Regional Awareness Day 2 and Steering Committee Meeting within the Erasmus+ DeSIRe Project

On 21–22 July 2026, Batumi Shota Rustaveli State University (Georgia) hosted the “Regional Awareness Day 2 (RAD2)” and the 6th Steering Committee Meeting of the Erasmus+ DeSIRe project (Development of Soft Skills at Higher Education Institutions of Armenia and Georgia in Compliance with the 21st Century Labour Market Requirements).

Goris State University was represented by Rector Tigran Vandunts, Vice-Rector for Academic and Scientific Affairs Zareh Grigoryan, Head of the Department of External Relations, Cooperation and Media Naira Safaryan, and Head of the Department of Quality Assurance and Assessment Sona Alaverdyan.

The event highlighted the project’s major achievements, the outcomes of the first and second piloting phases, the implementation of the developed educational modules and MOOCs, as well as the Business Plans and Roadmaps of the Soft Skills Labs established within the project.

The participants also discussed the project’s dissemination and exploitation activities, the implementation of MOOC-based micro-credentials and certification, the sustainability and institutionalisation of the project results, and the preparations for the project’s final conference to be held in Yerevan in October 2026.

During the 6th Steering Committee Meeting, representatives of the partner universities reviewed the priorities for the final stage of the project and agreed on the next steps aimed at ensuring the sustainability of the Soft Skills Labs, completing the integration of the developed modules and MOOCs into university curricula, strengthening dissemination activities, and further expanding inter-university cooperation beyond the project’s lifetime.

The event provided an excellent platform for sharing experience among Armenian, Georgian and European partner institutions, reviewing the project’s achievements, and discussing future opportunities for international cooperation.