The REPOWER REGIONS project officially launched with a dynamic kick-off meeting in Naas, County Kildare, from 19–21 March 2025. Hosted by Kildare County Council, the event brought together partners from 13 organisations across 11 European countries, united by the mission to accelerate the adoption of decarbonised heating and cooling solutions through skills development.
The meeting marked the start of an ambitious collaboration to bridge the skills gap in clean energy technologies. With the EU’s REPowerEU Plan as its foundation, the project focuses on creating practical training tools, resources, and regional alliances to support a just and fast energy transition.
A Collaborative Start: Day 1 Highlights
The first full day of the meeting (20 March) began at the MERITS Building in Naas with a warm welcome from Jacqui McNabb, Head of Enterprise & Economic Development, followed by an update on key project milestones from Andrew Gaynor, REPOWER REGIONS Project Administrator.
A focused knowledge-sharing session opened the day, with updates on:
WP1 – Project Management, led by Kildare County Council
WP2 – Landscape Analysis, led by Riga Technical University (RTU)
WP2 is currently the project’s main area of activity. This work package aims to map the skills landscape across partner regions by identifying labour market needs, policy trends, and gaps in training provision for sustainable heating and cooling systems. During the brainstorming session, partners discussed their regional approaches, data sources, and strategies to engage local stakeholders. RTU emphasised the importance of tailoring the analysis to each region’s specific context to ensure practical outcomes.
The afternoon moved into WP3 (Curricula & Training Resources), led by European E-Learning Institute (EUEI), University of Belgrade, and Fagskolen Rogaland. These partners introduced plans for developing flexible, sector-specific curricula and online resources designed for educators in HE, VET, and C-VET settings.
This was followed by a session on WP7 – Quality Assurance & Learning Recognition, introduced by Steinbeis School of Sustainable Innovation and Transformation, outlining initial thoughts on microcredential frameworks and how the learning outcomes will align with EU standards (EQF, ESCO).
Site Visits: Bridging Theory and Practice
Later that afternoon, participants visited the Boortmalt production facility, a key local employer with a growing interest in energy-efficient systems. The group also explored additional local initiatives aligned with the project’s themes of regional collaboration and sustainability. These visits provided insight into the types of industry partners that could be engaged in regional alliances and skills mapping under WP2 and WP4.
Day 2: Strategic Collaboration
On 21 March, discussions turned toward longer-term impact and sustainability. Highlights included:
WP4 – Regional Alliances (led by Kildare County Council and PNEC, Poland), which will foster collaboration between education providers, local authorities, and industry
WP6 – Exploitation & Sustainability (led by Fundación Laboral de la Construcción, Spain), which will ensure the outputs of the project continue to have value beyond the funding period
WP5 – Communication and Dissemination, led by Momentum (Ireland), who shared their dissemination strategy and encouraged partners to contribute actively to blog posts, newsletters, and stakeholder engagement
The meeting concluded with updates on WP8 – Quality Assurance, managed by Czech Technical University, and an open discussion on synergies between all work packages.
Meet the Partners
The REPOWER REGIONS project is powered by a diverse and skilled consortium:
Kildare County Council (Ireland) – Project Coordinator
Riga Technical University (Latvia) – WP2 Lead
European E-Learning Institute (Denmark) – WP3 Co-Lead
University of Belgrade (Serbia) – WP3 Co-Lead
Fagskolen Rogaland (Norway) – WP3 Co-Lead
Steinbeis School of Sustainable Innovation and Transformation (Germany) – WP7 Lead
Fundación Laboral de la Construcción (Spain) – WP6 Lead
Momentum (Ireland) – WP5 Lead
PNEC (Poland) – WP4 Co-Lead
Jaske & Wolf Verfahrenstechnik (Germany) – Industrial Innovation Partner
Czech Technical University (Czechia) – WP8 Lead
REHVA (Belgium) – Sectoral Outreach Partner
RTU (Latvia) – WP2 Lead and Technical Research Partner
Looking Ahead
With WP2 now in full development, the focus will remain on conducting comprehensive regional analyses, setting the foundation for the project’s training resources, curricula, and online course development.
This kick-off meeting set a strong tone for collaboration, insight sharing, and practical planning. As the project progresses, REPOWER REGIONS will continue to champion the skills and strategies needed to decarbonise heating and cooling across Europe.