Developing high-quality training requires more than technical expertise—it requires listening to the people who will use, deliver, and benefit from it. With this objective in mind, IHF, partner of the NICHE2 – Nurturing Intangible Cultural Heritage for Entrepreneurship project, organised a series of four co-creation sessions involving stakeholders from across Europe to contribute to the development of the project's training curriculum.
Between September and December 2025, IHF engaged 29 participants through a combination of online one-to-one meetings and an international workshop. The co-creation process brought together representatives from diverse backgrounds, including a music conservatory, an organisation promoting the integration of STEM and creativity, VET trainers, education professionals from several European countries, and mentors supporting cultural entrepreneurship and disadvantaged groups. This combination of expertise ensured that the future training materials would reflect not only the needs of cultural practitioners but also the perspectives of those who will deliver the training in formal and non-formal learning environments.
Throughout the sessions, participants explored the overall structure of the NICHE2 curriculum through the GreenComp Matrix developed by partners, discussing the proposed learning outcomes and competence framework. Particular attention was dedicated to the module developed by IHF, focusing on monitoring and reporting sustainability performance within Intangible Cultural Heritage organisations.
 

Rather than reviewing a finished product, participants contributed ideas and recommendations that helped shape the module from the early stages of its development. Discussions highlighted the need for training that explains sustainability monitoring in a clear and structured way, enabling cultural organisations to move from good intentions to measurable results. Participants stressed that monitoring and reporting should be presented as practical management tools capable of supporting continuous improvement, informed decision-making, and transparent communication with communities, partners, and funders.
The international composition of the participants also generated valuable reflections on the transferability of the training across different countries and educational contexts. Trainers emphasised the importance of creating learning materials that are easy to integrate into VET programmes, adaptable to different audiences, and supported by recognised European and international frameworks such as GreenComp, the Sustainable Development Goals, and UNESCO approaches.
The feedback gathered during the co-creation activities directly informed the design of the IHF training module, resulting in learning resources that combine strategic guidance with practical examples, accessible language, and flexible teaching approaches. By embedding the perspectives of educators, mentors, and cultural professionals throughout the development process, NICHE2 is building training materials that are not only relevant today but also capable of supporting future learning and capacity building across Europe.
The co-creation activities organised by IHF demonstrate the value of collaborative curriculum development, where dialogue between practitioners, trainers, and experts leads to educational resources that are both practical and sustainable. For more information on the results of the co-creation process, visit the NICHE 2 project’s official website at: https://www.nicheproject.eu/ or contact our team via email at nicheproject2@gmail.com.