The symposium is based on an ongoing international research initiative, the Asia-Europe Lifelong Learning (ASEM) Network project, conducted across 14  countries in Asia, Europe, and beyond. The ASEM Education and Research Hub for Lifelong Learning  is an official network of Asian and European higher education institutions working collaboratively to achieve excellence in comparative research on lifelong learning. 

The aim of the project is to explore the complexities of work-related learning and contemporary approaches to enriching it through innovation, diversification, and the use of digital technologies across different contexts. Both inclusion and the use of digital technologies have become increasingly significant issues in contemporary debates on workplace learning and innovation (Harteis and Billett, S, 2022; Evans, 2023).  As the world becomes increasingly digitalised digital literacy has become a central capability for finding and sustaining employment, engaging in workplace learning and VET, and strengthening the links between education and work by enhancing connections between theory and practice, particularly in the context of the rapid emergence of innovative digital practices such as AI, data-driven systems, and platform-based work environments. Digital technologies can also support the inclusion of diverse groups in the workplace in various ways, including through accessible resources and tools, virtual and distance learning, and new forms of social interaction (Gottschalk & Weise, 2023). 

The ASEM collaboration seeks to investigate these multifaceted issues across diverse national landscapes, highlighting research and developments in workplace learning in both Asia and Europe. It focuses on the contextual and cultural factors that foster inclusivity, sustainability, and resilience in work-related learning, while also examining how innovation, digital technologies, and empowerment are transforming workplace learning environments. The overarching research question connecting the multinational contributions is: 

How can the inclusive use of digital technologies and innovation enrich workplace learning and empower workers? 

The symposium approaches this question from the perspective of human-centred technology and innovation, drawing on the concepts of inclusive use- understood as ethical approaches and practices that enable equitable access and active participation for the widest possible range of workers - and socially embedded capability as its key theoretical framework (Boyadjieva and Ilieva-Trichkova, 2023). These concepts are used to examine how working people can be empowered through adult learning across diverse socio-economic, cultural, and institutional contexts. 

Methodologically, the symposium and the forthcoming edited volume bring together individual research projects from 14 countries, each employing methods appropriate to their specific national, institutional, and workplace context.  The contributions reflect a diversity of methodological approaches, ranging from desk-based and policy-oriented research to empirical approaches, including qualitative case studies, interviews, surveys, and mixed-methods designs. This diversity of methods enables rich comparative insights while remaining sensitive to contextual differences across regions. Rather than imposing a single methodological framework, the project values context-specific approaches that illuminate how digital technologies and innovative practices shape inclusive workplace learning in varied settings. Collectively, the contributions offer a comparative, cross-national perspective on workplace learning developments internationally, highlighting how inclusive digital practices can empower individuals and foster more resilient and inclusive learning environments at work and beyond.  

The symposium presents selected papers emerging from this project. While the forthcoming book brings together contributions from across Asia and Europe, as well as third countries, this symposium focuses on insights from four contributions: two from Europe, one from Australia, and one offering perspectives from Southeast Asia. These papers have been selected to highlight central themes of significance for VET researchers. 

The overall goal is to showcase international research and analysis of developments in workplace and vocational learning, shedding light on the contextual and cultural factors that foster inclusive workplace learning through digital technologies and empower individuals through innovative workplace practices. 

Boyadjieva, P., Ilieva-Trichkova, P. (2023). Adult Education as a Pathway to Empowerment: Challenges and Possibilities. In: Holford, J., Boyadjieva, P., Clancy, S., Hefler, G., Studená, I. (eds) Lifelong Learning, Young Adults and the Challenges of Disadvantage in Europe. Palgrave Studies in Adult Education and Lifelong Learning. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-14109-6_7 Evans, K. (2023). Human Strivings and Social Change: Scenarios for Renewal in Lifelong Learning. In: Evans, K., Lee, W.O., Markowitsch, J., Zukas, M. (eds) Third International Handbook of Lifelong Learning. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67930-9_11-2 Gottschalk, F. and C. Weise (2023), “Digital equity and inclusion in education: An overview of practice and policy in OECD countries”, OECD Education Working Papers, No. 299, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/7cb15030-en. Harteis, C., Billett, S. (2022). Knowledge and Learning at the Workplace in Times of Digital Transformation. In: Evans, K., Lee, W.O., Markowitsch, J., Zukas, M. (eds) Third International Handbook of Lifelong Learning. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67930-9_4-1