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Empowering Educators: Improving Lifelong Learning in Europe through Transformative Pedagogies

This Erasmus+ co-funded initiative pioneers an innovative pedagogical framework based on Awareness-Based Design (ABD) and embodied learning methodologies. By placing embodiment and relational practices at the heart of education, the project addresses complex socio-educational challenges while promoting critical self-reflection, emotional intelligence and inclusive teaching strategies.

Integrating key principles of Transformative Learning (TL) - such as inner transformation, delayed meaning-making and co-creative literacies - this initiative reimagines adult education as a dynamic interplay of material, emotional and systemic awareness.

Background & Rationale
Developed in response to a growing demand from educators for transformative approaches, this project builds on previous projects and over five years of applied research in TL by Ricardo Dutra Goncalvez and Arawana Hayashi. Its transnational extension is made possible through collaboration with the host organisation, Association Méditation dans l'Enseignement (AMLE, France). By drawing on AMLE's expertise and Erasmus+ co-funding, the initiative promotes transnational pedagogical exchange.

Methodology
The project synthesises Social Presenting Theatre (SPT) techniques - such as embodied 'stuck' exercises and relational mapping - with design-led tools and collaborative co-creation, drawing on the research of Ricardo Dutra Goncalves. These methods make intangible phenomena (e.g. implicit bias, power asymmetries) tangible, enabling trainers to critically engage with systemic barriers in adult learning environments.

Through job shadowing, training placements and co-designed courses with AMLE, participants will learn an innovative framework and prototype interventions deconstructing entrenched narratives through embodied participatory inquiry.

Objectives
  • To enhance the capacity of trainers to implement Transformative Learning (TL).
Through experiential workshops on Pedagogies of Togetherness and ABD, trainers will develop the skills needed to facilitate learner-centred, context-sensitive programmes.

  • Refining and validating the Transformative Learning Framework.
By integrating best practices from across Europe, the project will integrate a TL model that will be iteratively refined through participant feedback and academic collaboration.

  • Promoting intersectional participation in Erasmus+ adult learning.
The project will embed intersectionality in programme design, stakeholder training and policy discussions to ensure equitable access and representation.

Expected results
  • 75% of trainers engaged in TL methodologies.
  • Validated TL toolkits disseminated across the EU.
  • 30% increase in participation of marginalised communities in adult learning.
  • Collaborative research with academic institutions, producing peer-reviewed case studies and open access pedagogical resources.

The project equips educators to cultivate learning ecosystems that foster systemic belonging and collective agency, prioritising awareness-raising over static knowledge transfer - a core tenet of its foundational research. This directly supports the European Education Area's goals of inclusivity and innovation in adult learning.







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