In Brussels, at the international Our Digital Village summit, I highlighted, as rapporteur of the EU Committee of the Regions, that digital transformation is not only a technological issue but also a human, community, and development policy matter.
\nEurope\u2019s digital future does not start in big cities \u2013 it begins in villages, schools, small businesses, and local communities.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n
At the three-year Erasmus+ program\u2019s closing conference, organized by ALL Digital and its European partners, I emphasized that:
\ndigital learning and lifelong skills development in rural areas are not a luxury but a survival requirement.
\nThe spread of digitalization, automation, and artificial intelligence creates new jobs but also eliminates others \u2013 and only regions that invest in knowledge on time remain competitive.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n
Harghita County Example: Community-Based Digital Learning<\/strong><\/u><\/u><\/p>\n In Harghita County, we have already initiated this path (and I hope it will continue now!): At the Brussels conference, I stated that digital learning works only if three conditions are met:<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>It takes place locally \u2013 people learn where they live;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>It is connected to the local economy \u2013 not general courses, but ones aligned with the county\u2019s economic sectors (tourism, green economy, wood industry, agricultural innovation);<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>It is implemented with community support \u2013 through cooperation between schools, businesses, local governments, and civil organizations.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n This model already works in many regions across Europe \u2013 now it is our turn to catch up.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n EU Level: New Opportunities in the 2028\u20132034 MFF<\/strong><\/u><\/u><\/p>\n Among the proposals of the EPP Group of the Committee of the Regions is the creation of a rural-dedicated window within the ESF+ fund in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF 2028\u20132034), supporting mobile education, language and digital counseling, lifelong learning, and reskilling.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n Support should be provided for:<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>local digital learning centers and community labs;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>the introduction of digital micro-credentials;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>programs that align courses with real labor market needs.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n If Harghita County prepares on time, it can access significant EU funds, simultaneously supporting young people, education, and the local economy.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n Concrete Proposals for Harghita County Council and All Involved Partners:<\/strong><\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>Establish a county-level Digital Learning Harghita coordination center to unite educational, economic, and local actors;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>Community digital workshops (Digital Labs) \u2013 shared spaces where students, entrepreneurs, and seniors can develop digital skills;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>Learning mentor network \u2013 young volunteers supporting older generations in online administration, e-health systems, and digital banking;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>Partnership with educational institutions \u2013 modernizing vocational schools\u2019 equipment and supporting continuous teacher training;<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n <\/u>\u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/u>Increasing EU funding capacity \u2013 the county office and local administrations developing joint projects for the new ESF+, Erasmus+, and Digital Europe programs.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n The Future: Digital Dignity in Rural Areas<\/strong><\/u><\/u><\/p>\n As I emphasized in my speech: Digital education is one of the most important guarantees that young people stay at home. Summary<\/strong><\/u><\/u><\/p>\n The Our Digital Village conference showed that the European digital transition will only succeed if even the smallest communities are included. I have made a proposal for the reorganization of the digital working group to the county council leadership.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In Brussels, at the international Our Digital Village summit, I highlighted, as rapporteur of the EU Committee of the Regions, that digital transformation is not only a technological issue but also a human, community, and development policy matter. Europe\u2019s digital future does not start in big cities \u2013 it begins in villages, schools, small businesses, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1485,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[84],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1543"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1543\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1544,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1543\/revisions\/1544"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nseveral localities are hosting pilot local learning centers, digital classrooms, and entrepreneurship mentoring programs that engage both young people and adults.
\nThe goal is for digital knowledge to prevent migration rather than encourage it.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n
\n“Digital transformation is not about technology, it\u2019s about people.<\/em>
\nIf we only provide the internet but not opportunities, we lose trust.<\/em>
\nBut if we create learning, work, and community connections, we strengthen Europe.”<\/em><\/i><\/u><\/u><\/p>\n
\nIf we teach them the skills to succeed locally, we offer not only jobs but also life paths and future vision.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n
\nHarghita County is ready for this challenge \u2013 but it needs partners, funding, and political courage.
\nWe must act now so that the digital future is built here, in Sz\u00e9kelyf\u00f6ld.<\/u><\/u><\/p>\n