We were very pleased to be able to offer a PASCAL Workshop at the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (Chai Wan) (a member of Vocational Training Council (VTC)) to some 40 staff members on Promoting Community Engagement for Vocational and Professional Education and Training (VPET) on 13 March 2018.

I’d like to inform you that I’ve been appointed as EPALE Ambassador for Sicily. Briefly, there were 252 candidates and 52 ambassadors chosen covering all the Italian regions (except Valle D’Aosta region). On 8th May there will be a ceremony in Florence to officially nominate the new ambassadors in occasion of the Europe festival to celebrate 30 years for Erasmus+.

The deadline for registering for the 12th PASCAL Conference is fast approaching. Please register by Monday, September 21st to avoid disappointment!

The Conference schedule is packed with events and presentations; we have more than 100 presenters and 70 papers for you to choose from, plus features such as:

• the Film Première of Think Globally/Eat Locally;
• the release of the  Big Tent Declaration VI
• the Book Launch ­of Strengthening community-university research partnerships: Global perspectives; and
• a selection of fascinating keynotes.

So please don't wait, go to the ATTEND page of Conference website and register now!

We have also been informed by the management of the Baie Verde hotel that a limited number of rooms are still available at the special Conference rate.

We all look forward to seeing you in beautiful Catania, Sicily on 7th October!

Professor Roberta Piazza
University of Catania

On July 23 a meeting took place in the Palace of Tourism in Acireale, a beautiful city close to Catania, where the next PASCAL conference will be held in October. The meeting was arranged  to promote the city of Acireale joining PASCAL's Learning Cities Networks (LCN) programme.

For colleagues in Italy in particular here is the link to the University of Catania's Bulletin announcing the 12th PASCAL International Conference from 7-9 October, 2015.