PRESS RELEASE
Burgos hosts the Kick-off Meeting of Social Innovation & Democratic Education (EU-SIDE) Project
15 April 2025
On 9 and 10 April, the University of Burgos, as the coordinator within the RUN-EU alliance, became the meeting point for the partners in the Teacher Academies project, 80% co-financed by the European Commission, and entitled “EUropean Social Innovation & Democratic Education (EU-SIDE)”. This project was one of the 14 proposals selected by the European Commission.
The Erasmus+ Teacher Academies aims to improve teacher training, preparing educators to face current challenges inside and outside the classroom. This project reinforces initiatives related to sustainability, multilingualism, interculturality, digitalisation or lifelong learning, among other fundamental aspects for the teachers of the 21st century, objectives that are achieved through internationalization, mobility and collaboration at the European level. These values align with those of RUN-EU, which seeks to foster sustainable progress by promoting innovation and service to society.In addition, this project is a great catalyst for improving the development and competitiveness of the regions of the consortium, which will benefit from social innovation, entrepreneurship and the development of new talents, that will build an economy and a society resilient to future threats. The University of Burgos will position itself as a reference in internationalisation and democratic education, improving its reputation and visibility and attracting students, researchers and new funding opportunities.
This event, in which 26 researchers took part, brought together partners from the 8 partners that form the consortium and who have come from Finland (HAMK), the Netherlands (NHL Stenden), Belgium (Howest), Ireland (TUS), Portugal (IPLeiria and IPCA) and Spain (UBU and CFIE Burgos). It marked the official start of a project that will be developed over the next three years and aims to promote social innovation and democratic education among teachers at different levels of education, from primary to secondary education and vocational training.
During the Kick-off Meeting members of the different partners met in person, shared their expectations and established the collaboration that will take place throughout the duration of the project. This first meeting was an opportunity to present the project’s approach and methodology and settle the specific goals for each phase of the project.
In a world marked by challenges such as sustainability, digitalisation and social inclusion, social innovation is key to transforming education and improving society. The project will develop a Teacher Academy to train teachers to innovate in their daily practices, helping in the development of more free, democratic and inclusive societies.
At the Kick-off Meeting in Burgos, the partners were able to demonstrate their commitment to these values by exchanging ideas, proposals and practices that can be implemented in their respective educational contexts. In addition, participants had the opportunity to tour the facilities of the University of Burgos, which plays a key role in coordinating the project, as well as the Centro de Formación del Profesorado e Innovación Educativa (CFIE), a benchmark for lifelong teacher education.
On the 10th, the group went to Estación de la Ciencia y la Tecnología for a workshop in which social innovation and its possibilities in education were discussed, training partners in the development of innovative skills and democratic values that they will be able to develop in their respective contexts.
In a more relaxed note, the meeting served to promote cultural exchange between the partners. The members of the project have been able to enjoy the rich cultural offer of Burgos, visiting the Museum of Human Evolution and strolling through some of the city’s —candidate for European Capital of Culture 2030—most iconic landmarks.
