Agriculture

PebblePad, the Learning Journey Platform, is excited to announce its selection by Georgian College, Ontario, Canada to support their institutional-wide student e-portfolio initiative. Georgian's decision highlights its commitment to advancing educational excellence through innovative technology-enhanced learning, focusing on enhancing students' employability skills.

As part of its digital innovation strategy, Georgian identified a need to help lifelong learners in an increasingly competitive world. To address this need, Georgian chose PebblePad, a software platform that helps institutions support and guide students from pre-arrival to alumni, to empower learners across the college to develop and showcase their skills, capability and growth.

This collaboration extends college-wide, aligning with Georgian's strategic vision of fostering digital innovation and aiding students in developing their professional identities. The comprehensive suite of learning journey tools offered by PebblePad will directly contribute to enhancing students' employability and appeal to both graduate schools and employers.

"PebblePad was selected for its capability to empower learners through innovative technology-enhanced learning, authentic assessments, and continuous self-reflection," said John Barbato, Executive Director of Innovation and Digital Experience at Georgian. "Our collaboration with PebblePad is instrumental in our mission to equip students with the skills and experiences necessary to succeed in the workforce."

The collaboration will support Georgian to leverage key elements of PebblePad's tools, including:

• Utilization of PebblePad workbooks and reflective templates to scaffold student learning
• Integration of PebblePocket, the mobile app, enabling students to capture experiences through images, videos and reflective templates
• Creation of a comprehensive evidence collection showcasing students' learning and growth throughout their academic journey.

Welcoming Georgian to the PebblePad community, COO, Kenny Nicholl said: "We are delighted to welcome Georgian College onboard and commend their commitment to student-centred learning that puts all learners in the driving seat of their educational journey."

The Accountability Framework initiative (AFi) has launched a new an online training resource to aid companies in achieving their ethical supply chain goals. The AFi e-learning platform offers a range of educational modules that provide an accessible and engaging way for company staff to grow their knowledge on achieving supply chains free from deforestation, conversion, and human rights violations. Drawing from the Accountability Framework’s good practices, the platform is designed for companies that produce or source agricultural or forestry commodities. It is also a valuable resource for those working to support companies on their sustainability journeys.

“The platform’s modules centre around the Accountability Framework’s seven action areas that are essential to achieving ethical supply chains,” said AFi Senior Operations Manager Adrienne Brown. “The modules teach corporate professionals how to set goals, take action, and report progress towards safeguarding forests, other natural ecosystems, and human rights.” 

Learners can select training modules based on their learning needs and interests with respect to achieving ethical supply chains in line with the Accountability Framework. Once registered, learners can create a profile and curate a personalised library of modules. They can also opt in to receive notifications about new modules on related topics and other updates from the AFi. 

Enabled Intelligence (EI), a global leader in mission-critical AI data solutions for the US Defense and Intelligence Community announced a groundbreaking new partnership with Melwood, a leading employer, advocate, and service provider for people with disabilities to recruit and train 100 AI data annotators.

The innovative collaboration will bridge massive gaps in the IT and technical workforce by creating a steady pipeline of qualified talent, while also acting as a national model for hiring and training a neurodiverse workforce.

Under the partnership, Enabled Intelligence and Melwood have created a Geospatial Data Labeling bootcamp that will train individuals to meet the data labeling needs of the defense and intelligence community. Graduates of the program will garner critical technical skills needed in the growing AI industry including potential future roles in data annotation and AI labeling at Enabled Intelligence—positions that will ultimately support the needs of the federal government and, by extension, Americans at large.      

This new bootcamp will add to Melwood's growing cadre of job training programs focused on the high tech industry, such as the existing AbilIT program, which combines technical training with soft skills to connect neurodivergent adults to careers in tech and tech-adjacent fields.

"EI's diverse and highly skilled workforce has been key to our success. Our ability to quickly and precisely annotate classified data sets has made us a proven partner for both the intelligence community and commercial customers," said Peter Kant, CEO of Enabled Intelligence.      

Since its founding in 2020, Enabled Intelligence has trained scores of US veterans and people with disabilities to become expert AI data analysts, capable of precisely annotating raw, unstructured data types of interest to the US Defense and Intelligence Community, such as SAR, satellite, hyperspectral, video, and foreign language audio. 

"Melwood is thrilled to partner with EI to solve some of our region's most complex and pressing challenges while creating pathways to economic independence for a traditionally underemployed population. By removing existing barriers, this workforce development partnership will ensure qualified and trained workers are ready for jobs in the growing IT and tech sectors," said Larysa Kautz, President & CEO of Melwood. 

The announcement, which received praise from Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA), comes as the federal government and the contractors it relies on face significant challenges in finding enough IT professionals to fill growing demand in the AI and cybersecurity sectors. Last year, Rep. Beyer, Sen. Tim Kaine, and Sen. Mark Warner secured $307,000 in federal funding to support Melwood's Neurodivergent Workforce Initiative.     

Research shows that neurodivergent populations, a category that includes conditions such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, Dyslexia, ADHD and others, bring untapped skillsets that are often well-suited for careers in IT, tech, and cybersecurity. The unemployment rate of workers with disabilities is twice as high as the unemployment rate for non-disabled workers. Ensuring that training, hiring and retention practices are universally designed to be accessible to all qualified workers is critical to closing existing gaps in the labor market.

MIT xPRO announces the launch of its nine-month Global Manufacturing Leadership Program. Designed to equip experienced executives with the essential skills to drive manufacturing excellence, this program combines a cutting-edge curriculum with practical insights from seasoned industry leaders. Launched in collaboration with Emeritus, a global leader in making high-quality education accessible and affordable, enrollment is now open for a June 2024 start.

According to Deloitte 86% of executives believe that smart factory solutions will be the primary drivers of competitiveness in the next five years. This program will enable participants to make better decisions and strategically leverage technology to drive growth and create value across the manufacturing ecosystem. Participants will join a diverse cohort, network with global peers, and engage in a capstone project to apply their skills. Upon completion of the program, participants receive a verified certificate of completion from MIT xPRO.

"MIT xPRO's Global Manufacturing Leadership Program is tailored to manufacturing leaders and is designed to empower them in making strategic decisions by effectively leveraging technology. Our goal is to help senior leaders navigate the changing manufacturing landscape efficiently and guide them towards operational excellence, yet never losing focus on their most important role – leading people," John Carrier Faculty Director Senior Lecturer of System Dynamics at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

The program is ideal for senior executives involved in supply chain strategy and operations who are looking to deepen their skills and step up to leadership positions in their organizations.

"The program equips participants with the essential technological tools and strategic leadership skills to transition to a C-suite role," said Mike Malefakis, president of university partnerships at Emeritus. "Our collaboration with MIT xPRO underscores our commitment to helping business leaders successfully navigate the future of manufacturing."