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Network for excellence
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Vocational Excellence (ENE)
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Vocational excellence

The ETF Network for Excellence (ENE): Driving Vocational Excellence Worldwide 

Issue: October 2026

Introduction  

About ENE 

The European Training Foundation (ETF) plays an important role in facilitating partnerships, peer learning, and the exchange of good practices in vocational excellence.

To harness knowledge and expertise from across the world, the ETF Network for Excellence (ENE) brings together centres of vocational excellence and VET providers in a global network. ENE promotes quality, innovation, and international collaboration in vocational education and training (VET), creating opportunities for members to learn from one another, share practices, and strengthen vocational excellence worldwide.  

Discover the opportunities ENE Membership offers: 

🌍 Connect with VET institutions across regions, see Networking 
📚 Access curated tools, good practices, and success stories from across the world, see Resources  
💬 Share your insights, ask questions, and learn from others in the network, see Conversations
🌍 Join inspiring webinars, workshops, and peer exchanges, see the calendar of Events

The ETF Network for Excellence (ENE) events: in the spotlight  

Upcoming:  

Past:  

Stay tuned and explore all upcoming events in the ENE Calendar - discover opportunities that might interest you. 

ENE Member Spotlight  

This section is dedicated to showcasing the outstanding work of ENE members, highlighting excellence in vocational education and training.   

Ilker Akman, Tophane Center of Vocational Excellence, Türkiye 

lker is a vocational education and training professional at the Tophane Center of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) in Bursa, Türkiye. His work focuses on vocational excellence, school-industry collaboration, innovation, and future skills.  

İlker participated in the CoVE Forum in Graz and brought the key messages and insights from the event back to ENE network members. His presentation, during the webinar: “From Graz to the World: Inspiring the Future of Vocational Excellence,” focuses on the development of dual vocational education and training in Türkiye, highlighting ways to better respond to regional skills needs. It explores strategies for strengthening partnerships between VET providers and industry, improving work-based learning, promoting flexible and modular learning pathways, and building the capacity of educators and master trainers. Ilker also highlights the importance of regional skills intelligence, collaborative governance, and stronger links between vocational education and labour markets. 

Find out more about Tophane Center of Vocational Excellence in ENE Atlas. 

If you have a good practice you would like to showcase, we look forward to featuring your contributions and celebrating your impact in vocational education and training! Contact us: etf.network.for.excellence@etf.europa.eu  

ENE Inspiring Practice Spotlight  

One of ENE’s key strengths is knowledge exchange. Discover and share best practices, case studies, tools, and practical experiences from across regions, inspiring new ideas and supporting the development of innovative solutions in VET.  

Turning practical skills into career opportunities: Career Guidance Culinary Hub 

The Chernihiv Center for Vocational and Technical Education prepares skilled professionals for the hospitality, food production, and retail sectors through hands-on training and close collaboration with local employers.  

Its distinctive Career Guidance Culinary Hub gives young people the opportunity to explore professions through practical activities and direct contact with businesses. The Career Guidance Culinary Hub introduces an innovative approach to career orientation: moving beyond simply providing information about professions to letting participants experience them firsthand. Through hands-on activities, interaction with professional equipment, engagement with teachers, learners and employers, and exposure to real working environments, young people can discover their interests and better understand future career paths. 

With a strong focus on lifelong learning, digitalisation, green practices, and regional partnerships, the Centre is working towards a more innovative and responsive vocational education system.  

Discover Chernihiv Center's inspiring initiatives and good practices on the ENE Atlas.  

Peer-to-Peer Learning in Action: ENE at the Forum on Vocational Excellence 2026

From 7-9 September 2026, the fifth Forum on Vocational Excellence brought together the wider CoVEs community and Europe’s skills ecosystem in Graz, Austria. Under the theme “Dual Education and Training for Competitive Regions”, the Forum provided a space for peer learning, exchange of good practices and collaboration among VET, higher education, industry and policy actors. 

The European Training Foundation (ETF) participated alongside selected members of the ETF Network for Excellence (ENE). ENE members contributed to discussions and workshops, sharing experiences and practices on internationalisation and vocational excellence. In particular, ENE members took part in the workshop “From Local Excellence to Global Impact: The International Dimension of CoVEs”, highlighting practical approaches and tools for strengthening international collaboration and peer learning. 

One example was Anabel Menica, Director of Strategy and Innovation at Politeknika Txorierri, who highlighted the value of the International Self-Assessment Tool for Centres of Vocational Excellence (ISATCOVE) in supporting peer learning and collaboration. 

“On our side, ISATCOVE has been really useful. It has helped us identify our strengths, things we can share with others, points that we would like to improve on, and where we can learn from our counterparts elsewhere. This helps identify partners for peer learning and collaboration.” 

Her experience illustrates how ENE members can use shared tools and peer exchange to identify strengths, areas for improvement and opportunities to connect with potential partners. 

Read more: Building bridges: CoVEs from Europe and Asia come together for Forum on Vocational Excellence.

Just one week after the Forum, ENE members had the opportunity to hear reflections from organisers and participants, explore key takeaways, and discuss how the lessons from Graz could inspire and strengthen Centres of Vocational Excellence across ETF partner countries, see “ENE webinar, From Graz to the World - Inspiring the Future of Vocational Excellence”. 

ENE ATLAS: the new interactive map of the ETF Network for Excellence (ENE) 

🌍 The ENE Atlas is your gateway to the growing ENE community. With 142 ENE members already profiled, the Atlas offers a living map of organisations, expertise and connections across the network. 

👋 Welcome all ENE members!

🇻🇳 For the first time, four Coves from Vietnam became members in October, expanding the geographical coverage of ETF ENE Network! 🎉

🌍 Other new recent members are from Armenia, Egypt, Georgia and Ukraine.

🔎 Explore the ENE Atlas to discover fellow members, learn about their areas of expertise, showcase your own work, and identify potential partners for peer learning, knowledge exchange and collaboration. 🤝

ENE Atlas is designed to help you: 

🔎 Find peers and partners across the ENE network; 

📣 Showcase your work and expertise;   

💡 Discover new opportunities for cooperation and innovation  

🌟 Strengthen connections within the vocational excellence ecosystem.

Whether you are looking to connect with like-minded professionals, share your work, or discover inspiring initiatives across regions, ENE Atlas makes it easier to navigate and engage with the network. 🌐

Contact information  

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact directly:   

ETF.Network.for.Excellence@etf.europa.eu    

More information about ENE can be found on the following links:    

Warm regards,     

the ETF Network for Excellence Team 

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