On 26 February, a partners’ meeting kicked off collaboration for the ‘Supporting TVET for a just and green transition’ project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The project leverages opportunities for knowledge exchange on successful greening TVET initiatives across the UNEVOC Network. Selected institutions will pilot the project, which aims to enhance TVET capabilities to meet the demands of the green transition.

Friedrich Huebler, Head of UNESCO-UNEVOC, reaffirmed TVET’s role as a key driver of economic growth and emphasized the increasing need for highly skilled workers, especially in the green economy sector.

Birte Ifang, Senior Policy Officer at BMZ, spoke about BMZ’s continued engagement and support of the just and green transition, highlighting the importance of greening TVET as an enabler for green jobs: “With the right training all work processes and production methods can become more environmentally friendly and resource efficient across a wide range of areas and virtually any job.”

The meeting provided a platform to collect and share practices, lessons learned and ongoing challenges in greening TVET to meet evolving labour market needs and prepare the workforce for the green transition. Discussions focused on adapting training standards to the green shift, reviewing and updating curricula, and promoting eco-friendly campuses through research and innovation. Participants also explored how successful practices could be replicated and identified priority areas for further development. During the subsequent breakout sessions, participants shared context-specific challenges and looked at partnership opportunities to address them collaboratively.

The project aims to strengthen the capacities of potential Green TVET Reference Centres (GTRCs) through a mentor–mentee approach, enabling institutions to demonstrate their readiness to take on this role. As GTRCs, institutions will be positioned to lead the green transition by delivering green-oriented vocational training, promoting sustainable career pathways, fostering partnerships for sector-specific upskilling—particularly for vulnerable groups—and implementing institutional strategies that engage communities and companies in developing green skills. Over the course of the project, additional institutions will be involved in peer learning to further support training and capacity development.

Participating UNEVOC Centres

• Bangladesh: Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB)
• Brazil: National Service for Industrial Training (SENAI)
• Jordan: Vocational Training Corporation (VTC)
• Germany: Handwerkskammer Koblenz (Koblenz Chamber of Crafts)
• Kenya: Ministry of Education; Rift Valley Technical Training Institute (RVTTI); Technical University of Mombasa
• Slovenia: Šolski Center Nova Gorica (SCNG)

Promising Practices

• Supporting sustainability in the textile sector, Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB)
• Revising TVET curricula towards environmental sustainability, Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC), Saudi Arabia