62 GreenHive: A European Ecosystem for Sustainability Education

Dr Marie Taylor introduced GreenHive, a European project aimed at embedding sustainability within the vocational education and training (VET) sector while building cross-sector communities of practice. Drawing on the EU GreenComp sustainability competency framework, GreenHive seeks to increase teacher confidence, develop open educational resources, and connect schools, individuals, and organisations through shared learning hubs.

The project produced national and comparative reports analysing the status of sustainability education across partner countries, a best-practice database containing over 50 examples, and a methodological framework for establishing local sustainability hubs. These hubs enable teachers, students, and community actors to collaborate, share tools, and develop local solutions while feeding insights into a European-wide digital platform.

GreenHive also developed MOOCs, micro-videos, workshop guides, toolkits, and training schemes that promote active learning, systems thinking, and learner agency. TUS piloted multiple communities of practice, demonstrating how the model fosters local action while enabling international knowledge exchange. Dr Taylor highlighted that by grounding its resources in GreenComp and focusing on coordinated collaboration, GreenHive equips educators and learners with the competencies required for the green transition across Europe.

About the author

name: Dr Marie Taylor

institution: Technological University of the Shannon

Dr Marie Taylor is a member of the Sustainable Development Research Institute (SDRI) at the Technological University of the Shannon.