EMMA4EU - INNOVATION ALLIANCE FOR TRAINING PROGRAMMES FOR DEFORESTATION

Title 

EMMA4EU - INNOVATION ALLIANCE FOR TRAINING PROGRAMMES FOR DEFORESTATION-FREE
SUPPLY CHAINS IN EUROPE – project ID 101111729

Target groups

Direct target groups: buyers, operation managers, supply chain managers, CEOs and boards of
companies active in the leather and tannery, wood and furniture, food industries, importing
commodities and raw materials from non-EU countries (notably South America and Africa), that
need to renew purchase strategies and prepare the organization for the new EU standard on
sustainability. In addiction, young professionals and technicians that support green transition in
regional industrial companies.

Objectives

Deforestation is a major contributor to climate change and the expansion of agricultural land for the production of specific agroforestry products known as forest risk commodities (FRCs), represents its main direct driver in tropical countries. European Union (EU) consumption of FRCs accounts for 16% of the global embedded deforestation (an area almost the size of Luxemburg). Ensuring the sustainable supply of FRCs will help EU to achieve its climate targets and increase trust among consumers. However, deforestation is largely considered a “forestry problem” despite links to agriculture, trade and consumption patterns, all along supply chains. This is also the case in training offers of higher education and vocational training organisations (HEI&VETs), resulting in a lack of cross-sectoral approaches and interdisciplinarity in core DFSC disciplines (compliance, technology and corporate social responsibility), for students and professionals. In previous years, most collective commitments made by private and public actors for deforestation-free supply chains (DFSC) have failed to invert the trend and the European Commission (EC) has recently approved the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), to ban the import of FRCs produced on land deforested after 2020. Based on these combined aspects, there is a clear need for innovative approaches to education, training and capacity building on reducing deforestation risk in supply chains of FRCs in EU. EMMA4EU will respond to these gaps by bridging the different disciplines and sectors, connecting HEI&VETs, businesses, public organisations and NGOs to launch an EU alliance that will develop innovative training solutions to create a new profession: the DFSC manager. The new skill sets and professions will combine digital, green and interdisciplinarity skills to support the transition to more sustainable DFSCs of FRCs, implementation of the EUDR, a greener and more circular economy and reaching climate-neutrality by 2050.

Core Activities

- Knowledge building, research and assessment: research and assessment framework, training needs assessment for students and professionals in DFSC, Research to practice case study
factsheets, Innovation report on factors influencing successful DFSC application in business, Roadmap to commitment;
- development of training programs and materials: development of training structure, staff mobility, development of training materials for e-learning, development of e-learning training
platform, development of DFSC specialisation school programme and materials, development of professional training for VET on supply chain risk and the EUDR;
- deforestation Free Supply Chains (DFSC) Training Programme: DFSC e-learning training course, open call for specialisation school and student mobilities, DFSC specialisation school, VET Training programme;
- DFSC Innovation Alliance and Awareness: develop alliance, awareness and fundraising strategy, project dissemination and activities, fundraising and lobby meetings with corporates, national DFSC Awareness Workshops.

Programme 

Erasmus + Partnerships for Innovation: Alliances

Project Website 

https://www.emma4eu.eu/

Project Status

Running: from June 2023 until May 2026