Who Are We Empowering? Meet DIAMOND’s Target Groups

In today’s rapidly evolving job market, many individuals face significant challenges in securing stable employment. At DIAMOND, our mission is to empower:

• Unemployed individuals
• Employed individuals at risk of job loss
• Inactive individuals aiming to re-enter the workforce, particularly those from vulnerable socio-economic backgrounds.

Understanding the Challenges

These groups often encounter:

• Limited access to upskilling and reskilling opportunities
• Lack of recognition for existing skills and experiences
• Uncertainty about viable career pathways
• Discrimination and systemic barriers in the labor market

DIAMOND’s Innovative Approach

To address these challenges, DIAMOND is developing:

• ᴱGROW Index: A comprehensive tool to assess and enhance individual employability, focusing on empowerment and transformative capabilities.
• MOVEᴱ Platform: An AI-supported, modular learning ecosystem offering personalized micro-credentials and skill development pathways.
• Grassroots Living Lab: A collaborative environment for co-creating solutions with stakeholders, ensuring relevance and effectiveness.

By integrating these tools, DIAMOND aims to foster inclusive growth, reduce vulnerabilities, and strengthen economic resilience.

🔗 Learn more about our initiatives: https://diamond-empower.eu

💎Bringing Innovation to Life: Introducing WP6 – Grassroots Living Lab & Social Innovation Experiments 

WP6 of DIAMOND Empower is where our vision meets real communities. Led by Universidad de Burgos 🇪🇸, WP6 is building a Grassroots Living Lab that brings AI-powered tools and innovative learning pathways directly into local settings, empowering people through social innovation and participatory experimentation.

This work package connects closely with WP1-5 to test, adapt, and validate the MOVEᴱ AI system in real-life environments, focusing on inclusive upskilling and reskilling for vulnerable groups and those at risk of exclusion.

Here’s how WP6 is shaping future learning and employment pathways:

1️⃣ Stakeholder Mapping & Advisory Board Setup
Led by Evolutionary Archetypes Consulting SL 🇪🇸, this first step identifies key local actors and forms a Stakeholder Advisory Board (SAB) to guide engagement, validation, and dissemination activities.
Partners: All

2️⃣ Envision – Infrastructure & Social Innovation Plan
Universidad de Burgos leads the creation of the physical and social infrastructure for the living lab. This includes preparing the innovation framework to host the AI tools and social experiments derived from WP1-3 insights.
Partners: All

3️⃣ Social Innovation Experiments & Cohort Engagement
WP6 conducts targeted experiments with real-life cohorts, piloting MOVEᴱ AI components, micro-credentials, and new learning formats, refining them through iterative feedback and collaboration.
Partners: Aarhus University, CETIC, Proportional Message, EMiT Feltrinelli, Deinde Sp. z o. o., Fundacja Obiektywna, Youth Power Germany e.V., Fundación Miradas

4️⃣ Large-Scale Validation Experiment
A validation experiment with 300 participants compares AI-guided upskilling pathways to traditional municipal approaches, demonstrating MOVEᴱ’s impact on learning, employment, and social inclusion.
Partners: Universidad de Burgos, DIAMOND partners

Led by Universidad de Burgos, with crucial support from Evolutionary Archetypes Consulting and our wider consortium, WP6 ensures our AI-driven solutions are not just smart, but socially relevant and inclusive.

🌍 Join us on this exciting journey to transform grassroots innovation for future-ready learning and employment.

🔗 Learn more: https://diamond-empower.eu/about/

🌟 The European Union is driving a crucial transformation in skills development to navigate the evolving digital and green economies. At the heart of this vision is the strategic push for micro-credentials, flexible, targeted learning opportunities designed to meet immediate skill needs.

A cornerstone of this effort is the EU Council Recommendation on a European approach to micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability, adopted on June 16, 2022. This landmark recommendation aims to standardize and boost the uptake of micro-credentials across Europe, emphasizing their role in:

• Helping individuals gain and update skills for changing job markets and green & digital transitions.
• Promoting inclusiveness, equal access, and social fairness.
• Encouraging all learning providers to improve the quality and flexibility of education.

Source: European Commission

This is precisely where DIAMOND Empower comes in! We are directly implementing these EU-level ambitions by developing and testing micro-credentials focused on essential transformative digital and green skills.

DIAMOND’s approach is deeply rooted in collaboration with diverse partners, including grassroots organizations, VET providers, and universities. Our innovative Modular & Versatile Platform for Engagement & Employability (MOVEᴱ) will serve as a dynamic ecosystem, offering tailored micro-credentials designed to foster these critical capabilities.

We are committed to:

• Improving reskilling and upskilling with focused micro-credentials.
• Including vulnerable groups to promote fairness and resilience.
• Preventing unemployment by providing timely, relevant skills to boost employability.

Through “co-creation workshops” with our partners, we are building a robust repository of micro-credentials that are not only high-quality but also directly responsive to individual and labor market demands. DIAMOND is paving the way for a more skilled, resilient, and inclusive European workforce!

This ambitious undertaking is powered by a strong consortium of leading European institutions. Coordinator Aarhus Universitet spearheads the project, working alongside esteemed academic partners like Freie Universität Berlin, Universidad de Burgos, Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen, and Universität Wien to develop the foundational learning content and micro-credential methodologies. Technical expertise from Centre d’Excellence en Technologies de l’Information (CETIC) and Immersion is crucial for building the MOVEᴱ platform that delivers these micro-credentials, while theEuropean Centre for Economic and Policy Analysis and Affairs (ECEPPA) ensures their strategic relevance and impact on the labor market.

✅Learn more: DIAMOND Empower

#DIAMONDProject #microcredentials #REA #DigitalSkills #GreenSkills

🧠 10 Mental Health Tips for Lifelong Learners & Job Seekers 💎

In celebration of Mental Health Awareness Month

At DIAMOND, we know that upskilling, reskilling, and job searching can be emotionally challenging. Stress, self-doubt, and burnout are real – and they directly affect learning outcomes and employability.

To support you on your lifelong learning journey, we’ve gathered 10 practical, research-backed tips to help strengthen your mental well-being as you grow your skills:

10 Mental Health Tips for Lifelong Learners & Job Seekers

1️⃣ 🎯 Set achievable goals – Breaking tasks into manageable steps enhances motivation and reduces stress.

2️⃣ 📈 Track & celebrate progress – Acknowledge even small successes to boost confidence and build momentum.

3️⃣ ⏰ Maintain a routine – Consistent daily structure creates a sense of control and psychological stability.

4️⃣ 🤝 Stay connected – Engaging with peers or support groups fosters belonging and combats isolation.

5️⃣ 💖 Practice self-compassion & self-care – Be kind to yourself during setbacks; growth isn’t always linear.

6️⃣ 📚 Engage in meaningful learning – Choose learning that aligns with your interests and values for deeper motivation.

7️⃣ 🏃‍♀️ Incorporate physical activity – Movement supports mood regulation, focus, and stress reduction.

8️⃣ 💻 Use digital tools mindfully – Balance screen time with offline activities to avoid digital fatigue.

9️⃣ 🧭 Proactively seek guidance – Reach out to support services, mentors, or career counselors to navigate change.

🔟 🌱 Embrace a growth mindset – View challenges as opportunities; believe in your capacity to adapt and thrive.

📚 Sources & Resources on Mental Health:

European Commission: https://tinyurl.com/6d9ba3an 

Harvard Business Publishing: https://tinyurl.com/kwsdwpxm 

The Thrive Lab: https://tinyurl.com/yjdhpfmu 

Journal of Psychiatric Research: https://tinyurl.com/3mm4sma3 

WHO: https://tinyurl.com/3u6bau7r 

The British Psychological Society: https://tinyurl.com/yu6e9cpb 

ResearchGate: https://tinyurl.com/7kunesct 

ScienceDirect: https://tinyurl.com/5aukz8jr 

💡 At DIAMOND, we are committed to building not just skills, but also confidence and resilience, paving inclusive pathways into the green and digital future.

💎 Advancing ᴱGROW: DIAMOND Workshop Highlights 💡

On May 5, a DIAMOND workshop brought together researchers from the University of Vienna and Aarhus University to collaborate on the development of the ᴱGROW Index.

📌 ᴱGROW will serve as a measurement tool to classify and segment user groups based on their needs – guiding the content and format of future learning programs.

During the session, the group discussed:

🔹 The preliminary structure of the index

🔹 Potential drivers and outcomes for each indicator

🔹 Concepts for an engaging and intuitive graphical representation

This workshop marks a key step toward building a robust and user-friendly tool that supports inclusive learning pathways across Europe. 🇪🇺

Stay tuned as ᴱGROW evolves from concept to impact! 🚀

🔗 https://diamond-empower.eu/

WP5 of the DIAMOND Project brings MOVEᴱ – our modular learning environment – to life. By combining cloud-native technology, new micro-credentials, innovative learning formats, and explainable AI, WP5 empowers individuals with the skills they need to thrive in a fast-changing world.
WP5 works hand in hand with WP1 (ᴱGROW Index and profiles) and WP6 (innovation and engagement activities) to ensure that learning pathways are smarter, fairer, and truly future-ready.

Here is how WP5 is shaping the future of learning:
1️⃣ Establishment and Maintenance of the Cloud-Native Platform
We are building a secure, flexible digital backbone that connects learners, educators, and resources in one powerful environment.
📌 Leader: CETIC 🇧🇪
Partners: Aarhus University 🇩🇰 & Immersion 🇫🇷

2️⃣ Rethinking Existing and Co-Development of New Micro-Credentials
We are adapting and co-creating micro-credentials to target real-world transformative capabilities like green and digital skills.
📌 Leader: EMiT Feltrinelli 🇮🇹
Partners: Universidad de Burgos 🇪🇸, CETIC 🇧🇪, Proportional Message 🇵🇹, Deinde sp. z o. o. 🇵🇱, Fundacja Obiektywna 🇵🇱 & Youth Power Germany e.V. 🇩🇪

3️⃣  Rethinking Existing and Co-Development of New Learning Formats
We are designing flexible new learning formats – online, hybrid, and virtual – that adapt to different learner needs and experiences.
📌 Leader: Immersion 🇫🇷
Partners: CETIC 🇧🇪, Proportional Message 🇵🇹, EMiT Feltrinelli 🇮🇹, Deinde sp. z o. o. 🇵🇱, Fundacja Obiektywna 🇵🇱, Youth Power Germany e.V. 🇩🇪 & Fundación Miradas 🇪🇸

4️⃣ Development and Facilitation of the Underlying AI Model
We are developing a transparent AI recommender system that personalizes learning journeys, combining Graph Neural Networks and Federated Learning – all guided by the ᴱGROW Index.
📌 Leader: Aarhus University 🇩🇰
Partners: CETIC 🇧🇪, Immersion 🇫🇷

📈 With WP5, led by CETIC 🇧🇪, DIAMOND is making education more modular, intelligent, and personalized – putting real transformative learning within everyone’s reach.

🤝 Our Other Partners:
Freie Universität Berlin 🇩🇪, RWTH Aachen University 🇩🇪, University of Vienna 🇦🇹, European Centre For Economic Policy Analysis and Affairs (ECEPAA) 🇧🇪 & Evolutionary Archetypes Consulting SL 🇪🇸

🔗 Learn more: https://diamond-empower.eu/about/

The European Skills Agenda is the EU’s five-year plan to help people and businesses develop the skills needed for the future.

It promotes sustainable growth, social fairness, and resilience in response to challenges like the green and digital transitions and the COVID-19 crisis.

💡 For job seekers, this means better access to upskilling, more inclusive learning pathways, and stronger support for lifelong learning.

DIAMOND supports all 12 ESA actions, with a special focus on these 5:

Action 2: Strengthening Skills Intelligence

➡️ Efforts to improve the collection, analysis, and use of data on skills needed in the labor market.

✅ DIAMOND’s ᴱGROW Index maps individuals’ capabilities to guide smarter upskilling.

Action 6: Skills to support the twin transitions

➡️ Preparing people for jobs in the green and digital economy with green & digital skills.

✅ DIAMOND offers tailored micro-credentials in digital and sustainability skills.

Action 8: Skills for Life

➡️ Supporting lifelong learning and personal development.

✅ MOVEᴱ provides flexible formats that build emotional, cognitive, and practical skills.

Action 9: Individual Learning Accounts

➡️ Empowering individuals to build skills throughout their lives by providing them with financial support and access to training opportunities.

✅ MOVEᴱ acts as a personalized learning account, with tools to choose and track skills.

Action 10: Micro-Credentials

➡️ Use of short, flexible, and often online courses to provide learners with specific knowledge and skills

✅ DIAMOND co-develops micro-credentials with grassroots and VET partners.

🎯 In short: DIAMOND doesn’t just align with the European Skills Agenda — it operationalizes it. DIAMOND aims to transform policy into action by offering real tools for inclusive, intelligent, and future-ready upskilling.

📎 Source: EC – European Skills Agenda: https://tinyurl.com/45xjcusx  

🔗 Learn more https://diamond-empower.eu/about/ 

Upskilling and reskilling are vital to keeping workers competitive and inclusive in the digital and green transitions. The recent Policy Session on Employment & Social Rights at the Horizon Europe Cluster 2 Coordinators’ Day emphasized the need for future-ready skills in line with the European Pillar of Social Rights.

More about the Coordinator’s Day: https://tinyurl.com/49bu5awv

Why It Matters:

📉 1 in 4 young people lack basic skills in reading, maths, and science.
📊 80% of companies struggle to find skilled workers.
🔄 Workers must adapt to automation, digitalization, and sustainability.

Key EU Initiatives Driving Change:

📚 Basic Skills Support & STEM Education Plan
🛡️ Skills Guarantee for at-risk workers
🏭 EU Skills Academies for green and digital industries

DIAMOND promotes gender equality and inclusion by ensuring access to upskilling opportunities for women and underrepresented groups. Our research:
✅ Identifies barriers to equal access
✅ Supports targeted training programs
✅ Provides data-driven policy recommendations for an inclusive workforce

DIAMOND ensures diverse, inclusive access to lifelong learning and helps build a future-ready workforce across industries. 💜 Let’s ensure everyone has the skills to succeed!

🔗 Learn more https://diamond-empower.eu/about/

Not all learners are the same – so why should training be? Traditional, one-size-fits-all approaches to re-skilling and up-skilling often miss the mark.

The Critical Need for Personalized Learning:

Many employees aren’t reaching their full potential due to irrelevant training. One-size-fits-all methods fail because learners have diverse needs and goals (tinyurl.com/3d9h2s2e).
Personalized learning increases engagement: 75% vs. 30% in traditional settings (tinyurl.com/55wshktu).

Key re-/up-skilling challenges include:

• Lack of human-centric approach
• Insufficient focus on digital/green skills
• Lack of personalization and agility
• Inadequate inclusion
• Limited digitalization and AI use

DIAMOND’s MOVEᴱ platform offers AI-powered, personalized learning experiences to revolutionize re-skilling and up-skilling.

How DIAMOND’s Transforms Re-skilling & Up-skilling:

✅ AI-Powered Recommendations with MOVEᴱ: Personalized learning paths based on ᴱGROW profiles and labor market needs.
✅ ᴱGROW Index: Helps assess employability potential.
✅ Micro-Credentials: Stackable certifications for focused skill development.
✅ Modern Learning Formats: VR, virtual collaboration, and flexible online courses to increase engagement.
✅ Focus on Inclusion: Ensures equitable access, considering gender, socio-economic background, and digital skills gaps.

Why It Matters:

Personalized learning leads to better engagement, retention, and employability, helping individuals succeed in today’s fast-evolving job market.