From 15 to 19 June 2026, the second international meeting of the European project took place in Patras, Greece ECODE : Ethical Common Open Digital in Education.
21 people from the five project partners came together to share their progress on the project’s activities and work collectively on their outputs.
One of the project’s principles is to work with a number of European partners to develop training modules, comprising educational activities designed to help participants understand the various issues surrounding our use of digital technology.
Since the kick-off meeting in Paris, discussions have taken place between partners regarding the content of the modules via video conferences and exchanges on Mattermost (an open-source digital workspace).
Sub-groups comprising members from at least two partner organisations were formed and tasked with working on each of the identified module topics.
In Patras, therefore, each sub-group was tasked with organising one or more activities for the other participants and gathering feedback to inform the process of developing the training programme.
This collaborative effort provided an overview of the training programme, enabled us to establish links between the various modules, and allowed us to pool ideas and methodologies for designing the training programme.
We also met with the digital and information department at Patras City Council for a discussion focusing on access to digital services, inclusion, and the challenges facing the commons and open-source software from a local authority perspective, particularly with regard to data protection.
A specific workshop was devoted to advocacy work. Participants were put in the position of having to present their case to family members or partners. We came away with advice on approach and arguments that will inform the advocacy roadmap on free and ethical digital technology aimed at youth workers. This session was open to youth workers who are partners of Dafni Kek.
A moment was proposed for taking concrete action, by installing open-source applications, some of which are alternatives to the most widely used proprietary applications, based on the needs of those present (such as for mapping, listening to podcasts, reading PDFs, managing one’s data and digital privacy, etc.)
Finally, this trip to Greece enabled us to gain an insight into the working environment of our partner, Dafni Kek, and the realities of life in Greece, through the team’s explanations of historical and political contexts, by meeting their local partners, for example, at a community event featuring an open-air screening of short films, and also by exploring the city to discover the history and current challenges facing Patras.
This meeting in Greece was an important milestone for us as we moved on to the next phase of the project, in particular the organisation of pilot training sessions in our local contexts, based on the activities developed at international level.
Find out more about this project on the ECODE page and please do not hesitate to contact us for further information.