Innovative VET Approaches

A guideline has been developed for formulating questions to research learning needs in an engaging manner, utilizing the concept of the threefold human being as a tool. This approach fosters a dialogue between the potential student and trainer, as well as with their surroundings, rather than merely requesting information

Download Human-inclusive agriculture

The publication by Albert de Vries appears in the context of the GreenSouth project and touches on a central point of our shared concern: how can research emerge that not only involves people, but originates from them – from their practices, their responsibilities, their desire for development?

In the GreenSouth project, we are currently preparing an educational programme for biodynamic and organic farming in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The aim is to create training and further education opportunities that are locally relevant and empower people in their professional lives. The concrete development of appropriate training modules is still pending. But one thing is already clear: technical knowledge alone is not enough. What is needed is a methodology that helps us to truly understand the learning and development needs of the farmers, trainers and trainees involved – from their own perspective, in their concrete practice, in their cultural and individual reality.

The methodology presented by Albert de Vries in this paper is a key resource for us in this regard. His idea of human-inclusive research focuses on people’s individual acting impulse: not as a mere starting point, but as a dynamic force from which learning processes emerge – both individually and collectively. Perceiving while empathising and aligning while empathising are not just methodological terms. They describe an attitude with which people relate to their practice, their environment and each other – an attitude that is educational in the best sense of the word.

Download Connecying while imagining

The study opens to deeper insights and understanding of some of the often invisible essences of the practice of biodynamic agriculture. This makes the study an important contribution to initiatives like Greensouth, that I am part of, in which we are seeking to develop vocational training springing from the needs and realities of Southern Africa. We already know that to simply teach the technical skills of biodynamic farming is not enough. What are the invisible capacities that need to be transmitted to enable alive biodynamic farming to take root?

Capacity Building and Cross-Border Collaboration

More information coming soon.