Discover how Vocational Education and Training (VET) can equip workers with circular economy skills to meet new EU sustainability standards and industry demands.
This webinar is an official side event of the 2025 EU Green Week.
As Europe advances toward a circular economy under the European Green Deal, Vocational Education and Training (VET) must evolve to meet new industry demands. This webinar, co-organized by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and Cleantech Bulgaria, brings together policymakers, educators, and industry leaders to explore how VET programs and certifications can stay relevant in a rapidly changing regulatory and market landscape.
🤝Partners: BuildSkills Academy, Circular Berlin, kyklOIKOdromio, and UNITAR
📅 Date: 12 June 2025
⏰ Time: 14:00 – 15:30 CEST
📍 Location: Online (Zoom) – Register now!
Concept
The transition to a circular economy is a key priority for Europe towards a more competitive, sustainable and resilient future. Under the European Green Deal, the goal is to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, reshaping industries and demanding a workforce equipped with new skills.
Decisions made in Europe also have global implications, impacting global value chains. New EU directives, such as the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), reinforce the need for companies to integrate sustainability into their operations and supply chains. Businesses worldwide will need to comply with EU standards or seek EU-recognized certifications to maintain market access.
As industries shift towards circular models, Vocational Education and Training (VET) providers play a crucial role in ensuring that workers and businesses are prepared to adopt circular strategies, meet new environmental standards, and drive innovation. However, a significant skills gap persists, with 70% of companies struggling to find qualified workers for green and digital jobs. The challenge is ensuring that VET curricula and certifications remain relevant in a fast-changing regulatory and market landscape.
The construction sector is identified as a key industry to lead this transformation. Currently, it accounts for approximately 50% of the world’s natural resource consumption, 40% of unprocessed energy use, 35% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and 30% of global waste. Aligning VET programs with sustainability directives in this sector is critical to reducing environmental impact and ensuring a skilled workforce ready to meet new industry demands.
This webinar will explore how VET programs and certifications can stay relevant in this evolving landscape. The discussion will address:
- Lessons from the built environment as a case study for industry-VET collaboration.
- How to support greener and more circular global value chains.
- Best practices for integrating circular skills into training programs.
- The role of certifications in aligning workforce skills with industry and policy changes.
Objectives
- Discuss solutions for greener, more circular global value chains in light of EU legislation, including the European Green Deal and sustainability due diligence directives.
- Use the built environment as a case study to explore how industry-VET collaboration can ensure training programs remain up-to-date.
- Discuss how certifications can evolve to reflect market and policy changes, potentially influencing non-EU countries to adopt EU-recognized certifications.
Expected Outcomes
- Guidance for the construction sector: Best practices and policy recommendations for aligning with EU sustainability goals.
- Recommendations: Strategies for policymakers and VET institutions to future-proof training programs.
Who should join?
- EU Policymakers – Representatives from European institutions working on skills, sustainability, and industry policies.
- VET Providers & Educators – Institutions interested in integrating sustainability skills into curricula.
- Industry Representatives – Employers and sectoral organizations seeking to bridge the skills gap.
- Certification & Accreditation Bodies – Organizations responsible for validating new qualifications.
How to participate
We kindly ask that participants interested in joining this webinar to please register in advance on Zoom:
Agenda
14h – 14h15
Welcome & Keynote
- Professor Patrick Paul Walsh, Vice President of Education & Director of the SDG Academy, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN)
14h15 – 15h00
Panel Discussion: Keeping VET & Certifications Relevant in a Circular Economy
Speakers
- Senior Specialist, UNITAR
- Solutions for a more sustainable global value chains
- Maria Nakova, Project Leader, BuildSkills Academy; Head of digital innovation hub in construction sector; Manager of Strategic Development, Cleantech Bulgaria
- Shaping the Future of the Construction Sector: Bridging Skills Demand in green and circular transition through EDIHs and CoVEs
- Dina Padalkina, Founder and City Lead, Circular Berlin
- Identification of the future circular economy skills in construction and designing learning experiences for construction professionals.
- Anthi Charalambous, President of Management Board, kyklOIKOdromio (KYK)
- Challenges faced by VET providers in integrating circular skills into training programs
Moderator: Professor Enda Murphy, School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy, University College Dublin
15h00-15h20
Q&A
15h20 – 15h30
Closing Reflections: Next Steps for VET, Policy & Industry
- Moderator: Wrap-up of key takeaways.
- Call to action: How stakeholders can collaborate to strengthen circular economy skills and certifications.
Speakers:
Patrick Paul Walsh, Vice President of Education and Director, SDG Academy, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN)
Patrick Paul Walsh is the Vice President of Education and Director of the SDG Academy at the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN). He is on secondment from University College Dublin where he remains a Full Professor of International Development Studies, Director of the UCD M.Sc. in Sustainable Development in partnership with the SDG Academy and President of the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society (SSISI) of Ireland. He received a Ph.D. in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is a Government of Ireland Fellow, Marie Curie (Brussels) Fellow, IZA (Bonn) Fellow, RSA (London) Fellow, EIIR (Brussels) Fellow and REPOA (Tanzania) fellow. He has held academic positions in Trinity College Dublin, K.U. Leuven, Harvard University and Columbia University. He has also held positions in the United Nations, European Commission, IMF and World Bank.
Maria Nakova, Project Leader of BuildSkills Academy, Head of the European Digital Innovation Hub in the Construction Sector and Strategic Development Manager at Cleantech Bulgaria
Ms. Maria Nakova stands as a driving force in advancing vocational excellence, digital innovation, and sustainable transformation across Europe’s construction sector. With over 20 years of leadership at the crossroads of innovation, sustainability, and skills development, she has dedicated her career of project management in empowering professionals and businesses to meet the evolving demands of the green and digital economy. As Project Leader of BuildSkills Academy and Head of the European Digital Innovation Hub in the Construction Sector (EDIHCS), Maria spearheads initiatives that elevate workforce capabilities, ensuring that skills development is aligned with industry needs and future-proof strategies. Through her role of Manager strategic development at Cleantech Bulgaria, she actively supports SMEs and public sector in mastering their digital and green transitions, embedding excellence into vocational training and operational practices. A recognized expert in fostering circular economy solutions, Maria has led transformative capacity-building programs, driven innovation transfer, and shaped policy frameworks that accelerate sustainable growth. Her management of large-scale EU-funded projects has delivered actionable policy recommendations, positioning skills and vocational education as key enablers of the twin transition—digital and green—across diverse ecosystems.In her upcoming presentation, Maria will share pioneering insights from BuildSkills Academy, showcasing how Centres of Vocational Excellence (CoVEs) and European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) are redefining the construction sector. She will illustrate how strategic skill-building initiatives are not only bridging the gap between current workforce capabilities and emerging green transition goals but also setting new standards for vocational excellence across Europe.
Dina Padalkina, Founder and City Lead, Circular Berlin
Dina Padalkina is the Founder, Chairwoman, and Managing Director of Circular Berlin, a non-profit driving the transition to a circular economy through local collaboration, knowledge sharing and innovation. With a background in corporate strategy and sustainability, she has worked at the intersection of economic transformation and climate action since 2017. She founded Circular Berlin in 2018 to build a community of practice for the circular economy in the city of Berlin. As the built environment lead she focuses on the topic of Skills & Trends for Circular Construction, Circular Products & Business Models, and urban innovation.
Anthi Charalambous, President of Management Board kyklOIKOdromio (KYK)
Anthi Charalambous is a Chemical Engineer, a graduate of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), with postgraduate studies in Environmental Engineering, Business Administration (MBA), and Renewable Energy Sources. She began her career in 1997 working on environmental projects abroad and has since built extensive experience in the energy and environment sectors, holding senior positions in prominent organizations both in Cyprus and internationally. She has extensive experience as a Vocational Education and Training (VET) trainer, with a strong track record in designing and delivering training programmes and developing training materials. She has conducted numerous training sessions and workshops, particularly in the field of the circular economy, targeting professionals, SMEs, and public sector stakeholders. She is currently the Director of ideopsis Ltd, a consultancy specializing in energy and environmental issues, and the founder of the environmental NGO KyklOIKOdromio. She is actively engaged in standardization and sustainable development, participating in the National Standardization Committee for the Circular Economy as well as other international committees. In 2021, she was appointed to the European Industry Advisory Forum, and in 2022, she was elected President of the International Solar Energy Society Cyprus Section (2022–2024). She also serves as a member of the Energy Committee of the Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber (ETEK) and is a member of the Climate Change Committee of the International Alliance of Women (2023–2025).
Enda Murphy, Professor School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy, University College Dublin
Enda is Professor of Planning at the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy where he has been programme Director for the Masters in Regional and Urban Planning (MRUP) since 2019. He is also a UCD academic lead for the Sustainability and Climate Committee of Una Europa. Between 2015-2018, he held the position of Vice-Principal for Graduate Studies and Director of the Graduate School for the College of Social Sciences and Law (CoSSL). Beyond the University, he is an active Editorial Board Member of PLOS ONE, one of the world’s leading science journals; he is also a current member of the UN SDSN SDG Academy High Level Advisory Council (HLAC) whose mission focuses on the international development of Education for Sustainable Development. His research interests are broad in scope but centre on the areas of urban transportation and spatial planning, environmental noise, neoliberalism/neoliberalisation, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He has published widely in the international literature and is author/co-author of more than 100 academic journal papers, book chapters, conference papers and reports and is co-author of three books. Enda has held visiting professor positions at the University of Economics, Ho Chi Minh City, University of Hartford, USA, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, CRENoS, University of Cagliari, and at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm. He is a former Fulbright Scholar.
