WINnovators
Building Skills and Networks for Inclusive Regional Development
Regional Impact
The project targets three transition regions: Western Macedonia (Greece), Centru (Romania), and Southeastern Bulgaria. These areas face the dual challenge of economic restructuring and fossil fuel phase-out.
COALition strengthens local ecosystems, builds capacity, and helps secure funding, laying the foundation for sustainable growth and job creation in emerging sectors like renewables, hydrogen, and energy efficiency.
Market Context
Coal regions across Europe are under pressure to phase out fossil fuels while preserving economic stability.
Despite their challenges, they also present major opportunities — with estimates of up to 314,000 jobs created through clean energy investments by 2030.
EU policies like the Green Deal, Just Transition Fund, and Hydrogen Strategy support this shift, yet local coordination, strategic planning, and skills development remain key barriers.
Beneficiary
Primary beneficiaries include workers in coal-related industries, regional and local authorities, innovation ecosystem stakeholders, academic institutions, and SMEs in the energy and tech sectors.
Broader beneficiaries include residents of transition regions, future investors, and the extended EU innovation community focused on clean energy and climate neutrality.
Stakeholder Network
COALition is implemented by a diverse consortium of partners from Greece, Romania, and Bulgaria, including public institutions, universities, regional agencies, private companies, and NGOs.
Key members include CERTH (leader), Iceberg Plus, UMFST Târgu Mureș, Sofia University, Mureș County Council, Stara Zagora REDA, and many more.
The WINnovators project introduces innovative, capacity-building solutions that combine co-developed training practices, gamified e-learning modules, and an interactive online working space.
By engaging Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), Open Innovation Ecosystems (OIEs), and local communities, it transforms traditional teaching into collaborative, hands-on experiences.
These solutions empower young women and enable students and educators to act as change agents within their regions.
Regional Impact
WINnovators strengthens the role of HEIs as regional change agents. It enhances entrepreneurial and digital skills for marginalized young women in rural areas and connects HEIs with business incubators, tech companies, NGOs, and local policymakers.
The project contributes to socio-economic growth in partner regions across Estonia, Slovenia, Serbia, Italy, and Romania, fostering inclusive development.
Market Context
WINnovators addresses urgent market needs: the growing demand for digital, STEM/STEAM, and entrepreneurial skills, especially among young women in underrepresented rural areas; the shift toward blended, informal-formal education models in higher education; and the skills gap exposed by the pandemic between HEI curricula and real labor market demands.
Beneficiary
WINnovators targets several groups:
- Primary Beneficiaries:
- Young women from rural and disadvantaged communities who gain access to innovative, career-enhancing training in STEM/STEAM and entrepreneurship.
- HEI students and educators who develop new competencies and become effective change agents in their communities.
- Secondary Beneficiaries:
- Local communities and regions that benefit from increased innovation, improved employment prospects, and stronger socio-economic development.
- Policy makers and local businesses that are engaged through multiplier events and online seminars to promote sustainable practices and gender-sensitive education.
Stakeholder Network
The consortium includes partners from five European countries, combining expertise in education, innovation, and community development.
- Tallinn University (Estonia)
- University of Ljubljana (Slovenia)
- Balkan Distance Education Network BADEN (Serbia)
- Vitale Tecnologie Comunicazione – Viteco srl (Italy)
- Iceberg Consulting Srl (Romania)
- Udruzenje Poslovnih Zena Srbije (Serbia)
- Sinergie Società Consortile (Italy)
Iceberg+, as a key Romanian partner, contributes with its know-how in innovation strategy, digital transformation, and EU-funded program implementation. The team supports both institutional capacity building and community engagement in the Centru region of Romania.
Results
(Short Timeline Yearly)
The project’s outcomes are mapped over a three-year period:
Year 1 - Laying the Foundations
PR1: WINnovators Training Practices Collection
- Co-development of capacity-building practices and two modular e-learning courses.
- Module 1 was designed for HEI students and young rural women to build digital, STEM/STEAM, entrepreneurial, and sustainability competencies.
- Module 2 targeted HEI educators and policymakers, focusing on best practices for capacity development.
- These practices were embedded into the WINnovators Space and piloted in initial project activities.
The consortium includes partners from five European countries, combining expertise in education, innovation, and community development.
Year 2 – Pilot Testing and Innovation in Engagement
PR2: Gamified Interaction for WINnovators Learning
- Introduction of a gamified approach using open badges to reward specific competencies and encourage teamwork.
- Pilot tests in Estonia, Serbia, and Slovenia validated this approach—highlighting increased motivation and interactive learning, even though some technical challenges emerged.
PR3: WINnovators Interactive Working Space
- Development of a digital platform that supports blended formal-informal learning, portfolio-based teamwork, and gamified microlearning.
- The platform was localized into multiple languages and provided a user-friendly environment for HEI students, young women, and community partners to collaborate on innovative projects.
Year 3 – Scaling Up and Policy Impact
PR4: WINnovators eTraining and Policies
- Full-scale rollout of e-training sessions for educational policymakers and stakeholders.
- A total of 83 policymakers from Estonia, Serbia, Slovenia, Italy, and Romania were trained, leading to the co-creation of policy guidelines that foster capacity building across HEIs and local communities.
- Complementary multiplier events—including the Inspired Women for STEM & Innovation virtual event—amplified the project’s impact by showcasing successful case studies and best practices.
Overall Impact
The project engaged 133 young rural women, 105 HEI students, 10 mentors, and 83 educational policymakers.
- Quantitative data collected from the WINnovators Space (such as the accumulation of open badges reflecting competencies like “Learning to be” or “Learning to empower and lead”) confirmed significant gains in both individual and collective capabilities.
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