ELIA at UPV – Centre of Vocational Excellence for the Olive Sector

01 — About the project

A new chapter for Mediterranean olive groves.

ELIA is building a transnational Centre of Vocational Excellence that changes how the olive sector learns, innovates and grows.

Olive farming is central to the rural economies of the Mediterranean, yet the sector faces climate change, water scarcity, an ageing workforce, low digital uptake and a widening skills gap. Vocational education and training (VET) is often too theoretical, poorly connected to industry and lacking flexible, recognised learning pathways.

ELIA co-creates modular curricula and EU-aligned micro-credentials, trains learners and educators in sustainable and digital olive production, and pilots mobility and work-based learning with SMEs, cooperatives and policy makers.

21beneficiaries, plus 3 associated partners
7countries across the Mediterranean
48months, 2026–2030
21multiplier events in partner countries

02 — Objectives

Five objectives, one CoVE.

Each objective has a measurable target to be reached by the end of the project.

— 01

A CoVE ecosystem

A cross-border innovation ecosystem linking VET providers, olive industry stakeholders, research bodies and policy actors.

500 stakeholders engaged across 7 countries

— 02

Curriculum innovation

A modular, flexible VET curriculum integrating green, digital and entrepreneurial skills for the olive sector.

10 modular units co-developed and piloted

— 03

Micro-credentials

Stackable, EU-aligned micro-credentials tailored to olive production.

4 developed, 2 nationally recognised

— 04

Mobility and work-based learning

National and cross-border mobility and apprenticeship schemes linked to curriculum delivery.

140 learners and trainers

— 05

Policy reform and recognition

Policy outputs and dialogue with national and EU authorities to support recognition and sustainability of results.

Policy briefs and recommendations

03 — Work packages

From evidence to impact.

The work plan moves from research to design, piloting and long-term uptake.

Work packages, lead partners and timing
WP	Title and scope	Lead (co-lead)	Months
WP1	Project management and coordinationCoordination, financial management, reporting, quality assurance and risk management.	EPICHAL	M1–M48
WP2	Sector research and innovationSkills-gap analysis, stakeholder mapping and best practices in precision olive farming and VET.	IPP	M1–M12
WP3	The ELIA curriculumModular, competence-based curriculum on sustainability, digitalisation and entrepreneurship, plus a textbook and trainer materials.	Ankara University (BOSEV)	M12–M48
WP4	Common framework for micro-credentialsStackable micro-credentials aligned with EQF, GreenComp and DigComp, with validation and assessment tools.	UNIBAS	M12–M36
WP5	Mobility and industry engagementNational apprenticeships, transnational mobilities and work-based learning with olive producers and cooperatives.	RTD TALOS	M20–M45
WP6	Policy reform, recognition and governancePolicy briefs and recommendations, recognition of new learning pathways and a long-term governance model.	CCI Girona (CCIAA Lecce)	M13–M48
WP7	Dissemination, communication and exploitationVisual identity, website and online cooperation platform, campaigns, 21 multiplier events and exploitation plan.	Konistra (UNIZAG)	M1–M48

04 — Roadmap

From 2026 to 2030.

May 2026 · M1
Project launch
Start of coordination (WP1), sector research (WP2) and communication (WP7).
September 2026 · M5
Skills gap analysis and visual identity
Transnational skills gap report (D2.1); ELIA identity and dissemination strategy adopted.
December 2026 · M8
Website and cooperation platform
Launch of the ELIA website and Online Transnational Cooperation Platform (D7.2).
April 2027 · M12
Curriculum and micro-credentials
Design of the ELIA curriculum (WP3) and the common micro-credentials framework (WP4) begins.
May 2027 · M13
Policy and governance
Work on policy reform, recognition and governance starts (WP6).
December 2027 · M20
Mobility and work-based learning
National apprenticeships and transnational mobilities with olive producers (WP5).
April 2029 · M36
Micro-credentials framework
Completion of the micro-credentials framework and its pilots.
April 2030 · M48
Project closure
Final results, exploitation plan and a sustained CoVE network.

05 — Consortium

Twenty-one partners. One Mediterranean.

Universities, VET centres, chambers, cooperatives and public authorities working in a quadruple-helix model.

Greece

Chamber of Chalkidiki (EPICHAL) Coordinator · WP1 lead
Hellenic Agricultural Organisation – DIMITRA (ELGO-DIMITRA)
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH)
OECON Group Quality assurance

Cyprus

Limassol Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI)
RTD TALOS WP5 lead
Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth Associated partner

Spain

Cambra de Comerç de Girona (CCI Girona) WP6 lead
Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) Website host
Campoenguera Coop. V.

Türkiye

Ankara University (AU) WP3 lead
Isparta Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ITSO)
Greater Middle East Health and Education Foundation (BOSEV) WP3 co-lead
Ankara Union of Chambers of Tradesmen and Craftsmen (ANKESOB) Associated partner
Mamak District Directorate of National Education Associated partner

Italy

University of Basilicata (UNIBAS) WP4 lead
Terra di Resilienza – Monte Frumentario
Comune di Auletta
Camera di Commercio di Lecce (CCIAA Lecce) WP6 co-lead

Portugal

Croatia

University of Zagreb – Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture (UNIZAG FSB) WP7 co-lead
Konistra WP7 lead

The role of UPV. The Universitat Politècnica de València takes part in all work packages, contributing in particular to the design of the ELIA curriculum and the micro-credentials framework, and links the project with the Valencian olive sector together with Campoenguera Coop. V. UPV also hosts this website.

06 — UPV team

The people behind ELIA in Valencia.

A multidisciplinary team in business organisation, innovation, data analysis and food technology.

Meet the full team

07 — News & events

The latest from the consortium.

Consortium-wide news published on the official project website, plus activities of the UPV team in the Valencian region.

Consortium news

Read the latest consortium news at elia-project.eu.

All news on elia-project.eu

From Valencia

May 2026

ELIA is launched

The project started on 1 May 2026 with UPV as one of its 21 beneficiaries.

Coming soon

Multiplier event in Valencia

Details of the UPV multiplier event will be announced in due time.

08 — Resources & results

Open knowledge.

Public deliverables are released in accessible formats under CC BY-SA 4.0 and published on the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform.

Upcoming public deliverables
No.	Title	Lead	Due	Languages	Status
D2.1	Skills Gap Analysis Report	IPP	Sep 2026	EN + partner languages	Forthcoming
D2.2	Best Practices Book	IPP	Nov 2026	EN + partner languages	Forthcoming
D7.2	ELIA Website and Online Transnational Cooperation Platform	Konistra	Dec 2026	EN + partner languages	Forthcoming
D2.3	Policy Alignment Matrix	CCI Girona	Feb 2027	EN	Forthcoming

09 — Contact

Grow the future with us.

ELIA team at UPV

Universitat Politècnica de València
Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 València, Spain
angel.peiro@upv.es

We do not use contact forms. If you write to us, your message is handled as described in our privacy policy.

Project coordination

Chamber of Chalkidiki (EPICHAL), Greece
euprograms@epichal.gr

Main project website: elia-project.eu

ELIA (project website) – Excellence in the olive sector.

A new chapter for Mediterranean olive groves.

Five objectives, one CoVE.

A CoVE ecosystem

Curriculum innovation

Micro-credentials

Mobility and work-based learning

Policy reform and recognition

From evidence to impact.

From 2026 to 2030.

Project launch

Skills gap analysis and visual identity

Website and cooperation platform

Curriculum and micro-credentials

Policy and governance

Mobility and work-based learning

Micro-credentials framework

Project closure

Twenty-one partners. One Mediterranean.

Greece

Cyprus

Spain

Türkiye

Italy

Portugal

Croatia

The people behind ELIA in Valencia.

The latest from the consortium.

Consortium news

From Valencia

ELIA is launched

Multiplier event in Valencia

Open knowledge.

Grow the future with us.

ELIA team at UPV

Project coordination