sustainability drinks #17 - unternehmensgrün

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Training for Sustainable Development

Juliane ReiberProject Manager „Umweltprofis von morgen“

Axel KaiserCEO of DENTTABS-Zahnputztabletten and board member of UnternehmensGrün e.V.

Berlin, 27.04.2016@UnternehmensGRU

http://www.twitter.com/UnternehmensGRU

UnternehmensGrün e.V.

• founded in 1992

• association of sustainable enterprises

• more than 180 members

• conviction: ecology and economy do not contradict each other

• cross-sectoral lobbying for sustainable economic policies

• regional networking events, seminars (e.g. annual conference)

• nonpartisan, non-profit and financially independent

• Co-founder of Ecopreneur.eu, European Sustainable Business Federation (2.000 SMEs)

UnternehmensGrün e.V. - @UnternehmensGRU

Why do we engage in (vocational) training for sustainabledevelopment?

• Sustainability means responsibility for the environment, people and economy.

• Investment in knowledge (sustainability knowledge, practical knowledge and competence) in order to obtain social changes towards ecological/sustainable business.

• UnternehmensGrün has the political knowledge, competence and experience in the fieldof sustainable development and to teach green entrepreneurship.

• Change economy towards sustainability. Education is necessary for this!


Sustainability know-how becomes a key competence

Background

• Over 7 million young people under 25 years old are without a job in the EU

• Skilled worker shortage

• Growth of demand for sustainable economy

• Circular Economy alone has the potential to create 3 million new jobs in the EU

• Since 2008 UnternehmensGrün designs educational concepts

„Such projects are of great importance for the social path of sustainable development and for the dissemination of a corresponding understanding of sustainability. “

German Federal Environmental Foundation


What is our project about?

• method to acquire complex skills, key qualifications and entrepreneurial spirit

• practical experience in and with sustainable businesses

• implementation of sustainable projects over one year (Education for Sustainable Development, BNE) or internship during vocational training (Vocational Education for Sustainable Development, BBNE)

• workshops on sustainability

• sustainability certificate


Projects in different German regionsBaden-Wuerttemberg


At VAUDE, students designed a plan to recycle surplus materials.

With the support of myclimate, students calculated and comparedtheir schools carbon emissions

Projects in different German regionsNorth-Rhine Westfalia


The GLS Bank showed a company of students, how to manage, account anddistribute sustainable products.

At Knipex, the trainees raise awareness of employees aboutsustainability

Projects in different German regionsBerlin


At Druckhaus Berlin-Mitte trainees learned how to collect data and use them for a calculation of environmental indicators for an environmental statement.

At Besondere Orte, trainees learned about the different workflowsof a sustainably managed business

Awards


German Council for Sustainable Development (RNE)

Official UNESCO Project for Sustainable Learning

German Federal Environmental Foundation

„To be part of this project gave me the opportunity to combine ecology and economy and to comprehend that they are no longer separable in our time.“

Mahsa PourjabbariFreie Georgenschule Reutlingen


What happened until now?

• Initial funding of the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (German Federal Environmental Foundation) in 2008

• Since 2010 in cooperation with Berlin, Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia

• Our projects offer opportunities...

...to learn sustainability directly in the company

...to carry out a project independently

...to learn about sustainability management


Achievements so far

• 500 trainees received the „sustainability certificate“

• 150 independent projects were realized

• More than 90 companies supported our educational projects


Antje von Dewitz, CEO of VAUDE:

„By participating in this project, young people learn not only how complex economic relationships are, they also learn key competences such as team-work, self-organization etc. They experience what scope of action companies have to deal with in order to become more sustainable: from the small daily decisions to long-planned projects, taking responsibility for people and nature.

VAUDE is convinced that junior enterprises do not only raise awareness for sustainability issues among young people. These young people also deliver new ideas and show potential for further improvement to the companies."


Stefan Baumeister, CEO of myclimate:

“myclimate is convinced that we need to make young people aware of climate change issues! We want to offer them the possibility to become actively involved and to conciliate the theory of sustainable development with everyday business.

The junior company project addresses precisely this and sets the makers of tomorrow into focus.”


More than 100 university courses lead towards sustainability....


Our freshly graduated sustainability trainees