Posts in category: News

On 28–29 May, the SALTO Inclusion and Diversity in Education and Training (SALTO ID ET) participated in the conference “Inclusion and Diversity: Empowering the Academic Community”, organised by the University of Zagreb.

The conference brought together higher education professionals, policymakers, student representatives, and experts to discuss key topics related to inclusion and diversity in higher education, including accessibility, mental health, support systems for students, intersectionality, and inclusive learning environments.

As part of the session “Opening the Doors to the World: Inclusive Mobility”, SALTO ID ET representative Petra Habulin Musladin presented approaches and support mechanisms that help make international mobility opportunities more inclusive for students facing fewer opportunities. Together with colleagues from the University of Zagreb and Agency for mobility and EU Programmes, she highlighted the importance of removing barriers to participation and ensuring that mobility programmes are accessible to all learners.

The event also provided an opportunity to exchange experiences and good practices with university staff, students, and experts from Croatia and the wider region, further strengthening cooperation and dialogue on creating more inclusive and supportive higher education environments.

The conference reaffirmed the importance of a systematic approach to inclusion and diversity and the role of collaboration among higher education institutions, support services, and international stakeholders in building accessible and equitable educational opportunities for all.

The DIEM (Diversity and Inclusion in Erasmus+ Implementation) project is focused on making student mobility more inclusive, especially for students with fewer opportunities. Running from March 2024 to December 2026, it aims to reduce barriers and improve access to international experiences by providing tools for higher education institutions, students and national agencies to tackle I&D in the Erasmus programme comprehensively.

The project is coordinated by the Erasmus Student Network (ESN), in partnership with the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA), the European University Foundation, and universities including Humboldt University of Berlin, University of Latvia, University of Pavia, and Jagiellonian University.

DIEM focuses on identifying participation barriers, strengthening institutional support, and developing inclusive mobility frameworks at national levels. The project has delivered research reports, practical guidelines, digital tools (such as a virtual assistant), and an Inclusive Mobility Framework, alongside events like workshops and trainings, with the final conference being held in Autumn 2026.

So far, the partnership has conducted student focus groups, institutional surveys, partner meetings, and an online conference. Several resources—such as reports on inclusive access and national approaches—are already available on the project website.

From March 25 to March 27 and directly following the 10th Meeting of Inclusion and Diversity Officers, SALTO ID ET organised the 2nd Training of ID Officers in Zadar, Croatia. Preceding the event, a preparatory online session was held in February 2026 to help the training participants get ready for the in-person activities. In Zadar, the event gathered around 20 ID Officers as multipliers of the horizontal priority of inclusion and diversity in the common desire to improve ID efforts in E+ through the daily work of their respective National Agencies.

Building on the needs expressed by ID Officers at last year’s first edition of the Training and under the guidance of experienced workshop facilitators and mentors Sunčana Kusturin and Gisele Evrard, the participants focused their work at the Training on strengthening their own capacities to hold structured workshops on ID for other members of the National Agencies’ staff, as well as for (potential) applicants and beneficiaries of Erasmus+.

The training tackled methods for ID Officers to engage other NA staff and E+ beneficiaries and to facilitate discussions on delicate topics like the personal barriers of people with fewer opportunities or their needs for financial and other support. The ID Officers learned how to tailor the rules of conduct and written materials for workshops to their participants’ specific contexts and abilities, as well as how to navigate group dynamics in sensitive contexts.

Using insights from the training, in the upcoming months the participants will hold their first workshops on ID for 8-15 members of their NA staff, with a view towards expanding these formats to beneficiaries in the future. To follow up on the training, a final online consultation session with the training participants will be organised in June 2026, where they will share their experiences and capture lessons learned from the implementation of the workshops.

The Meeting of Inclusion & Diversity (I&D) Officers organised by the SALTO Resource Centre for ID in Education and Training took place from 23 to 25 March 2026 in Zadar, Croatia, bringing together around 30 Officers dedicated to strengthening ID within the Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programmes. The meeting provided an important space for cooperation and forward-looking discussions, with a strong focus on shaping the new edition of the Erasmus+ ID Strategy for the next Programme period (2028 – 2034).

The meeting, which was facilitated by experienced inclusion experts Sunčana Kusturin and Gisele Evrard, opened with a presentation by the SALTO ID ET team, who shared the results of their work over the past year, ongoing activities, as well as SALTO’s plans for 2026, going into 2027. This perspective was closely linked to preparations for the next Erasmus+ Programme period, inviting participants to reflect on their long-term priorities and the opportunities emerging from the cooperation amongst themselves and with SALTO.

Throughout the meeting, the central emphasis remained on the revision of the ID Strategy, a process already started by SALTO ID ET and SALTO ID YOU in dialogue with the European Commission. After initial informative input on the current state of affairs by Ms. Dora Lukač (Acting Head of SALTO ID ET), the meeting programme entailed thematic and sectoral working sessions, allowing participants to actively contribute their insights about open issues and suggestions for new modalities in addressing exclusion in European education and training. The discussions were structured around specific questions in the treatment of inclusion mechanisms, as well as around overarching topics concerning outreach and support to persons with fewer opportunities or ways of monitoring and evaluating the work done in this regard by NAs and SALTOs.

A session on the second day of the meeting led by Fruzsina Szmolka (SALTO Resource Centre for Training and Cooperation Activities (TCA) in Education and Training) was dedicated to TCAs and LTAs as valuable channels for dialogue with beneficiary organizations which can be used to mainstream the horizontal priority of inclusion and diversity into E+ in an even more meaningful way. In addition to this, Tajana Krstonošić (SALTO ID ET) presented about the development of one of SALTO’s new tools, E+ Inclusion Support Measures at a Glance, which gave ID Officers the chance to discuss the existing inclusion measures and possible changes to be made to them.

An added value to the meeting was the contribution by Ms. Anastazija Stupar (European Commission), who held a presentation about the most recent considerations and developments in the evaluation of the ongoing E+ programme period and the design of the upcoming one. Additionally, Ms. Stupar took part in the discussions between ID Officers to take stock of their constructive input which will feed into the strategic shaping of the next Erasmus+ programme period. This connection between NA practitioners and policy development highlighted the importance of the meeting as a platform for meaningful contribution.

Beyond the formal programme, the participants also had the opportunity to explore the city of Zadar and experience inclusive events taking place locally, offering an additional perspective on inclusion in practice. Overall, the meeting underlined the shared commitment of all the stakeholders involved to building a more inclusive future of European education and training.

In late 2025, SALTO ID ET launched Inclusion Insights, a new article series on selected aspects of Inclusion and Diversity by ID experts, which deals various ID-related topics such as Universal Design for Learning, peer support in education and training and others.

In this month’s edition of SALTO News, you will also find:

• A call to Inclusive Youth Participation Webinars by SALTO ID Youth and SALTO Participation and Information.
• An invitation to the Spring season 2026 of the ID Talks series on Intergenerational Solidarity, co-organised by SALTO ID Youth with the Polish National Agency for E+.
• A publication on Promoting Well-Being in Digital Education.
• Many other videos, event invitations and webinars.

SALTO News is the official newsletter for the SALTO community—a network of 11 resource centres dedicated to promoting and enhancing the Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programmes. You can browse previous editions of the newsletter here!

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