational Excellence, Teachers Academy and Erasmus
• Mundus Action;
• Partnerships for Innovation, including Alliances and Forward-looking projects;
• Capacity Building projects in the field of youth;
• Not-for-profit European sport events.

For the participating organisations, projects supported under this Key Action are intended to produce the following outcomes:

• innovative approaches for addressing their target groups, by providing for example: more attractive education and training programmes, in line with individual needs and expectations; use of participatory approaches and digital methodologies; new or improved processes of recognition and validation of competences; greater effectiveness of activities for the benefit of local communities; new or improved practices to cater for the needs of targets groups with fewer opportunities and to deal with differences in learning outcomes linked to the geographical and socio-economic disparities; new approaches to address social, ethnic, linguistic and cultural diversity; new approaches to better support competitiveness and employment in particular at regional and local level; recognition of excellence in language learning or teaching through the European Language Label;
• a more modern, dynamic, committed and professional environment inside the organisation: ready to integrate good practices and new methods including digital capabilities into daily activities; open to synergies with organisations active in different fields or in other socio-economic sectors; strategic planning of professional development for staff in line with individual needs and organisational objectives;
• increased capacity and professionalism to work at EU/international level: improved management competences and internationalisation strategies; reinforced cooperation with partners from other countries, other fields of education, training and youth and/or other socio-economic sectors; increased allocation of financial resources (other than EU funds) to organise EU/international projects in the field of education, training and youth; increased quality in the preparation, implementation, monitoring and follow-up of EU/international projects;monitoring and follow-up of EU/international projects;
• increased knowledge and awareness regarding sport and physical activity:
• increased awareness of the role of sport in promoting social inclusion, equal opportunities and a healthy lifestyle;

Projects funded under this Key Action are also likely to have a positive impact on the persons directly or indirectly involved in the activities, such as:

• increased sense of initiative and entrepreneurship;
• increased competence in foreign languages;
• increased level of digital competence;
• greater understanding and responsiveness to all kinds of diversity, e.g. social, ethnic, linguistic, gender and cultural diversity as well as diverse abilities;
• improved levels of skills for employability and new business creation (including social entrepreneurship);
• more active participation in society;
• more positive attitude towards the European project and the EU values;
• better understanding and recognition of skills and qualifications in Europe and beyond;
• improved competences, linked to occupational profiles (teaching, training, youth work, sport coaching, etc.);
• better understanding of practices, policies and systems in education, training, youth and sport across countries;
• better understanding of interconnections between formal, non-formal education, vocational training, other forms of learning and labour market respectively;
• increased opportunities for professional development;
• increased motivation and satisfaction in daily work;
• increased practice of sport and physical activity.

At systemic level, they are expected to trigger modernisation and reinforce the response of education and training systems and youth policies to the main challenges of today's world: environmental sustainability, digital transformation, employment, economic stability and growth, but also the need to promote social, civic and intercultural competences, intercultural dialogue, democratic values and fundamental rights, social inclusion, mental health and well-being, non-discrimination and active citizenship, critical thinking and media literacy.
Therefore, the impact of this Key Action is intended to be:

• increased quality of education and training, youth work and sport practices in Europe and beyond: combining higher levels of excellence and attractiveness with increased opportunities for all;
• education, training and youth systems that are better aligned to the needs of and opportunities offered by the labour market, and closer links to business and the community;
• improved provision and assessment of basic and transversal skills, particularly: entrepreneurship, social, civic, intercultural and language competences, critical thinking, digital skills and media literacy;
• increased synergies and links and improved transition between the different sectors of education, training and youth at national level, with improved use of European reference tools for recognition, validation and transparency of competences and qualifications;
• increased use of learning outcomes when describing and defining qualifications, parts of qualifications and curricula, in support to teaching and learning and in assessment;
• increased awareness and openness to social diversity and increased inclusiveness and accessibility of education systems and possibilities
• new and increased inter-regional and transnational cooperation of public authorities in the fields of education, training and youth;
• more strategic and integrated use of ICTs and open educational resources (OER) in education, training and youth systems;
• increased motivation for language learning through innovative teaching methods or better links to practical use of language skills required by the labour market;
• reinforced interaction between practice, research and policy.
• increased level of participation in sport and physical activity as a tool for health and well being
• increased knowledge on how to tackle cross-border threats to the integrity of sport, such as doping, match fixing and violence, as well as all kinds of intolerance and discrimination better support of good governance in sport and dual careers of athletes;
• increased recognition of voluntary activities in sport;
• increased mobility of volunteers, coaches, managers and staff of non-profit sport organisations;
• increased social inclusion and equal opportunities in sport.

Following the recent pandemic, the need for innovation in our education and training systems, as well as youth, has never been so great. Innovation in teaching and learning is crucial, at individual level as well as at institutional level. These innovative approaches should not only provide today’s and tomorrow’s workers with the appropriate skills for rapidly-changing labour markets, but should also arm today’s and tomorrow’s workforce with creativity and skills to confront the growing complexity of societal challenges that we all face such as climate change, the protection of biodiversity, clean energy, public health, digitalization and automation, artificial intelligence, robotics and data analysis.

This action will aim to foster innovation, creativity and participation, as well as social entrepreneurship in different fields of education and training, within sectors or across sectors and disciplines.

Forward-Looking Projects are large-scale projects that aim to identify, develop, test and/or assess innovative (policy) approaches that have the potential of becoming mainstreamed, thus improving education and training systems. They will support forward-looking ideas responding to key European priorities and that have the potential of becoming mainstreamed and giving input for improving education, training and youth systems, as well as to bring a substantial innovative effect in terms of methods and practices to all types of learning and active participation settings for Europe's social cohesion.

The goal is to support transnational cooperation projects implementing a coherent and comprehensive set of sectoral or cross-sectoral activities that either:

1. foster innovation in terms of scope, ground-breaking methods and practices, and/or
2. ensure a transfer of innovation (across countries, policy sectors or target groups), thus ensuring at European level a sustainable exploitation of innovative project results and/or transferability into different contexts and audiences.

The partnerships should be composed of a mix of public and private organisations combining researchers, practitioners and partners with the capacity to reach policy-makers.

Forward-Looking Projects should therefore be implemented by a mixed partnership of organisations:

• based on excellence and state of the art knowledge,
• having the capacity to innovate,
• able to generate systemic impact through their activities and the potential to drive the policy agenda in the fields of education and training.

Supported projects will aim at achieving systemic impact at European level by having the capacity to deploy their innovative outcomes on a European scale and/or by being able to transfer them into different thematic or geographical contexts.

Lot 1: Cross-sectoral priorities

Projects under Lot 1 can address different educational sectors or bridge educational sectors.

Proposals submitted under Lot 1 must address one of the two following priorities that are detailed under ‘Setting up a

project’:

• Priority 1: Supporting high quality and inclusive digital education, in line with the Digital Education Action Plan
• Priority 2: Supporting education and training systems to adapt for the green transition. 

Objectives of the Action

The general objectives are as follows:

• Innovative initiatives with a strong impact on education and training reforms in specific strategic policy areas;
• Contributing to the strengthening of Europe's innovation capacity by promoting innovation in education and training;
• Creating systemic change through fostering innovation at both practice and policy-level;
• Support forward-looking ideas focusing on key topics and priorities at EU level, with a clear potential to be mainstreamed in one or more sectors;
• As fully innovative, ground-breaking educational methods and practices and/or transfer of innovation: ensuring at EU level a sustainable exploitation of innovative project results and/or transferability into different contexts and audiences.

The specific objectives include:

• Identifying, developing, testing and/or assessing innovative approaches that have the potential to be mainstreamed in order to improve education and training systems and improve the effectiveness of policies and practices in the field of education and training;
• Launching pilot actions to test solutions to present and future challenges with a view to kick-starting sustainable and systemic impact;
• Supporting transnational cooperation and mutual learning on forward-looking issues amongst key stakeholders and empowering them to develop innovative solutions and promote the transfer of those solutions in new settings, including capacity-building of relevant stakeholders.

Activities should contribute to: 

• Improve quality, efficiency and equity of education and training systems;
• Improve effectiveness of policies in the field of education and training;
• Support the implementation of EU Frameworks and legal initiatives as well as country-specific recommendations from the European Semester;
• Improved evidence and understanding on target group(s), learning and teaching situations and effective methodologies and tools that can inspire and stimulate innovation at system level;
• Develop knowledge to support evidence-based policy;
• Trigger behavioural shifts at EU level.

Main activities under these Priorities could involve (non-exhaustive list):

• Action research, mapping work, producing large-scale sectoral or cross-sectoral outputs;
• Transnational capacity-building activities such as training, the analysis of policy contexts, policy-research, institutional adjustments;
• Pilot activities to test innovative solutions;
• Large-scale transnational events or networking activities, either sectoral or cross-sectoral;
• Exploitation activities to spread results to the educational community or sector;
• Think-tank activities, researching and experimenting with innovative ideas.

The following organisations can be involved as full partner, affiliated entity or associated partner: Any public or private organisations that are active in the fields of education and training, that are key drivers of innovation and established in an EU Member State or third country associated to the Programme (see section “Eligible countries”).

Such organisations can be (non-exhaustive list):

• Education and training organisations (e.g. education and training providers such as schools, Higher Education Institutions, VET and Adult education providers, associations, NGOs);
• Public or private companies that offer training to their employees or partners in the value/supply chain;
• Drivers of innovation and territorial development (e.g. eco-innovation labs, research centres, innovation agencies, regional development authorities, SMEs, large companies);
• Policy-makers and public authorities at national, regional and local level (e.g. Ministries of Innovation, Education, Labour, Economy, public and private employment services, qualification authorities, etc.);
• Organisations carrying out cross-sector activities and other labour market actors (e.g. social partners, sectoral organisations, chambers of industry/commerce/crafts and other intermediary bodies, trade organisations, civil society, sports and cultural organisations, teachers and trainers associations, youth and parents associations, labour market actors);
• Public or private entities in charge of, or having a degree of responsibility for (or influence over), the organisation and/or financing and/or provision of educational services to adults (e.g. skills assessment, validation of competences, education and training, orientation and guidance);
• National, international, regional and sectorial skills competition organizations.

Higher education institutions established in an EU Member State or third country associated to the Programme must hold a valid Erasmus Charter for Higher Education (ECHE).

This action follows a lump sum funding model. The amount of the single lump sum contribution will be determined for each grant based on the estimated budget of the action proposed by the applicant. The granting authority will fix thelump sum of each grant based on the proposal, evaluation result, funding rates and the maximum grant amount set in the call.

The maximum EU grant per project is for Lot 1 - Cross-sectoral priorities: EUR 800,000.

European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) - https://www.eacea.ec.europa.eu/index_en

Since 2006, the European Education and Culture Executive Agency has been a catalyst for projects in education, training, youth, sport, audiovisual, culture, citizenship and humanitarian aid. On behalf of the European Commission, EACEA strives to foster innovation in these areas, always in a spirit of cross-border cooperation and mutual respect.

EACEA are project managers, facilitators of knowledge exchange, and supporters of European projects that connect people and cultures.

National Agencies

To bring Erasmus+ as close as possible to the participants and make sure it works well across different countries, the EU works with National Agencies to manage the programme.

The National Agencies are based in Programme Countries and their role involves

• providing information on Erasmus+
• selecting projects to be funded
• monitoring and evaluating Erasmus+
• supporting applicants and participants
• working with other National Agencies and the EU
• promoting Erasmus+
• sharing success stories and best practices

The list of National Agencies can be found here. Countries not in the list of Programme countries may alternately have a National Erasmus+ Office.

National Erasmus+ Offices

National Erasmus+ Offices (NEOs) assist the European Commission and local authorities in the implementation of Erasmus+ in certain Partner Countries.

These countries are located in the Western Balkans, the Eastern and Southern Mediterranean and Central Asia. Russia also has a National Office.

Providing information on Erasmus+, monitoring and evaluating funded projects, assisting applicants and participants, supporting policy dialogue and maintaining contact with local authorities and EU Delegations are among the responsibilities of the NEOs.