TNE-GPS^Education Advanced Skills for Green Sustainable Environment: An Earth Observation Hub pathway (at ENSMR, Morocco)

Abstract. The paper presents the objectives and initial outcomes of the TNE-GPS^Education project, “Green & Pink for Sustainable Education”, funded by the Italian PNRR and coordinated by the University of Foggia, involving ten Italian universities including Politecnico di Milano (POLIMI). The project promotes multidisciplinary international cooperation with partners across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and South America. Within this framework, POLIMI contributes through the Advanced Skills programme, aimed at developing a transdisciplinary capacity-building model integrating sustainability, health, and gender equity. This model is implemented through modular Lifelong Learning Courses (LLLCs) and the establishment of an EO Hub designed to support long-term institutional collaboration and knowledge transfer. Five LLLCs have been developed, including two fully dedicated to EO. These follow a structured workflow that progresses from global EO data analysis—based on rGEE/GEE time series—to site-specific applications within the LULUCF framework, with a focus on land degradation processes in Mediterranean regions. The other three LLLCs on XR, ecosystem services, decarbonization, and Nature-Based Solutions strengthened the transdisciplinary approach, linking environmental monitoring with mitigation and adaptation strategies. Preliminary results demonstrate the effectiveness of this model in fostering shared methodologies and identifying thematic pathways for future collaboration. Among these, soil erosion emerges as a priority domain, offering a concrete entry point for joint research activities. Future developments aim to scale up the EO Hub across additional African countries, consolidating the role of ENSMR and UIR as regional nodes for EO-based capacity building and sustainable development.