The workshop, entitled “From dialogue to action – civic engagement in Erasmus+ projects”, was organised by InnHub Łódź, the local contact point of the Polish Erasmus+ National Agency, and hosted at TUL’s International Cooperation Centre. The event brought together approximately 20 participants representing higher education institutions, non-governmental organisations and other entities from the education sector, creating a space for cross-sectoral dialogue and exchange.
Alongside interactive workshops dedicated to the Erasmus+ horizontal priority Participation in democratic life, common values and civic engagement, the programme included a curated best practices session. Two TUL projects - #edu4SDGs and ACE - were highlighted as exemplary initiatives demonstrating how Erasmus+ projects can effectively translate dialogue into meaningful educational and societal action.
During the best practices segment, Justyna Kopańska and Małgorzata Jarczyńska from the International Cooperation Centre jointly presented the #edu4SDGs and ACE projects, showing how the two initiatives address civic engagement from complementary perspectives - educational practice and institutional capacity building.
The presentation demonstrated how #edu4SDGs strengthens students’ and staff’s civic competences through:
• learning based on shared European values,
• participatory and experience-based educational formats,
• cooperation with external stakeholders, and
• a strong focus on real social impact.
At the same time, the ACE project was presented as a framework supporting higher education institutions in building systemic and long-term community engagement, through:
• dialogue-based cooperation with internal and external stakeholders,
• participatory workshops and consultation processes,
• shared tools and platforms supporting engagement, and
• strengthening institutional capacity for sustainable civic impact.
Participation in the InnHub Łódź workshop provided an important opportunity to present TUL’s Erasmus+ initiatives to local stakeholders, exchange experiences across sectors, and reflect on how higher education institutions can support active citizenship and civic engagement at both institutional and community levels.
For more information about our projects, please visit their official websites: edu4SDGs and ACE
