Abstract:

The trade in goods is one of the substantial parts of worldwide progress and prosperity. An increase of trading volume simultaneously induces an increase in transport volume. Indeed, forecasts suggest that the worldwide trading volume together with the transport volume will enhance drastically within the next years. However, people worldwide already face the problems of air pollutions which are caused by emissions. One measure to cur emissions is the use of more eco-friendly transport modes.

Due to the European Commission the most eco-friendly transport mode in Europe is inland waterway but currently trucks are used for around 75% of the total transports volume. One of the main reasons for the low usage of inland waterway transport is a substantial lack of knowledge. As a result, the education cooperation “REWWay” (Research and Education in Inland Waterway Logistics) between the University of Applied Sciences and via donau (part of the Federal Ministry) was established. The main goal of this cooperation is to bring the sustainable inland navigation in people’s mind by the (free) provision of learning offers.

In order to develop stakeholder-specific offers, a broad analysis of the current situation and future requirements for education on eco-friendly transport modes through Europa was conducted. 61 European universities, schools and companies within the logistics sector participated in this study.

Results of the first part of the study show that there is a lack of educational material and a lack of teachers’ knowledge on inland navigation. As a consequence, hardly any time in education is used for this sustainable-friendly transport mode: in fact, 10 to 20 times more are used for road transport which induces highest external costs.

Interviewed teachers and university lecturers show a high demand for films, PowerPoint slides, lecture notes and case studies which support students in active and self-decided learning. In fact, a high learning success can be realized through the active-involvement of students and diversified lessons or material. Moreover, there is a need to enhanced cross-linking with the industry through field trips or external speakers. Besides, the provision of train-the-trainer offers for lecturers to support familiarity with inland waterway topics is recommended.

Based on these results a portfolio of learning offers has been developed since June 2013. These offers will include a film library with questions and answers, case studies (for schools, undergraduate and graduate levels), cost and time calculations, an e-learning platform (www.ines-danube.org), a list of interesting field trips and contact points in Europe and presentations slides (from very basic level up to expert level). Moreover, trainings will be held for teachers and lecturers on inland waterway in general since experiences show that it is urgently necessary that train-the-trainer offers are available. The whole portfolio of learning offers will be made available in German and English on the first version of the REWWay website within the next months. The next step is the development of an e-learning platform which provides contents for diverse target groups (i.e. vocational school).
Furthermore, regular events which include field trips and space for networking will be conducted. All these offers aim to increase people’s awareness and knowledge on inland waterway transport.

Keywords:

Transport, Logistics, Sustainability, Teaching.