GREEN GECKO: a new project to train 21st-century engineers in Thailand and the Philippines
GREEN GECKO – Training the Engineers of the 21st Century in Thailand and the Philippines is a new project approved under the Erasmus+ KA2 Capacity Building programme, co-funded by the European Union. The project, with a duration of three years, is coordinated by Université Montpellier 2, with the participation of 12 international partners: Burapha University; Kasetsart University; Silpakorn University; Ubon Ratchathani University; University of the Philippines System; Technological Institute of the Philippines Inc; Ateneo de Manila University Inc; Xavier University; Vilniaus Universitetas; Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia; and the Politecnico di Torino.
Within the Department of Management and Production Engineering, the project is led by Prof. Cristina Marullo as Scientific Coordinator, with the contribution of Prof. Alessandra Colombelli and Dr Chiara Ravetti.
GREEN GECKO aims to strengthen engineering education in sustainability across eight universities in South-East Asia, particularly in Thailand and the Philippines. In this context, the project places strong emphasis on the development of innovative teaching methods, through the design of new educational approaches and learning materials capable of addressing the needs of industry and society, while fostering stronger integration between universities, industry, and local stakeholders.
Thailand and the Philippines are among the countries most affected by climate change and require engineers increasingly equipped to reduce carbon emissions. However, current educational programmes do not always adequately integrate sustainability-related topics, partly due to limited collaboration between universities and industry, resulting in a gap between education and labour market needs. In this context, GREEN GECKO promotes a transformation of educational models, making learning more applied, interdisciplinary and aligned with emerging skills demands.
The project therefore aims to integrate sustainability into engineering curricula through the concept of sustainable engineering, while developing and testing new teaching models based on innovative and collaborative approaches. These models are intended to strengthen the link between universities and industry and to support the development of green skills among both students and academic staff.
The project involves four universities in the Philippines, four in Thailand, four European partners and six associated partners. To ensure curricula that are increasingly aligned with industrial needs, mobility and exchange activities are planned among the partners.
In particular, two study visits will involve 16 researchers from Thailand and the Philippines at the Politecnico di Torino and the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED).
The first study visit will take place at the Politecnico di Torino from 27 to 30 April 2026, focusing on “Educational frameworks related to green skills”, with a strong emphasis on innovative teaching practices. The programme will include presentations and discussion sessions aimed at showcasing the University’s main initiatives in sustainability and sustainable development.
More specifically, the study visit will feature round tables with academic staff from different departments of the Politecnico di Torino, aimed at discussing innovative teaching methods that can be developed and integrated into technical university curricula. Two keynote institutional contributions will be delivered by Prof. Patrizia Lombardi, Vice-Rector for Sustainable Campus and Living Lab, and Prof. Alberto Giuseppe Sapora, Vice-Rector for International Affairs.
The programme will also include a collaborative workshop entitled “Brainstorming on the development of Green Gecko innovative modules”, as well as laboratory visits and a campus tour.
This visit will represent an important opportunity for exchange and for launching international collaboration, with particular attention to the development of innovative teaching methods and to strengthening the link with industry.
GREEN GECKO is aligned with the priorities of the Erasmus+ programme, contributing to the modernisation of higher education and its increased relevance to the labour market. The project also supports sustainable growth and youth employment by developing innovative educational pathways focused on environmental impact reduction and global climate challenges.
In this perspective, updates and results from the project will be progressively shared, with particular attention to the tangible outcomes emerging from research and international cooperation activities.
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