Project Mission and Vision

Project Mission and Vision

We applied for an Erasmus+ funding with the project SEN4CE to provide high quality adult education about Circular Economy to support the development of sustainable societies for all generations.

For that SEN4CE addresses seniors (60+) with a digital training program to foster life-long learning that empowers them to actively engage in the “green transition” and connect them with the young generations, for whom sustainability and circular economy are absolutely vital in the truest sense of the word.

The project also addresses people working with seniors in retirement and care contexts with a combined circular economy digital train the trainer course.

Project news

Fifth newsletter

Project news

Fourth newsletter

Dear SEN4CE Participants, Partners, and Supporters,

We hope this message finds you well. We’re thrilled to share the latest updates and achievements from our Erasmus+ project aimed at harnessing the knowledge and experience of seniors to promote the principles of the Circular Economy.

Project Recap:

On the 20th and 21st of September, our consortium met in Graz, Austria. Over two days, we finalized the first three work packages. Translations are underway, and we’re now crafting e-learning courses for our upcoming pilot test. Stay tuned as we advance closer to our project goals.

Here’s where we currently stand in our transformative journey:

– Seniors: We’ve made significant progress on WP 1 & 3. After collaborative sessions and feedback from seniors about the circular economy via our SEN4Ce online course, we’re in the final stages of course finalization and translation, eagerly preparing for pilot testing.

– Care and Retirement Sector: For WP2, we’re actively engaging with professionals from the care and retirement sectors, seeking feedback on both our online course and the ‘train the trainer’ materials.

Upcoming Milestone: We’re soon concluding our e-learning materials and preparing to launch the digital platform. We’ll commence pilot tests shortly. If you’re keen on exploring our resources at no cost, please contact us through our website.

Gratitude: Our deepest thanks to everyone involved in the SEN4CE project—participants, partners, and supporters. Together, we’re harnessing the wisdom of our senior community to craft a sustainable future.

Stay Informed: For regular project updates and details, kindly visit our website and Facebook page. As we near the project’s culmination, we promise it will be worth the wait.

Your Voice Matters: Dialogue and collaboration underpin our progress. Should you have queries or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We truly value your insights.

Upcoming Workshops: We’re organizing interactive sessions on the Circular Economy for seniors and those in care/retirement settings. This is a unique opportunity to engage with our program materials. Kindly contact us for workshop details. Participation is free!

With your continued support, we forge ahead.

If you want to support us by spreading the message of the SEN4CE project, please visit our website or share our Facebook page.

All the best,

The SEN4CE Project Team

Project news

Third newsletter

Dear SEN4CE Participants, Partners, and Supporters,

Welcome to the latest edition of the SEN4CE project newsletter! We are excited to share updates and achievements from our project, which focuses on harnessing the knowledge and experience of seniors to promote the principles of the Circular Economy. We are well into the project of developing material that will provide opportunities to engage and empower seniors for the green, sustainable, and digital Circular Economy of the future and involve them in high-quality adult education and life-long learning.

SEN4CE is an innovative project funded by the Erasmus+ program, aiming to empower seniors as key contributors to sustainable development. Through the project, we bring together partners from various sectors to foster knowledge exchange and collaboration. Our ultimate goal is to leverage the wisdom and expertise of seniors to drive the transition towards a more circular and sustainable society.

Here’s a summary of our progress:

Result 1 – CE for seniors: We have developed a comprehensive course curriculum on the Circular Economy for seniors and lifelong learning. You can also find a needs analysis report on our website. The e-learning course will be available soon!           

Download – Best practice report R1

Result 2 – CE for care and retirement sector: We are currently developing a course curriculum and learning content on Circular Economy for the care and retirement sector. This includes a train-the-trainer program to empower staff in implementing circular principles. We also researched some best practices, the report is available on our website!

Download – Best practice report R2

Result 3 – Digital CE tools for seniors: Our team has gathered inspiring case studies and practical approaches from across Europe to engage seniors in Circular Economy activities. Some documents are already available on our website.

Download – Best practice report R3 or take a look at an interactive overview of Circular Economy tools

Result 4 – Digital learning materials: Digital training materials are currently being developed, based on the concepts and curricula of R1-R3. The software Articulate Storyline is used to create non-linear, scenario-based gamified e-learnings depending on the choices of the learner. The first draft of the e-learning courses will be finished till our TPM in September!

Dissemination and Awareness: We are committed to raising awareness about the SEN4CE project and its objectives. Our website serves as a central hub for project information, updates, and resources. We also use Facebook to disseminate project achievements, share stories of engaged seniors, and promote the Circular Economy principles. Just take a look!

Upcoming Events:

Pilot test workshops: We are planning interactive workshops to be held in different locations, engaging seniors in hands-on activities related to the Circular Economy. The developed materials will be pilot tested together with seniors and people working in the care/retirement context.

We are looking for you! Are you interested in the upcoming program? Get in touch with us for upcoming workshops and/or events! The program is for free!

The next milestone is the finalization of all the materials during our transnational project meeting, taking place in Graz in September. The pilot tests starts shortly after that and we are already looking for participants that want to use our materials for free, so contact us via our website when you are interested!

We extend our sincere gratitude to all project participants, partners, and supporters for their dedication and valuable contributions to the SEN4CE project. Together, we can create a more sustainable future by harnessing the wisdom and experience of our seniors.

For more information and regular project updates, please visit our website and Facebook page! Stay tuned, there is a lot to come! We are slowly reaching the final phase; it is worth being curious!

Facebook page – facebook.com/sen4ce

Best regards,

The SEN4CE Project Team

Project news

Second newsletter

Dear all,

We hope this newsletter finds you well and you enjoyed your Christmas break together with your loved ones! The Erasmus+ project SEN4CE has steadily progressed since the publication of the last newsletter!

Result 1 – CE for seniors and life-long learning

After our kick-off meeting in Graz, we started conducting the needs analysis of result 1 – CE for seniors and life-long learning. To develop a custom-tailored training course on circular economy for seniors, closing gaps of existing approaches and creating synergies with other projects, the SEN4CE partners conducted a needs analysis to assess the knowledge and behavioral habits of its target group in the partner countries. In addition to what was planned in the project application, we conducted a survey asking seniors, what they already know about circular economy, what they would be interested in and where there are still gaps in their knowledge. All in all, we obtained 52 responses from the 5 partner countries. Thanks to every single person who took part in our survey, your support means a lot to us!

To sum up, the needs analysis conducted in the SEN4CE partner countries demonstrated that our senior respondents, representing different age and gender groups and education levels, are familiar with the concept of circular economy and apply some of the circular economy practices, but are still sometimes uncertain and need more adequate information to embrace it in their day-to-day life.

These results suggest that while designing the SEN4CE curriculum, we will focus on:

– Explaining the importance of circular economy practices and their impact on the environment;

– Extending the consideration of the impact of production when buying products outside of household appliances and food (such as clothes, furniture, games and leisure etc.);

– Transforming or reusing products in other ways as well as buying secondhand products (knowledge of platforms & tools);

– Using low or non-polluting means of transport;

– Providing insight on how using circular economy practices can create a sense of community and continue to build a positive sense of environmental contribution;

– Finding ways to tackle the barrier of perpetually changing information on the best practices for a more circular economy;

– Providing the trust-worthy resources to ensure that adequate information remains accessible and accessible for people.

After that, all partners collected best practice examples from their respective countries, searching for programs or companies, that support achieving the goals given above, e.g. training and educational programs on circular economy for seniors, applied at the national and international levels. Each project partner collected two to three examples of circular economy initiatives available in their country and one international one, making a total of 19 good practices. The summary of the survey and our best practice research can be found on our project website! Right now, we are finishing the detailed concept development and will soon conduct expert workshops and start with developing the e-learning course!

R2 – CE for care and retirement sector

In contrast to R1, R2 does not deal directly with the group of seniors, but with the care and retirement staff. Given the demographic development outlined in R1, the care and retirement sector will become increasingly important. Yet, companies and organizations providing related services are rarely targeted by adult education. Also, seniors who are in retirement/care contexts rarely have access to high quality adult education. To reach these seniors, in R2 we will develop a training course for companies and organizations providing services in the retirement and care sector, training them on circular economy topics and also “training them to train” their clients. Circular economy can also connect seniors with the young generation.

During our research for best practices with this goal in mind, we found that there are many gaps in what is available now. During the online research, it became apparent that there are still significant gaps in the field of senior education in a care and retirement context as such and specifically on the topic of circular economy. The best practices found therefore often don’t have a direct link to CE but are best practices in adult education for seniors/train-the-trainer programs in general or at least linked to environmental issues. This shows once more the importance of our project, and we are very happy to close this gap and provide a e-learning course which closes this gap. Here we will also continue with the development of the curriculum and detailed concept of the e-learning materials before we go on with the implementation into Articulate.

Monthly meetings

In addition to the individual research and work, the SEN4CE consortium meets once a month to discuss the progress of the project and to plan subsequent steps. So many motivated faces! 😊

If you want to be always up to date about the project progress, please visit our website or Facebook page regularly to be always updated! https://sen4ce.eu/

We are looking for you! Are you interested in the upcoming program. Get in touch with us for upcoming workshops and/or events! The program is for free!

If you want to support us by spreading the message of the Sen4CE project, please share our website on social media! There is a lot to come, stay tuned and follow our channels!

Project news

Dear all

The Erasmus+ project “Seniors for Circular Economy” (SEN4CE) started after a successful kick-off meeting in Graz, Austria in September 2022.

The core aim and overall objective we want to achieve with SEN4CE is to engage and empower seniors for the green, sustainable, and digital circular economy of the future and involve them in high quality adult education and life-long learning. The primary target group (seniors 60+ years) will be directly addressed with a high-quality adult education digital training program on circular economy, that can directly be shared and used by adult education and life-long learning providers.

Besides a brand-new website, a lot is happening concerning the development of our digital training program, and through this newsletter we want to keep you up to date, as well as provide some interesting information about circular economy and digital services.

To promote our mission and vision, our work will contribute to the following objectives for SEN4CE:

  1. To empower seniors to actively take part in sustainability and circular economy discussions, programs and initiatives
  2. To foster life-long learning with custom tailored digital training materials for seniors on circular economy and digital tools
  3. To foster intergenerational knowledge transfer and intersectoral (adult education/care and retirement) networks
  4. To achieve a large, international impact, by addressing the target group through a broad spectrum of multipliers and channels

About SEN4CE:

SEN4CE will address seniors (60+) with a digital training program to foster life-long learning (core topics circular economy and digital tools) that empowers them to actively engage in the “green transition” and connect them with the young generation, for whom sustainability and circular economy are vital (in the truest sense of the word). The project also addresses people working with seniors in retirement and care contexts with a combined circular economy – train the trainer (digital training).

This aim will be realized by implementing five steps:

CE for seniors and life-long learning: A course curriculum (including learning content) on circular economy for seniors will be developed. The curriculum will be created for 2 different levels knowledge (basic and advanced) to ensure compatibility with the diverse learning needs of seniors 60+.

CE for care and retirement sector: A course curriculum and learning content for circular economy in the care and retirement sector will be developed. This will include a train-the-trainer program for staff to use the previously developed SEN4CE training material with their clients.

Digital CE tools for seniors: Circular Economy goes hand in hand with digital tools. The focus of this result will be on digital applications for circular economy, enabling seniors to improve their digital tool skills.

Digital learning materials: Digital training materials will be developed, based on the concepts and curricula which have been developed before. We will use the software Articulate to create non-linear, scenario-based gamified e-learnings. By the choices of the learner, a different storyline will unfold with considering the needs of the target group (seniors) and respect highest barrier-free standards. The digital training will be based in blended learning methodology, including a train-the-trainer part.

SEN4CE Digital environment: The SEN4CE digital environment will be the primary sharing and promotion tool for the digital training courses. The design and visual identity to respect the needs of the target group seniors by guaranteeing easy access. The aim to is create highest possible compatibility with existing platforms.

All results of SEN4CE will be available in English, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese.

The first transnational project meeting took place on the 6th and 7th of September 2022 in Graz. On the first day we started by discussion project management issues, had a look at our wonderful new website and discussed the general content of the five modules. In the evening social activity (guided tour, dinner) took place in the city center of Graz. The upcoming day we spent discussing the exact concept for result 1. In the end, a satisfactory result was achieved, which we will continue to work on in the following weeks.

We are happy to invite you to our brand-new website: https://sen4ce.eu/

We are looking for you! Are you interested in the upcoming program. Get in touch with us for upcoming workshops and/or events! The program is for free!

If you want to support us by spreading the message of the Sen4CE project, please share our website on social media! There is a lot to come, stay tuned and follow our channels!