ACE-EX offre il proprio contributo alla trasformazione dell’agricoltura europea attraverso l’integrazione dei principi dell’Economia Circolare per promuovere un modello di produzione agricola sostenibile e rispettoso dell’ambiente. Il progetto si posiziona in perfetta sintonia con le direttive del Green Deal europeo, ed ha l’obiettivo di minimizzare l’impatto ambientale, formare esperti altamente qualificati, impegnandosi nella lotta contro il cambiamento climatico e favorendo una crescita economica rispettosa dell’ambiente. ACE-EX pone l’accento sull’importanza di aggiornare costantemente le competenze nel settore agricolo e industriale per tenere il passo con le evoluzioni tecnologiche e le sfide imposte dal cambiamento climatico.
Background del Progetto
ACE-EX si colloca in un contesto in cui l’innovazione agricola assume un ruolo cruciale per rispondere alle sfide imposte dal cambiamento climatico e dalla necessità di proteggere la biodiversità. Attualmente, il modello produttivo agricolo prevalente, che non sfrutta completamente i sottoprodotti, necessita di un cambiamento paradigmatico verso un sistema più sostenibile. Le proiezioni sottolineano l’urgenza di agire: entro il 2050, l’impatto di un mancato cambiamento delle metodologie produttive in uso potrebbe tradursi anche in un considerevole numero di vite umane perse ogni anno.
Di fronte al rapido susseguirsi dei cambiamenti tecnologici e climatici, è fondamentale un aggiornamento costante delle competenze degli operatori del settore. ACE-EX evidenzia il valore dell’Economia Circolare, vista non solo come una pratica da adottare in agricoltura e nell’industria, ma anche come un catalizzatore per la formazione professionale, in linea con gli obiettivi del Piano d’Azione per l’Economia Circolare e con il Green Deal europeo, per promuovere una crescita economica rispettosa e sostenibile.
ACE-EX riconosce e affronta le problematiche di un settore composto prevalentemente da piccole imprese, che evidenziano la necessità di curricula specializzati per facilitare l’adozione di pratiche di Economia Circolare.
La nostra prospettiva si concentra sull’importanza di progettare curricula professionali innovativi e mirati, capaci di promuovere l’adozione di pratiche circolari e sostenibili nelle attività quotidiane delle imprese.
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Ace-ex Project
There is a diagram that manages to capture the entire logic of the circular economy in a single image. It is called the “butterfly diagram” and it was developed by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Two wings, two cycles. 🦋
The left wing is the biological cycle: it concerns materials of organic origin that, after use, can return to nature. Composting, anaerobic digestion, biochemical extraction — processes through which agricultural residues return nutrients to the soil or are transformed into energy and high-value products. 🌱
The right wing is the technical cycle: it concerns materials and products that can be maintained, repaired, reused, refurbished or recycled. Farm machinery, irrigation systems, containers — everything that can have a second, third or fourth life. ⚙️
The key rule? Tighter loops are always preferable. Repairing is better than recycling. Reusing is better than repairing. Maintaining is better than reusing. Each additional step consumes energy and resources.
For those working in the wine, olive oil and cereal supply chains, the biological cycle is particularly relevant: by-products from harvesting, pressing and milling are raw materials for compost, biogas, biofertilisers and nutraceutical products. ♻️
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🇪🇺 Co-funded by the European Union
Ace-ex Project
For decades, agriculture followed a linear pattern: extract resources, produce, discard waste. A model that worked as long as resources seemed infinite and the climate stable. Neither condition holds any longer. 🌍
The circular economy proposes something different: a system where materials and resources remain in use for as long as possible, product value is maximised and waste becomes an input for new processes.
This is not an abstract concept. In wine production 🍷, grape residues can become organic fertilisers or biofuels. In the olive oil sector 🫒, pomace is converted into energy biomass. In cereal farming 🌾, harvest by-products feed biogas plants.
According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the circular economy rests on three principles: eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials, regenerate nature. Three directions that find immediate, practical application in agriculture.
The Circular Economy Principles course, developed within ACE-EX by the Chamber of Commerce of Valencia and Fundación Patrimonio Natural de Castilla y León, starts precisely here. 📚
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🇪🇺 Co-funded by the European Union
Ace-ex Project
Before designing a single training module, the ACE-EX consortium asked one question: what competences does an expert in circular economy in agriculture actually need? 🧩
The answer could not come from one country or one perspective alone. That is why 19 partners — universities, research centres, chambers of commerce, businesses and training institutions — worked together to build a Qualification Matrix grounded in the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). 📐
The document is structured around 9 competence units: from circular economy principles to energy management, digital skills to stakeholder engagement, innovation to benchmarking. Each unit sets out specific, measurable learning outcomes. 📝
The matrix also serves as a tool for recognising prior learning: professionals who have already gained relevant experience in the field can use it for self-assessment and formal validation of their knowledge. 🔑
The document is available in 10 languages and can be consulted on the project platform.
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#ACEEX #QualificationMatrix #EQF #CircularEconomy #ErasmusPlus #Agriculture #Skills #EUproject #Recognition
🇪🇺 Co-funded by the European Union
Ace-ex Project
Transforming a family-run agricultural cooperative from a linear model to a circular one. Managing a tight budget, making strategic decisions, tackling real environmental challenges. All within a role-playing game. 🎮
It is called “The Circular City in Agriculture” and it is the Serious Game developed as part of the ACE-EX training programme. Not a simple quiz, but a simulation where participants — assigned roles such as the farm owner, the consultant or the village mayor — work to convert an 8-hectare vineyard or olive farm using practical circular solutions. 🌿
Problem cards to draw: excessive waste, water pollution, limited financial resources.
Solution cards to evaluate: selective waste collection, solar panels, reintroducing livestock for soil health. Play money to simulate investments and costs. 💰
Over 2–3 hours, players work through diagnosis, solution design, implementation and evaluation. The final debriefing connects what happened at the table with the everyday challenges facing agricultural businesses. 🎯
Sometimes, to shift your perspective, you need to step into someone else’s shoes.
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#ACEEX #SeriousGame #CircularEconomy #GameBasedLearning #ErasmusPlus #Agriculture #Innovation #EUproject