SKILL2SUSTAIN Project Meeting and Study Visit in Ljubljana

The SKILL2SUSTAIN project consortium successfully conducted a study visit and Project Management Meeting at the Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering, University of Ljubljana, from 10 to 13 February 2026. The four-day programme brought together academic and non-academic partners with the objective of advancing the implementation of digital and green transformation within higher education systems across the Western Balkans. Representatives of the University of Banja Luka included Prof. Gordana Broćeta, PhD; Prof. Gordana Jakovljević, PhD; and Prof. Darija Gajić, PhD.

The first two days were dedicated to the Project Management Meeting, with particular emphasis on assessing progress across the key work packages. Within WP2, partners presented the results of a state-of-the-art analysis of digital and green education in academia, as well as the findings of the needs assessment and stakeholder requirements concerning the development of green and digital competencies. Special attention was devoted to the formulation of the Digital and Green Initiative for higher education in the Western Balkans.

Discussions under WP3 focused on the procurement, installation, and activation of equipment, the establishment of Research and Education Centres (RECs), and the development of an expanded regional network fostering structured collaboration between academia and relevant stakeholders within the green and digital transition. Plans for organising stakeholder workshops in 2026 across Montenegro, Albania, and Bosnia and Herzegovina were also presented.

Within WP4, the planned capacity-building activities for 2026 were outlined, encompassing the transfer of contemporary digital and green teaching practices to academic staff in the Western Balkans, as well as curriculum modernisation processes aligned with sustainability and digitalisation objectives.

Dedicated sessions on dissemination and financial reporting further strengthened the project’s governance framework and ensured compliance with established quality assurance and reporting standards. In addition, a draft Memorandum of Understanding was discussed as a strategic instrument intended to support long-term inter-institutional cooperation beyond the project’s duration.

The study visit provided in-depth insight into best practices at the University of Ljubljana, fully aligned with the objectives of SKILL2SUSTAIN. Participants examined models for the systematic integration of green competencies into curricula, approaches to digital transformation extending beyond software-oriented training, and the ways in which Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) generate measurable educational impact.

Hands-on sessions and laboratory visits enabled partners to connect the concepts of digital and green education with concrete elements of course design, learning outcomes definition, assessment models, and real-sector applications, thereby further reinforcing the integration of theoretical and practical knowledge in support of sustainable development.