What you find in this article
Decentralized areas, youngsters and future
As a cultural organisation that develop methodologies and implements actions in inner and decentralized areas through projects that combine artistic thinking and civic engagement, we often face with the challenge of helping local communities rediscover their identity, leading them in the acknowledgement of alternative narratives including traditions of the past and visions of the future. That’s why we have launched a new E+ project called Post Human Architect. It’s aimed at developing, testing, and disseminating an innovative methodology that VET organisations and trainers in inland areas can use to educate young learners to sustainability and social innovation. By implementing this methodology, we aim at contributing to the building and reinforcement of resilient, future-proof and more attractive VET systems in decentralized areas, which can support young people to find educational opportunities and new job opportunities tailored to their needs.
The top 10 competencies for Post Human Architecture
The Post Human Architect project has developed a Competence framework addressed to those that work as project manager in decentralized areas. The framework is based upon a best practice collection and focus group results in partners countries and with reference to the Post Human Architecture methodology and New European Bauhaus goal and values (EU, 2022).
The New European Bauhaus is a creative and interdisciplinary initiative that connects the European Green Deal to our living spaces and experiences. The New European Bauhaus initiative calls on all of us to imagine and build together a sustainable and inclusive future that is beautiful for our eyes, minds, and souls.
Prior to the focus groups each partner selected and presented two best practices from each country followed up by stakeholder analysis and engagement presenting best practices as an example of Post Human Architecture in practices. The objective of the skills and competence framework was to create a self-assessment grid that can both be applied in training and self-learning. The framework includes a list of 10 key skills, with definitions and descriptors for each competence:
- Community engagement: active listening, engagement, awareness and understanding of community values
- Embody sustainability values: natural processes and protection, economic sustainability, circular economy, recycling and consumption
- Active Leadership for sustainability: self-sufficiency, collaboration and facilitation skills, openness and lobbying for change
- Ecology: knowledge on ecosystems, biology and biological diversity, circular economy, inter-speciesism, harmful materials (chemistry) and the non-human perspective
- Cultural sensitivity: history, storytelling, anthropology, community identity and culture
- Embracing complexity in sustainability: cross sectoral and multidisciplinary approaches, interactive approaches, political insight, problem solving attitude, stakeholder engagement, system and transversal thinking
- Technology literacy: technology, application of technology for sustainability
- Design thinking: aesthetic skills/attitudes, design thinking method, human oriented design approaches
- Foresight – Envisioning sustainable futures: creativity, futuristic or visionary perspective, social innovation, mindset and solution orientation
- Inclusion: bottom-up approaches, emotional intelligence, empathy, equality, ethics, ethnography/observations skills, humility (humble), respectful, flexible and awareness of social needs and values
Of the 10 competencies defined in PHA focus groups 4 are closely related to the European sustainability competence framework (GreenComp) or; valuing sustainability (no. 2), acttve leadership for sustainability (no. 3), embracing the complexity of sustainability (no. 6) and foresight for sustainability (no. 9) (GreenComp, 2022, pp. 15-16).
The European Framework of Green Comp is a publication of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission that meets the ambitions defined in the European Green Deal and integrates the studies already carried out by the same JRC on digital competences (DigiComp), entrepreneurial competences (EntreComp), and social, personal and learning competences (LifeComp).
GreenComp is designed to be a non-prescriptive reference for learning schemes fostering sustainability as a competence. Post Human Architecture is closely correlated with sustainability as it means prioritising the needs of all life forms and the planet by ensuring that human activity does not exceed planetary boundaries.
