TransparencyChain - Erasmus+ Project
2025-2026
The Erasmus+ TransparencyChain project aims to simplify the adoption of complex technologies, such as blockchain, to track the origin of products from raw materials through to artisanal production, enabling consumers to understand how, when, and by whom the products they are purchasing were made. The project will also provide training on digital marketing tools, enabling artisans to increase their sales by adopting more effective strategies.
We currently face an urgent need to address critical challenges in the European crafts sector, particularly in the areas of digital technology, sustainability, generational transition, inclusion, and competition. The sector consists mainly of family businesses and individuals from a wide variety of backgrounds, and the EU crafts market is increasingly driven by consumer demand for sustainability. However, many artisans struggle to meet these requirements due to limited access to digital tools, which leaves them vulnerable to threats such as copycats and large companies that reproduce designs at lower costs.
Project objectives
1 - Launch a pilot vocational training program to facilitate the adoption of innovative technologies in the artisan sector
The main objective of the project is to implement and test a vocational education and training program that facilitates the adoption of cutting-edge blockchain-based traceability technology in the handicrafts and artisanal production sector, targeting independent professionals and traditional industries, including those with limited access to digital technologies or vocational education and training. A pilot program will be launched in Portugal, where project experts will train four trainers to provide technical support and guide a group of artisans and suppliers who will test the new blockchain platform.
2 - Promotion of environmentally and socially sustainable value chains
By providing artisans and trainers with practical tools and knowledge on blockchain-based provenance tracking and digital marketing, TransparencyChain will lay the groundwork for more sustainable, transparent, and inclusive value chains, enabling artisans and their suppliers to track and verify the origin of materials and production processes, thereby increasing their sales through effective digital marketing.
Target groups
The target groups are trainers involved in vocational training in the field of crafts; suppliers of raw materials and artisans from diverse backgrounds and demographic profiles (including creative young people, older artisans, family-run and artisanal businesses, the migrant population, individuals with varying levels of education, and those living in remote areas), as well as those who may face barriers to participation.
Project results
Blockchain-Based Provenance Tracking Platform
A new blockchain-based traceability platform that participants in the pilot program will test
Digital learning materials
User Manual for the New Blockchain-Based Traceability Platform
Practical Guide to Blockchain and Using the Platform
Practical Guide to Digital Marketing and Promoting Transparent Value Chains
Pilot Program
Training sessions: comprehensive training on how to use the platform, the principles of blockchain, and digital marketing.
Platform pilot phase: the platform will be used and tested by participants in two regions of Portugal (North and South).
Testing and evaluation: rigorous testing and evaluation phases to ensure the effectiveness and scalability of the training models and the platform.
