A global transition to low-carbon, resource-efficient economies is occurring in response to risks posed by climate change and environmental degradation. Hydrogen is proposed as a zero-carbon substitute for natural gas with the potential to reduce carbon emissions in homes and businesses. Trades, including gasfitting, will be affected by the transition to a low-carbon economy and require upskilling to develop competencies to work with hydrogen to ensure safety and support domestic uptake. Understanding the training needs of trades practitioners is essential to the successful transition to a zero-carbon economy. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study of Australian gasfitters, exploring what motivates gasfitters to participate in training, what informs their ongoing learning and what their preferences are for hydrogen training. Most gasfitters are either self-employed or work in small businesses, and, as such, this context presents both challenges and opportunities to consider in upskilling strategies. Drawing on interview findings and literature on small business learning, the paper presents considerations to inform training approaches and policies in the transition to hydrogen and also, more broadly, for upskilling other small trade businesses similarly affected by a shift to low-carbon and green technologies.
With ever-increasing focus from policymakers on the potential of vocational education to provide skills for livelihoods and sustainability in the rural economy, this study set out to investigate attempts at curriculum reform by agricultural technical and vocational education and training providers in the context of the dual crisis - 'climate and economic' - in Zimbabwe. The question addressed is: How should the agricultural vocational education and training curriculum respond to the climate and economic crisis to ensure sustainability? The paper highlights enablers and barriers to curriculum responsiveness. Moll's model of curriculum responsiveness provided analytical lenses for the study. Data collection was through semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews, document analysis and observations, and analysed thematically. The study revealed that the climate crisis in Zimbabwe has affected both government and non-government vocational training centres in several ways. However, the curriculum was 'one-size fits all', focused on the needs of a formal labour market. Such a labour market has been decimated by the economic crisis and climate break down. Hence, providers of agricultural vocational education in rural areas ought to consider re-engineering the curriculum to be more responsive to a range of drivers, including climate change, especially within the rural context.
In this paper, drawing on an extensive research project across three countries (VET Africa 4.0 Collective 2023), we produce an emerging argument that it is necessary to rethink and reframe VET logics and approaches in a warming future dominated by informality and mass unemployment. Currently,neither the formal VET college or workplace are adequately set up to provide the type(s) of VET that are in demand or needed for just transitioning and sustainable futures. We acknowledge the importance of political economy accounts in developing a richer understanding of VET, but suggest these are not sufficient for dealing with the existential and practical crisis of the climate emergency. We note that many scholars have sought to address this tension in the academic literature by adopting a political ecology account that reframes the theoretical and political challenge. This leads us to call for a political-economy-ecology account of VET. Although we acknowledge the limited nature of our approach here, we offer some thoughts for VET analysis with reflection on these theoretical issues applied to four cases studies from Uganda and South Africa of VET provisioning in oil, transport, water and food (which materially shape our cases).
To support German VET providers in their internationalisation, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has created two funding programs 'Vocational Training Export' (BEX; 2010-2017) and 'Internationalisation of Vocational Education' (IBB; 2017-2022) for the development of international business models in VET. In this paper, innovations of the business models of the projects are analysed in order to find out the extent to which the innovations have occurred. The sample includes all funded projects (18), in which a minimum of one organisation was funded subsequently in both funding programs. The data includes project documents and qualitative interviews with project actors. In order to identify the business model innovativeness of the projects, a model by Taran, Boer, and Lindgren is used and extended by a further dimension (system) according to Bronfenbrenner and Kell. The data shows that nearly all projects innovate in several areas of the business model. While these are mainly incremental in nature in BEX, radical innovations dominate among the IBB projects. Among other things, it is also evident that the BEX projects with their innovations relate primarily to the meso level (institutions), while the IBB projects address more strongly the exo level (societal subsystems) with their novelties.
The article explores the experiences of youth at risk for social exclusion and is part of cross-national research involving Norway, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. 79 young people aged 16-29 who are at risk of becoming economically and socially marginalised were interviewed about circumstances that may support or hinder their participation and learning in VET. The study draws on sociocultural theory, emphasising learning as participation in social practices. Thematic analyses indicate that negative experiences in the past affect current participation in VET. In all countries, VET offers opportunities for participation for students at risk of social exclusion. However, vulnerable youth do not navigate the paths of social engagement well on their own. In the case of VET-students at risk for social exclusion, the mere development of knowledge and skills relevant for employment in the labour market does not suffice. VET institutions will need to facilitate students' participation in learning communities. Building social capital for youth at risk through developing relationships that generate motivation, trust, and confidence enhances students' opportunities for participation and subsequent learning. VET teachers and workplace supervisors will need guidance on how to develop the pedagogical competencies necessary to nurture social capital for students at risk for social exclusion.
