<< Background >>The decade for education for sustainable development launched by UNESCO (2004- 2014) has enabled the development of Education for sustainable development (ESD). ESD is integrated to varying degrees in different countries at the university level and there is potential for intensified implementation in the future (Leal Filho, 2015; Sprenger & Nienaber, 2017). However, the stakes are high. On the one hand, students are already citizens. On the other hand, they are in the process of professionalization. Raising their awareness of global change is a lever to enable them to take into account sustainability issues in their future professional lives. The project proposes to develop ESD at the university level by guiding university teachers towards digital and innovative teaching practices. Intercultural learning aims at providing insights into cultural orientation systems, reducing stereotypes, and counteracting ethnocentric attitudes. One goal of intercultural learning is to deal with commonalities as well as differences between cultures.This will be done in the present project under the perspective of an ESD. The goal is the insight that one's own cultural identity is only one among many and that one's own cultural standards can be put into perspective. If one relates the cultural perspective to the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 that are to be achieved globally, it becomes clear that, against the background of ecological but also economic and social challenges, traditional norms and values must be examined and reflected upon again and again, and that the norms of different cultures can serve to reflect upon one's own perspective and, if necessary, to expand it.Teaching practices at the university have been the subject of great interest over the last twenty years. The reform of these practices is one of the major challenges of European policies. Ensuring quality higher education (London Convention, 2007) enabling European universities to achieve excellence and contribute to the development of a knowledge society (Bologna Convention, 1998). Teaching practices in universities must also take into account the challenge of developing students' digital skills. The health context related to COVID poses two new challenges for universities: to implement blended teaching practices and to ensure the effectiveness of these practices. Especially in these extraordinary times of occasional restricted movement working with the help of computers and networks is very important. The V-Global project addresses the following challenges : The digitalization required by the COVID pandemic brings specific challenges for geographic and environmental learning. The real and intercultural encounter is a central feature of teaching and learning in these subjects. Through the Corona situation and the prevention of travel, a new barrier has arisen that cannot be easily eliminated until today and in the near future. Here, new formats had to and must be found that enable intercultural encounters. Digitization is a central approach here.Another challenge is that many signs of environmental and global changes cannot be visited directly because students, for example, have limited financial resources, have physical disabilities, or their family situation does not allow them to go abroad.Sustainability and ESD is closely linked to values, norms and attitudes that differ culturally, and can to be worked out in a dialogue. Work in the same direction that Global indicator framework for the Sustainable Development Goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development goal “13.3 Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning”. The project deals with the plan to make the EU's economy sustainable. This can be done by turning climate and environmental challenges into opportunities, and making the transition just and inclusive for all.<< Objectives >>The project has 7 objectives : Objective 1: Further development of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)The first objective is the further development of ESD at the university level through a blended learning approach, based on digital and real teaching practices.In recent years, a process of integrating education for sustainable development into university curricula has begun in Europe, especially in geography. This process has been implemented differently in the individual countries and is definitely not completed, but is currently even being extended.Objective 2: Development of a collaborative blended learning teaching concept in ESDThis collaborative approach is designed to achieve long-term cooperation. Synchronous and asynchronous formats are used.There is already the experience of some partners who have already carried out a project in this way bilaterally - due to the corona situation.Objective 3: Similarities and differences of intercultural ESDThe objective of the project is a content-related and personal dialogue in order to work out similarities and differences with regard to an intercultural ESD. This represents a central aspect of intercultural education besides the mediation of insights into cultural orientation systems.Objective 4: Fostering inclusion and wider accessibility to ESD The project conception enables a wide accessibility. On the one hand for students who have limited financial resources, physical disabilities or whose family situation does not allow participation in a field trip/excursion. On the other hand, there is the possibility that other university institutions or other interested disciplines, can use the concept. Objective 5: These experiences and their dissemination will enable the creation of a European network of university teachers. Objective 6: Evaluation of the developed teaching concepts Objective 7: Contribute to the improvement of European higher education policies. Call 2020 Round 1 KA2 - Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices KA226 - Partnerships for Digital Education Readiness Form ID: KA226-80A75193 Deadline (Brussels Time) 2020-10-29 12:00:00 EN 2 / 173<< Implementation >>The kick-off meeting (First transnational meeting) will plan the launch of Project Result 1. We will interview university teachers who work with ESD through blended learning and supported by web-based tools, such as virtual field trips and virtual labs to identify the possibilities and barriers related to taking such an approach (task 1). We will also analyze the curricula to identify the institutional possibilities and barriers for the development of virtual field trips and virtual labs from a PDS perspective (task 2). To achieve PR2, we will list already existing virtual excursions that could be used in an ESD perspective (task 3). A few already exist here, e.g. in the context of sustainable urban development. Then, we will conduct real field trips with students to obtain data that will be used for the later development of own virtual field trips. These data can be photos, 360° videos, digital surveys or mapping (task 4). On the basis of these data virtual field trips will be designed by students from the partner universities on different ESD topics climate change (mobility, housing, energy, economy, social disparities) (task 5). In a second step, these virtual excursions will be used in other courses or subjects in universities (task 6).To achieve PR3, the participatory toolkit will be connected to the project’s website. It will provide step by step instructions, demos, and proposed tools. It will include tools for different digital skills and needs, from simple to use collaborative dashboards to ppWebGIS platforms. First (task 7) will be defined the functionality needs of the toolbox, and then (task 8) the participatory toolbox will be developed To create this MOOC (PR4), we will organize a face-to-face teacher training to test the modules and materials developed for the MOOC. We will therefore first design the training architecture and the training materials (task 9), then test them during the face-to-face training (task 10) and integrate them into the MOOC (task 11).To achieve PR5, EUROGEO will examine and present an analysis structure for the Digicomp 2.1 Framework (the Digital Competency Framework for Citizens (https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/bitstream/JRC106281/web-digcomp2.1pdf_(online).pdf) and DigiCompEdu, the European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/digcompedu). Partners will contribute findings from the Intellectual Outputs PR1, PR2, PR3 and PR4 to develop an digital competence framework for educators. Task 13: Write and design the recommendations for policy makers. Based on the review and development of the ESD using digital competence framework for educators and the outcomes of the other project results, the lead partner will synthesise the results of the review of recommendations and surveys (task 2) and produce incorporating the expertise of all partners clear and well documented recommendations for policy makers in higher education and other education sectors.<< Results >>The results will be a set of clearly defined intellectual products, divided into specific tasks. These outputs can be summarized as follows: PR1: Challenges and opportunities for a blended learning approach to ESD at the university levelWe will conduct a systematic overview (of state of the art) in blended learning and digital pedagogical practices/digital and innovative educational actions on ESD in higher education. PR2: Developing virtual field trips for global changeThe objective of this Project Result is to design a didactic and pedagogical approach to use virtual field trips in a ESD perspective. PR3 V-GLOBAL participatory toolbox for blended-learning pilots’ support This project results 3 aims to develop a free digital toolkit of participatory methods, tailored to the needs of teachers and students before, during and after virtual and real field trips. The participatory toolkit will support different steps of the blended learning methodology, will teach and encourage the use of methods of participation and collaboration in disciplines related to Global Change. PR4 : Training for university teachers in the use of virtual excursions in ESD perspectiveTo ensure an even wider dissemination, we will produce a MOOC that will allow teachers to train even after the end of the project. PR5: Policy maker reportIn order to ensure the impact of the project on teachers' practices on a larger scale, we will produce a report for policy makers. It will highlight the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis) of the development ESD at university.Then, we will use social networks, a website and the websites of the project partners to communicate on the progress of the project and its results . We will also communicate at the national level through conferences (via the Hellenic Geographical Society (HGS), and the CNFG (French National Committee of Geography), European conferences (EUROGEO, EUGEO) and international conferences (IGU, AAG) to reach the widest possible audience of academics and through articles in scientific journals (notably RIPES, Journal of Geography in Higher Education).