Archives for Angela Ivanova

Nomadland – a future in the countryside for young people

The project Nomadland is a story about life, new beginnings and adventure. Within the project, we want to show that the countryside is a perfect destination for digital nomads – through stories, a blog, a special guide and a magazine. The future of the countryside is in attracting young people who will become an active part of society! 

© Simona Pilolla | Dreamstime.com

The rural areas in Europe are facing the outmigration of young people and ageing of the population, leading to stagnation in regional development, social polarization, impoverishment, underutilized public infrastructure and a negative image of these areas. 

At the same time, due to the digitalization of jobs and the emergence of new industries (digital content creation, digital marketing, online sales …), a different trend began – an increase in remote work, which became significant during the COVID-19 epidemic. We believe that digital nomads are the new future for the European countryside! 

An inspiring gate into the countryside

Henry Miller, a prominent American novelist, once said, that “one’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” We believe that the countryside is an inspiring destination for young people. It’s a paradise, waiting to be discovered.

The partnership of the project is composed of partners that understand, feel and believe in the countryside. The organizations ID20 Institute (Slovenia), ATPERSON (Spain), Prizma Association (Croatia) and INI-Novation (Germany), which are forming the partnership of the project, have one common goal – bringing new hope to the European countryside. The project is co-financed by the European Commission through the Erasmus+ project.  

In recent months, a new webpage has been launched, which should become an inspiring gate into the countryside. A webpage nomad-project.com will bring up-to-date information about the advantages and disadvantages of the countryside. Take a tour into inspiring new destinations for digital nomads which are spreading throughout the European countryside or read personal stories of digital nomads who developed their passion for the countryside and delved into the world embraced by nature and adventures. Understand the power of nature by reading the stories of young people, living in the countryside.  

A year of new ideas 

Next year, 2023, will be full of positive insights into the countryside and life of digital nomads. In the spring, we will publish the first magazine, dedicated to the world of countryside digital nomads and organize a training activity for youth workers from 4 different countries – Croatia, Slovenia, Spain, and Germany. A special guide for implementing digital nomadism in rural areas will be published in the autumn of 2023 with 4 insightful events in our home areas where we will work with the public and private stakeholders in developing new digital nomad paradises! 

Many adventures ahead 

The Nomadland: digital nomads – a new opportunity for the European rural areas project will: 

– explore how digital nomadism can provide a positive impact on the development of youth work and young people’s personal and professional development in rural and peripheral areas (including smaller towns); 

– develop the first guide to help youth workers and decision-makers in providing conditions for attracting digital nomads to rural areas; 

– present the countryside as an innovative, multicultural area with many new opportunities for young people; 

– raise awareness of remote work in rural areas as a possible response to the outmigration of young people (all intellectual results); 

– address the digital transformation of rural areas, with a special focus on the areas of Idrija (Slovenia), Odenwald (Germany), Iž (Croatia) and Cuenca (Spain).  

– bring together young people, decision-makers, and youth workers to provide new ideas for the local community. 

Become a part of our community

Follow us on social media (Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn) or sign for the regular newsletter! Or just visit the platform of the project: www.nomadland-project.com

60+ Good practices and more in “Industry 4.0 Skills”

Good Practices, Interactive Database and a Catalogue with all collected materials free for download

We, the team of the European project “Skills and Competences for Work in Industry 4.0”, funded by the Erasmus + program, are proud to present the results of our work, intended for all stakeholders interested in increasing their knowledge and adapting their skills to the challenges of Industry 4.0.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution, as a trend towards automation and data exchange in production technologies, requires a transformation in various basic technologies, processes and organizational changes. This framework serves largely as a guideline for companies and their work teams in their quest to become part of Industry 4.0 with the right technologies and the right skills.

We are ready to inform about more than 60 successful examples of how to make the transition from labor-intensive work to intensive work in an industrial environment, and present to stakeholders (such as trainers in VET and adult education, human resource management, labor market policy experts, industry workers, students and job seekers) good examples of how other organizations have implemented new policies, initiatives, methods, programs and projects to achieve the necessary transformation of skills in their work teams.

We have been working on the topic for two years and now our work on the project is coming to an end. In this regard, we are proud to announce our achievement.

A collection of good practices. More than 60 good practices have been collected as use cases and successful approaches for implementing professional training according to the needs of Industry 4.0. Our focus on people and their skills, as transversal competencies, present many technology use cases that illustrate the changes occurring at the company level and the resulting benefits for both organizations and employees. In addition, three types of technologies are described as examples: enabling technologies, process improvement technologies, and organization improvement technologies.

Catalog “Skills and Competences in Industry 4.0”. Valuable information, together with all good practices, are presented in a special catalog that can be downloaded for free from anywhere in the world. Link https://industryfourzero-skills.eu/best-practices-catalog /.

Database. All good practices can be searched and downloaded separately from our purpose-built electronic platform, position on our website. The database is publicly available here: https://industryfourzero-skills.eu/database/.

Forum. We have created a Facebook page and group as a forum for discussion and various topics. There we promote various materials, educational videos, articles that present opportunities and obstacles that Industry 4.0 brings to businesses and employees.

Our Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/industry4skills/ .

Our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/industry4skills/

Nomadland in Slovenia

Three-day meeting in Idrija, June 21 – 23, 2022

Idrija, Slovenia

An introductory face-to-face meeting of the Nomadland project partners was held in Idrija and was aimed at reviewing the project work already started in April ’22 and planning future activities.

Additionally, the ID20 hosts had organized an interesting tour of beautiful Idrija and its surroundings. We visited the Giser mining house, emblematic of the region, with interest. We also went to the Zgornja Idrijca Landscape Park and got to know the culinary and other beauties of the Ledin Plateau.

Nomadland is a European project funded by the Erasmus+ program, aimed at a growing group of people who are increasingly imposing a new trend in the way of working and living – these are the digital nomads. They travel the world and can work anywhere as long as they have a computer and a good internet connection. Rural areas have great potential to become a desirable destination for digital nomads and a preferred place to stay and work. On the other hand, in this way a negative trend associated with the outflow of young people from rural areas can be significantly reduced.

That is why the Nomadland project presents a completely new look at the countryside as an entry point for digital nomads and, therefore, the development of young people in the countryside.

Nomadland project is co-financed by the European Commission as part of the Erasmus+ project.

Stay tuned for more from our work in Nomadland.

Nomadland launched

On 12.04.2022, an extremely exciting European project named Nomadland was kicked-off online. The project will tell stories about the young people (millennial and generation Z), about the identity and needs of rural area, about the support and helping each other.

The project is a voyage through different rural areas of Europe, exploring stories of the digital nomads, discovering young people in rural areas, believing in the potential of rural areas between different generations and guiding youth workers on the same path.

© Simona Pilolla

The representatives of all partner organizations in the consortium of four European countries Slovenia, Croatia, Spain and Germany met online in high spirits and good mood. Under the leadership of ID20, our project coordinator from Slovenia, we laid the foundations and distributed our first tasks together.

We, at INI-Novation GmbH, are proud to be part of this great consortium. Stay tuned for more news and information about the project Nomadland.

Web-platform for Blended Learning “CreatINNES Academy”

Hallo! Здравейте! Helló! Здравo! Salut!

Our CreatINNES Project consortium is happy to announce that our web-platform for blended learning called “CreatINNES Academy” is ready. It is created under Erasmus+ Program with the participation of six partner organizations from Germany, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Hungary and France. The coordinator of the work on the development of the web-platform is the team of professionals of our Bulgarian partner Budakov Films EOOD.

What is “CreatINNES Academy”?

The web-platform “CreatINNES Academy” provides effective organization of the learning process and ensures secure access and registration of all users. It contains two training programs: “Entrepreneurship for CCI freelancers and startups” and “Creative Thinking for Innovation”. The training programs have been developed with the participation of all partners from the CreatINNES consortium. Each training program contains 8 modules with very well selected short-burst of information which is clear, concrete and easy to be memorized.

You can enter CreatINNES Academy by following the link: http://moodle.creatinnes.eu .  Create your user profile and start your learning journey.  

The Users of “CreatINNES Academy“

All interested students, organizations and people with activities or professions belonging to the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI) ca be trained or can have self-training through the web-platform. Training Program 1 “Entrepreneurship for freelancers and startups” will fulfil their need for knowledge in business development, financing and IPR.  

Also, non-CCI startups and small companies who need more creativity in their working process are welcome. Training program 2 “Creative Thinking for Innovation” is for them.  

Navigation of “CreatINNES Academy”

“CreatINNES Academy” is aesthetically designed to provide easy, free and secure access for every user. The platform is based on the Moodle software package, designed to create web-based educational courses and websites. The “CreatINNES Academy” interface is designed to provide learners with easy-to-use learning materials in six different languages. For many potential users, may be, our training platform will be the first that they will use.

Website: www.creatinnes.eu    Facebook www.facebook.com/CreatINNES  Twitter  #creatinnes

International webinar “The Fundamental of Becoming a Creative Entrepreneur”

CreatINNES proudly invites you to join our international webinar, entitled “The Fundamental of Becoming a Creative Entrepreneur” on July 20th, Tuesday, 15:00-15:40 CET. You will hear inspiring speakers, such as Wolfgang Kniejski and Petyo Budakov.

The event is initiated by INI-Novation GmbH, co-organized by XU Exponential University – a very prestigious German state-recognized academic institution where revolutionary ideas become innovations!

Join us: shorturl.at/diqD5

CreatINNES presents the Training Program “Creative Thinking for Innovation”

The first second training program, called “Creative Thinking for Innovation” is aimed at non-CCI digital companies and startups who are facing the need for more creativity in their work.  Innovation is closely linked to creativity, thus, topics such as design thinking, branding, growth hacking, brainstorming and problem solving are covered in 8 modules. The focus is mainly on concept development and creative thinking. All modules are available in six languages: English, German, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Hungarian and French.

All partners of the CreatINNES consortium were involved in the content creation process. They created 26 exercises and 19 good practices to support the learning experience of the students. 

Learners have easy access to the training program. All modules are uploaded on a special training platform for blended learning “CreatINNES Academy”. CreatINNES Academy is an aesthetically designed web platform for providing easy, free and secure access. The platform is based on the Moodle software package, designed to create web-based educational courses and websites. The platform is currently being tested.

Website: www.creatinnes.eu    Facebook www.facebook.com/CreatINNES  Twitter  #creatinnes

CreatINNES presents the Training Program “Entrepreneurship for CCI Freelancers and Startups”

Training program 1 “Entrepreneurship for CC Freelancers and Startups”, CreatINNES project

The first training program, called “Entrepreneurship for CC Freelancers and Startups”, is aimed at freelancers, small companies and start-ups working in the cultural and creative sector. Topics such as business development, visualization, management, business plan, financing, intellectual property rights, digitalization and strategic growth are covered in 8 modules. It is available in six languages: English, German, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Hungarian and French.

All partners of the CreatINNES consortium were involved in the content creation process. They created 26 exercises and 19 good practices to support the learning experience of the students. 

Learners have easy access to the training program. All modules are uploaded on a special training platform for blended learning “CreatINNES Academy”. CreatINNES Academy is an aesthetically designed web platform for providing easy, free and secure access. The platform is based on the Moodle software package, designed to create web-based educational courses and websites. The platform is currently being tested.

Website: www.creatinnes.eu    Facebook www.facebook.com/CreatINNES  Twitter  #creatinnes

The 1st Prototype of PROLONG is Ready

PROLONG in an innovative project with the goal to design and manufacture a prototype of a device as a portable GNSS-IoT tracker to be carried in a pocket as a key-chain or to be worn as a belt, bracelet or necklace attachment.

The system will be capable of performing gait analysis (analysis of locomotion) based on very accurate PNT (Positioning, Navigation and Timing) data, detecting conditions of possible danger (e.g., unstable walking pattern, wandering, fall) and then generating an alert (e.g., playing a loud beeping sound and sending an alert to caregiver).

The PROLONG partners are finalizing already the first prototype of the technical solution and testing together with target users in so-called co-design sessions is starting soon.

There are 6 innovations that will be combined in the PROLONG solution:

  • Use of authentication and security mechanisms to secure users’ privacy,
  • Use of Galileo/GNSS with IoT networking based on LPWAN and NB-IoT,
  • Specially developed optimized “plug&play” algorithms for the PROLONG receiver that ensures real-time detection and high accuracy,
  • Using specialized algorithms for gait analysis to detect conditions of risk related to gait patterns of older adults when outside their homes,
  • Providing seamless indoor/outdoor monitoring of older adults, in a way that is completely transparent to the user
  • Creating a specialized technical solution capable to deliver ubiquitous prevention of risks related to analysis of locomotion of older adults, ready to be integrated in a close-to-market device.

The 1-st workshop with the PROLONG end-users is coming.

Industry 4.0 Skills

Nowadays, the nature of work is changing dramatically with the advancement and introduction of innovative technologies in the industry. With the introduction of computerization and the advent of trends such as big data, advanced robots, IoT and many others, digitization is increasingly shaping the world of work. Companies and organizations adopt new ways of production, markets expand and develop, and technology easily replaces human labor in a wide range of non-routine cognitive tasks and now performs a much wider range of manual tasks. This rapidly changing environment stimulates the creation of new professions and requires new skills and competencies.

INI-Novation GmbH has initiated a new European project called “Skills and Competences for Work in Industry 4.0”, which is funded by the ERASMUS+ program for the period 2020 – 2022. The main goal of the project is to provide a comprehensive and useful indication of initiatives, programs, methods and materials regarding the development and self-improvement of personal skills and competencies in industry transformation.

The project involves four European organizations from Austria, Slovenia, Slovakia and Germany with expertise in various fields – human resources, innovative technologies, professional training and business development.

Kickoff Meeting “Industry 4.0 Skills”

On January 13, 2021, our project team gathered online for a project kickoff meeting. We discussed the first activities to be undertaken in order to raise the awareness of the various stakeholders in our home countries about the project on the one hand, and on the other – to learn about their experiences related to the key competences for Industry 4.0 and to collect of potential good practices.

One of our main tasks is to collect good practices from the field of new technologies and from the field of their deployment, which will give the necessary skills and competencies needed in the very near future to people employed in the industry. We’re getting started now. All good practices will be described in a special document called Catalog “Skills and Competences for Work in Industry 4.0” and will be available in a special Open Access Database.

If you want to share your good practice with us, now is the time. Write to us in the “Contacts” section of this website or post them on the project’s Facebook page. After review and discussion with you, our team will add them to the catalog, which will be distributed in four European languages: English, German, Slovenian and Slovak.

Facebook page “Industry 4.0 Skills”

Stay tuned for more news.

Peoject website: https://industryfourzero-skills.eu/

FB page: https://www.facebook.com/industry4skills

FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/industry4skills/