The socio-ecological transformation will not be possible without appropriately qualified specialists. This means that it is the responsibility of vocational education and training to promote sustainability-related professional skills. But what does this mean in concrete terms? One starting point for the development of training concepts that promote sustainability is to consider entire value chains, such as ‘from grain to bread’.

An interactive tool to visualise vocational education and training along the supply and value chain has been developed in the international department of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) under the auspices of GOVET. The motivation and aim of the development was to sensitise national and international VET stakeholders to the training scenarios in the occupational profiles along this supply chain, often in a global context. When working with the tool, all participants - from trainees to training planners - receive valuable impulses and starting points for their professional practice as well as for the conception and integration of content.

Taking on the perspective of the trainee along a supply chain is an exciting experience, especially for many VET professionals. At the stations along the ‘VET Chain’, they encounter the framework conditions and challenges of our time through the lens of sustainability – a view that is a key competence when learning future-oriented professions. The work with the advisory tool not only leads to a sustainable perspective for the participants, but also to further reflection processes that have the potential to initiate structural changes for sustainable fair development in production and work processes.

This goal, amongst others, has been enshrined in the global context with the UN SDGs. GOVET and BIBB are raising awareness of the issue and are committed to strengthening these competences in VET cooperation at national and international level with the VET Chain guidance tool.
At a workshop on VET Chain, interested parties can experience and learn how to work with the guidance tool themselves.