Partners
> Federazione Trentina della Cooperazione (FTC) - Italia 
The Trentino Federation of Cooperation is a non-governmental private organization founded in 1985. It is based in Trento (North of Italy). The Federation groups together almost all the co-operative enterprises in the region of Trentino (approx. 600). It provides support services to co-operatives throughout the region, including educational services, and acts as political representative giving support to the movement as a whole. The main co-operative sectors are credit, retail, agriculture, work, services, housing and social.
Co-operative experience is an important part of the economic and social life in Trentino, interlocked with its culture, tradition and history. The province of Trento, with a total population of about 490,000 inhabitants counts 210,000 cooperative members. The great impact of the co-operative movement on the local territory has meant that co-operative education has taken on a role of significant importance developing a co-operative culture (i.e. a culture of solidarity, collaboration, respect for diversity, democratic participation and dissemination of co-operative values). The "Trentino model of cooperative enterprises" disseminated in conferences, with the contribution of experts, has become a model for the rest of Italy.
The Federation has 160 staff, and has extensive experience of European project work managed by the European Projects Office. It develops co-operative education and training activities mainly with the contribution of its Co-operative Education Office as well as with the collaboration of its Formazione Lavoro Co-operative (Work & Training Co-operative). The co-operative education office of the Federation carries out educational activities in elementary and secondary schools, while the Formazione Lavoro provides members technical training for co-operatives throughout the region of Trentino.
website: www.cooperazionetrentina.it
> Lanki, Instituto de estudios cooperativos (LANKI) - Spain 
Lanki is the University of Mondragón's Co-operative Studies Institute. Its mission is to research the co-operative movement in a multidisciplinary way, and on that basis, provide a service for the co-operative experience. It consists of a team of ten researchers, most of them lecturers working on a part-time basis, and a network of collaborators among the student body, as well as in the co-operatives and other universities. The University of Mondragón has close to four thousand students. The Lanki Institute's raison d'être is to research and reflect on the co-operative movement and self-management, focusing mainly on social, educational and legal aspects. It is research carried out from inside the Mondragón Co-operative Experience, favouring the understanding of the experience itself, in the light of the most extensive and up-to-date multidisciplinary knowledge possible. It is a work of systematisation and reflection that has to combine close contact with those involved in the co-operative and self-management experience at all levels with a knowledge of social sciences and a rigorous reading of the changing global reality in which the co-operative movement operates, giving priority to social and educational aspects. The prioritisation of Lanki's lines of research is based on the perception of the importance of activating the educational side of the Mondragón Co-operative Experience and bringing the practical reflection on its social dimensions up to date. Added to this there is also research into inter co-operation for development and the legal side of the co-operative movement.
LANKI will be an active partner that will share their experience in cooperation with others. They will be involved in all the work packages: developing the skill balance, identifying the non formal and informal learning opportunities for co-operators and giving the contents for the construction of the didactic materials with a specific reference to the labour cooperatives that are the most important sector in their context. The specific characteristics of the labour cooperatives will be the context for the testing. LIAK will give hospitality to the other partners in testing the SKILLS system.
LIAK will also have the important role to lead the work packages dedicated to the dissemination and the exploitation of the SKILLS results (DISS, EXP), in line with their experience in the organisation of international visits and dissemination of their model of cooperative.
website: www.lanki.coop
> Coompanion Kooperativ Utveckling Skaraborg (KUS) - Sweden 
The Co-operative Development Agency (Coompanion Kooperativ Utveckling Skaraborg) is an economic association with the purpose to educate, inform and give advice about cooperative issues. It works close to organizations in the third sector and supports network building within the social economy and between the different sectors of the society. It gives advice and helps to start cooperative enterprises. Coompanion is also a member of the ICA - International cooperative alliance, SERN -Sweden Emilia Romagna network, Reves - Network for European cities and regions.
KUS has a recognised experience in vocational guidance and training in the specific field of cooperation.
KUS will be involved in all the work packages of the project with an active role in developing the skill balance, identifying the non formal and informal learning opportunities for co-operators. They will actively participate, as expert of vocational guidance and training, in the construction of a system of learning that will represent an opportunity of training for the co-operators and a model for the validation of non formal and informal learning. They will also be active part of the testing activities, giving hospitality to one of the testing sessions foreseen. They will be leader of the process of construction of the skill balance for the co-operators (PREP1), sharing with the consortium their know-how and good practices.
website: www.coompanion.se
> Swedish TelePedagogic Knowledge Center (STPKC) - Sweden
STPKC has extensive experiences of pedagogic development, unique competences in methodology development and production of practical solutions matching vocational and professional development needs. Our active coordination of virtual communities like Leonardo Virtual Community, as well as similar services for Grundtvig and Minerva programmes, gives us unique capabilities to handle dissemination, valorisation, providing an overview of ongoing and already developed solutions and services, as well as developing and coordinating user-centred online services, collaborative work online, and learning services that retain the dignity of the learner.
STPKC has extensive experiences of pedagogic development, unique competences in methodology development and production of practical solutions matching vocational and professional development needs.
STPKC will be involved in all the work packages of the project with an active role in developing the skill balance, identifying the non formal and informal learning opportunities for co-operators. They will actively participate, as expert of vocational guidance and training, in the construction of a system of learning that will represent an opportunity of training for the co-operators and a model for the validation of non formal and informal learning. They will also be active part of the testing activities.
They will be also leader of the Evaluation work package (QPLN) as expert in training and European projects.
website: www.pedagogic.com
> Anadolu Bil Meslek Yuksek Okulu (ABPSHE) - Turkey 
The institution was established in 2003 with its mission to provide vocational training and education service in respond to the need of qualified intermediary staff /employees who will be able to create differences in the work environment and raise the capacity of productivity with the capacity of information and computer based technology, for private and state institutions mainly in economic, industrial, social and other service sectors. In addition to this, sub-mission of the organization is to promote employability. In the body of institution there is a Continuous Learning Centre, an English Preparatory School as well as many other courses such as Marketing, Tourism and Hospitality, Journalism, International Logistic, Human Resources, Business Administration, etc.
ABPSHE will offer the possibility to work with a very specific reality with strong culture and cooperative tradition. They will be involved in all the work packages: developing the skill balance, identifying the non formal and informal learning opportunities for co-operators and giving the contents for the construction of the didactic materials the with a specific reference to their cooperatives. They will participate as testers in two of the three testing sessions foreseen in Italy and Spain, where they will be able to enrich knowledge in other Mediterranean countries.
Their experience in vocational training will be of reference in the leadership of the organisations of these events (PREP5) and the identification of the non formal and informal learning (PREP2).
website: www.anadolubil.edu.tr
> Kemi-Tornion ammattikorkeakoulu (KTP) - Finland 
Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences was established in 1992. It has a staff of 200 persons serving around 2400 students divided over three units: Business and Culture, Social Studies and Health Care and Technology.
Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences has been in the forefront of eLearning developments in Finland since 1999. It was one of the first schools in Finland to establish an eLearning Centre to support its integrated eLearning effort with pedagogical and technical support for teaching staff as well as selection and administration of virtual learning environments. The university has also been an active participant in diverse regional and national co-operation networks for the development of eLearning and creation of electronic learning content, such as the Finnish Virtual Polytechnic. Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences oversaw a growth of the eLearning effort in the region from the pilot stage in 2000 to a top 2 position nationally by 2005.
KTP has a recognised experience in the design and development of ICT-based didactic materials and training programmes. Their role in the project will be of active participants in all work packages for their experience in training validation and design. So, they will work on the development of the skill balance, the identification of the non formal and informal learning opportunities for co-operators. They will actively participate, as expert of vocational guidance and training, in the construction of a system of learning that will represent an opportunity of training for the co-operators and a model for the validation of non formal and informal learning. Moreover, they will be leader in the preparation and design of multimedia and interactive didactic materials (PREP4). They will also participate as observers in the testing activities.
KTP will have a specific role in the project in the development of the ICT-based didactic materials. They will participate in all the other work packages that are fundamental for the design and test of these materials.
website: www.tokem.fi
Previous page: The learners
Next page: Activities