A EUROPEAN PORTAL FOR THE RENEWABLE ENERGIES

The beneficiaries of the pilot project are experts of vocational training, trainers, young people in initial and vocational training, self-employed workers and disadvantaged people, managers, technicians and energy managers of small and medium enterprises, local bodies, health offices, pilot courses participants in schools, in vocational training and in universities. The pilot project Eurenergy is coherent with the new European Energy Action Programme “Intelligent Energy for the Europe 2003/2006”, because this European Commission Action Plan (26 june 2003) promotes the use and the supply of renewable energies,also within European vocational training and national education systems and by the exchange of experiences and know how among specific networks.

In the concerned sector and through a transnational comparison,the project aims at introducing new pedagogic and organisational solutions based on innovative ICT learning environments by the design and production of an e-learning web portal, of a training software to create territorial energy and environment plans and of a multimedia self-training package at two learning levels.The project will implement as well a European energy network created by our European partnership working in vocational training for renewable energies and environment technologies. This network will cooperate also after the end of the project using telematics applications of our e-learning portal to ensure the acquisition of new skills and technologies in the sector of renewable energy and environment. The transnational network is functional to the project itself since each partner has got great experiences in this sector and in cooperation within European Programmes including the Leonardo da Vinci Programme. In order to build a common innovative pathway in the concerned sector, several partners’ best experiences and know-how are implemented in the project and synergies with other many projects are created.

The specific project objectives aim at:

• 1. encouraging the acquisition of new competences of young people in initial and vocational training in the renewable energy and environment field, by the use of innovative learning systems (integrating e-learning and computer and web based training).
• 2. Meeting the training needs of SMEs, of local authorities, health offices, self-employed workers and disadvantaged people covering in this way the skill shortage in the energy sector.
• 3. Encouraging new forms of learning and teaching methodologies in vocational training through the use of multimedia, computer and web based training and e-learning technologies.
• 4. Promoting the development of new job profiles which will take place in the European labour market and the knowledge of renewable energy technologies ,by the creation in Europe of a vocational education and training network for renewable energies.
• 5. Encouraging and developing relations and effective cooperation among vocational education and training, labour system, enterprises, universities and local authorities.
• 6. Encouraging the acquisition of competencies for the start up of SMEs activities.

The Eurenergy project is organized in twelve operational phases scheduled over three years, as shown in the GANTT chart and in the phases schedule at the beginning of this abstract.The products carried out at the end of three years will be:

A. 2000 CD-Roms of a multimedia self-training package in English and Italian at two learning levels with the following 10 modules, supplemented by a handbook and paper material:

• 1) technical legislation and new technologies in the field of renewable energies and energy saving
• 2) energetic waste conversion and integrated management.
• 3) telemeasures in the energy and environmental sector.
• 4) liberalization of the electric market and energy costs
• 5) guidelines for the constitution of consortia, for the energy purchase in a free market
• 6) guidelines for photovoltaic panels realization and for a territorial energy planning directed towards a sustainable development
• 7) guidelines for the access to national and European funding in the energy field, with specific web site links and database containing : specific schedules for each project financed and realized with European funding (Leonardo, Save, Thermie, Altener etc.); specific schedules of each European local agency for energy and other local authorities.
• 8) English reference book of technical terms on energy and ICT.
• 9) how to realize a telematics network for an enterprise, a body and a partnership network.
• 10) guidelines for the start up of new activities (cooperatives, companies etc.)

The training methodology concerning the multimedia package is based on self-training enhanced by interactivity, simulation and constant cognitive orientation through a well structured multimedia content mapping. It will provide a modular content organization,a clear indication of target groups, objectives definition, context of utilisation and self-evaluation tools including tests and exercises by hypertmedia software with audio, images, animation, links, instruments bar, navigation help index, search, , print ,etc.

B. Production of 2000 CD-Roms containing a training software supplemented with a handbook for the drawing up of territorial energy plans and case studies of environmental energy plans in Italy and Europe .

C. Realization of an e-learning web portal in English and Italian at the following web address: Eurenergy.org allocated to the dedicated server on the Intranet-Internet network of IT IS A. Monaco.

The e-learning web portal will provide a Learning Management System with groupware technologies and it will contain several areas:

• 6. for the synchronous and asynchronous communication among the project partners and learners (instant messaging,chat, e-mail, forum, data transfer and sharing devices etc.),
• 7. for the project web site
• 8. for the distance training modular courses
• 9. for the training database containing links to the European and local agencies for energy and other bodies, the schedules of European funded projects:Leonardo, Save, Thermie etc.
• 10. for the demo version of the multimedia package and of the software for the drawing up of environmental energy plans.

D. Production of an user’s handbook about the photovoltaic panels design .

E.Publication of project results in 2000 copies.

F. Newsgroup creation on the renewable energy.

The partnership tasks are pointed out in details in the letters of Agreement and at the section D of the application form. The transnational meetings will be 6 plus 2 videoconferences. Besides there will be continuous meetings between local and national partners.

The communication among the partners will be developed through:

• the web portal communication technologies(email,forum,etc),on the server eurenergy.org. on the Monaco ’s telematic network
• an area FTP,for monitoring and evaluation, on the server Monaco www.itimonaco.cs.it with a directory for each partner where he will be able to upload his own works by telematics FTP connection.
• videoconferences and local, national and transnational meetings
• telephone, fax and mail.

As regards the relevant impact produced by the project results in the concerned sector, it is intended for the following areas:

• 1. small and medium enterprises, vocational training for employers, technicians, energy managers;
• 2. vocational training in local authorities, provincial and regional health offices for the officers, energy managers, technicians and employees;
• 3. secondary school and university for pilot courses and innovative competencies;
• 4. vocational training organizations for initial and continuous training;
• 5. organizations for distance learning;
• 6. Trade Unions and workers.

For an effective project dissemination and transfer of project results and products,each of the eleven partners will implement a dissemination plan including a local network activation in each country among SMEs, local authorities, Universities, vocational training systems, trade unions. The diffusion will be realized by web sites with links to other sites, forums, conferences, articles published in the newspapers, mass media, videoconferences, seminars and conferences at local , national and transnational level.