In a groundbreaking conference entitled “Rebels Unread,” the Hellenic American Union explored the digital transformation in the Greek employment sector and how education can lead to growth.
Upskilling and re-skilling workers and education’s role in this process has been a focused initiative across the entire European Union to tackle the bloc’s increasing employment issues as industries evolve and traditional manufacturing that was once the bedrock of the European middle class shifts to Asia, leaving millions of workers seeking alternative employment.
Welcoming participants was Leonidas Koskos, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic American Union and an individual who has been involved with higher education in Greece for decades.
Koskos spoke about the importance of peer to peer training, as well as on the job training, which he said was critical for not only re-skilling workers, but upskilling them too.
Kostis Hatzidakis, Greece’s Minister for Labor and Social Affairs, also participated in the virtual conference, reminding guests that progress has been made in Greece, which ranks 32 out of 189 nations in the Human Development Index.
Hatzidakis warned, however, that Greece must not miss the opportunity of benefiting from the $400 million funds from the European Reconstruction plan that the country will receive from Brussels.
Spiros Protopsaltis, the Obama Administration’s former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Higher Education and Student Financial Aid, also took part in the conference, as did Efthimios Vidalis, Chairman of the Greek Federation of Enterprises and Angelos Syrigos, Deputy Secretary for Education.
Sofia Protopapa, director of the career office of Hellenic American University in Athens, stressed that social and leadership skills were necessary for professional development. She also had the opportunity to share her own institution’s experiences and focus on how they prepare students for the real world.
The entire conference is here:
