Learning Regions resources


 

 

Publications

 

 

In 2000 Cedefop published a book entitled Towards the learning region . Education and regional innovation in the European Union and the United States as a contribution towards the stimulation of debate on this topic. Around the same time Cedefop commissioned the Department of Work Sciences of Halmstad University in Sweden to produce an analysis of international research on regional approaches to learning in the field of vocational education and training. Beginning in 2001, Cedefop, in the context of the Cedefop Research Arena (Cedra), intended to launch a concerted series of activities (including the creation and moderation of knowledge sharing networks, development of research resource materials (including case studies) around the topic of the learning region. Cedefop wished to carry out these activities in partnership with (or as part of development coalitions) with other research and development bodies who were interested in examining this concept and promoting actions at a European level. One of the main Cedefop activities to take place in 2001 was the holding of an Agora Thessaloniki on this topic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cedefop imageThis CEDEFOP release of 2007 examines how one builds innovative local and regional communities. It does so through analysing case studies from different parts of Europe. The emphasis is on learning from practices. Regional innovation depends on dialogue, cooperation, networking and learning between all social and economic actors in a region. The interfaces between different interest groups in a region are the places where learning takes place: people learning together to address complex social and economic problems. This can be understood as region-wide ‘practical learning’ along ‘learning region’ lines.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EU projects related to Learning Regions

 

Eurolocal - European storehouse on the local and regional dimensions of lifelong learning (Key activity 4 project)

 

EUROlocal reinforces the EC policy on lifelong learning regions by collecting the tools, strategies, learning materials, reports and everything concerned with their development. The essense of the EUROlocal project is collaborative and interactive. The partners continue to make significant contributions to the development of the concept and practice of the learning region in their own right. EUROlocal represents an easily-accessible resource for local initiatives to the collective experience and knowledge resulting from these pan-European efforts. As well as connecting the ongoing learning region activities of its principal stakeholders, EUROlocal constantly seeks input and feedback from new and prospective entrants through its Dynamic Survey of European Learning Regions.

 

Website: http://www.eurolocal.info

 

Xploit

 

The XPLOIT Project is a European Project on Training and Lifelong Learning activities promoted by the European Commission within the "LLL - Lifelong Learning Program". The main objective of the project is to create a Network of Learning Cities that, by sharing their experiences, tools and knowledge, will be able to promote a more effective and cohesive planning of lifelong learning initiatives and programs at a local level, to better meet the needs of citizens and to more efficiently allocate resources. You can find information of your local communities in your language under the Learning Communities head menu. The rest of the sections in this website include Google Translator links at your disposal for your comfort.

 

Website: http://xploit-eu.com

 

 

Facebook group "Learning Cities"

 

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Learning-Cities/106244379404657

 

 

 

 

In the Swedish Community-of-Practice for Learning Regions, we will collect a number of literature, resources, examples, surveys and more about Learning Regions by relating the concept to the concept of a Community-of-Practice. In the post-ironic historical epoch we have entered, many of the challenges are related to the art of making up reality, i.e. creating a new reality based on what earlier was covering reality - but now has been dis-covered. The old frame and its domain has been dissolved into meaningless components that no longer are essential for the civilization co-creation process as when you make a Hegelian Aufhebung where old demarcation lines between Man and Women, Truth and False, Real and Fake, Authentic and Artificial etc. etc. are no longer meaningful. Instead in seems to be possible to start with a "virgin domain" in knowledge, politics, life, learning and other disciplinary subject matter fields: the Trans-Human, Trans-Disciplinary, the Trans-National, the Trans-Temporal and of course also Trans-Regional. What does that mean? That we go beyond the concept of a Region (basically a governed unit of a territory) and call it a Habitat. The good thing with this "auf-hebung" is that we can be open to what kind of habitat we are working with: only for human beeings? only in geographical space? only on the individual level for learning? Our idea is to begin seriously question the national borderline (going trans-national), the scientific disciplinary demarcation lines (going trans-discuplinary) etc and begin work with Community-of-Practice and Digital Habitats as candidates for a new and more innovative conversation about learning regions...