Fingal and Skåne Deepen Ties in SKYLA Bilateral Exchange

From 11–12 June 2025, Fingal County Council had the pleasure of hosting a delegation from Region Skåne, Sweden, for a two-day bilateral exchange under the Interreg Europe SKYLA project (Smart Specialisation Skills Ecosystems for the Twin Transition). The visit marked a milestone in strengthening regional partnerships and mutual learning between the two regions, both committed to improving skills development, vocational education, and innovation ecosystems in response to the green and digital transitions.

The exchange focused on showcasing good practices, engaging with stakeholders, and exploring how successful models from one region could be adapted and applied in the other. Through dynamic site visits, presentations, and discussion forums, the exchange offered a rich platform for identifying common challenges, as well as actionable, collaborative solutions.

Exchanging Good Practices: STInt and AMK

A central highlight of the exchange was the mutual learning around two standout initiatives:

STInt – STEM Teacher Internship Programme (Ireland)

Presented by Fingal County Council and Dublin City University (DCU), STInt is an innovative programme that bridges the gap between education and industry. It places pre-service and early-career teachers in paid 12-week summer internships with leading companies such as Intel, IBM, and Microsoft. These internships allow teachers to experience cutting-edge STEM work environments, which in turn enhances their confidence, subject knowledge, and teaching methodologies.

The Skåne delegation, including representatives from Malmö University, IUC Syd, and the Regional Council of Skåne, were particularly inspired by the potential of replicating the STInt model. They engaged directly with programme leaders and received practical guidance on how to adapt the concept to their regional context.

AMK – Labour Market Knowledge (Sweden)

In turn, the Fingal team expressed strong interest in the AMK (Arbetsmarknadskunskap) model from Skåne, which works to close the education-employment gap through a structured programme of labour market insights and career orientation sessions in schools. AMK identifies sectoral skills shortages and delivers interactive classroom sessions that inform students about in-demand skills and realistic career pathways.

Themes, Challenges, and Shared Goals

The two-day programme included workshops, study visits, and peer-to-peer exchanges. Several key themes and challenges emerged:

• Funding was a common barrier, especially in scaling up pilot initiatives or adapting new programmes to different contexts.

• Skills mapping and labour market forecasting are areas of high interest in both regions, with both sides keen to better align training provision with economic needs.

• Active collaboration between educators, policymakers, and industry stakeholders is essential to prepare learners for the challenges of the twin transition.

Despite different national contexts, both regions face similar hurdles and opportunities when it comes to vocational education and training (VET), STEM development, and workforce reskilling.

Site Visits, Collaboration, and the Road Ahead

During the exchange, the Swedish delegation visited a range of Irish institutions showcasing practical, innovative approaches to skills development and education-industry collaboration.

At Dublin City University (DCU), a standout moment came from teacher Chelsea Murray, who completed a STInt internship at IBM. Inspired by her experience, she guided her students to design a shark-mounted device that collects microplastics—an idea that won them the Innovative Project Award at the First Lego League Leinster. Her story highlighted how teacher internships can drive innovation in the classroom and promote STEM learning.

At Esmark Finch, the team learned how the company has successfully leveraged Spotlight on Skills, a programme co-led by Enterprise Ireland and Regional Skills Fora, to upskill staff and improve productivity. This demonstrated the practical impact of accessible national training supports for SMEs navigating the digital and green transitions.

Additional visits to Trinity College Dublin and Enterprise Ireland offered deeper insights into Ireland’s integrated ecosystem for research, business innovation, and workforce planning.

Looking forward, both Fingal and Skåne are eager to build on this successful exchange. Fingal aims to pilot a local version of Skåne’s AMK model in a select number of schools, with support from Swedish stakeholders. In return, Skåne is exploring how to adapt the Irish STInt programme to their regional education and labour market context.

This exchange exemplifies the SKYLA project's goals: to foster smart specialisation through shared learning and to empower regions to address common challenges—together. It confirmed that while every region is unique, collaboration unlocks new perspectives, mutual support, and solutions that go further.