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CirCLER: Identification and ranking of the key skills and competencies required for managers of companies involved in the furniture production chain in their transition to a circular economy

On June 26, 2024, an online meeting of the consortium for the project "CirCLER - Circular Economy Transition Manager: guiding companies of the furniture value chain to deploy their transition strategy for a more circular economy " funded by the European Union, took place. Organizers of the meeting were AMBIT: Interior furnishings and hotel contract cluster and innovation hub and Ukrainian National Forestry University.

On June 20, 2024, the CirCLER project partners convened online for their second meeting. The session began with an informal exchange among partners, setting a collaborative tone for discussions on recent developments and future steps in the project.

In order to reduce the employment mismatch and support the sustainability of labor markets undergoing significant demographic transformations and energy and digital transitions, the European policymakers have developed systems to certify specific skills through short training courses. These so-called microcredentials enable workers to acquire specific skills and abilities in an accelerated timeframe, in order to better respond to the particular demands of firms and the labor market as a whole.

In May, partners implemented the CirCLER questionnaire to identify and validate the competencies required for a highly demanded new role in the furniture sector: the Circular Economy Transition Manager (CETM). The survey engaged over 150 experts from across the EU, including circular economy specialists, furniture sector employers and employees, and VET/Higher Education professionals.