2025-12-01 - 2026-04-30 ( 80 hours )
Remotely
Form Submission is completed on
Form Submission is completed on
The Center for Education and Lifelong Learning of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki welcomes you to the “VTskills: Sustainable Precision Agriculture”, a 80-hour online) course via an e-learning platform.
VTskills is an ERASMUS+ project on Precision Agriculture, focusing on viticulture in the Mediterranean region. The overall objective of the project is to promote the adoption of environmentally, socially and economically sustainable practices in agriculture in general and in the viticulture sector in particular. The project develops a new, transnational curriculum of 80 teaching hours, which offers digital, green and resilience skills for the training of university students, farmers, vocational training technicians and primary production workers in Sustainable Precision Agriculture. The project provides 3 ECTS and a General Training Certificate.
The Scientific Director of the program is Professor Anastasios Michailidis. Anastasios Michailidis is a Professor of Agricultural Applications at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and Director of the Laboratory of Agricultural Applications and Rural Sociology. His education includes a B.Sc. in Agriculture, an M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics, a further Postgraduate Specialization in Quality Assurance (EAP) and a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics. He has participated as a team member or as a coordinator in more than 60 national and community projects (FP, INTERREG, EQUAL, LLP, TEMPUS, ERASMUS+, PRIMA, HORIZON). His publications in international peer-reviewed journals, collective volumes and conference proceedings exceed 150. He participated in the organizational and scientific committees of many national and international conferences. His research interests include agricultural applications, consulting, agricultural education-training, precision agriculture, management, quality assurance, adoption-diffusion of innovations, water resources management and information-communication technologies in agriculture.
The program is also taught by Aikaterini Palataki, a PhD holder and specialist in precision agriculture and training.
Start Date: 1 December 2025
End of the course: 30 April 2026
Duration: 80
Cost: Fully Funded (No Tuition Fees)
Discount: The program has no cost.
Certificate/ECTS: General Training Certificate/ 3 ECTS
Applications are submitted online from 20/10/2025 to 21/11/2025
Teaching Staff
Mention the teaching staff and if possible, their CV (in a link with their name/surname).
1.Anastasios Michailidis (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7560-4365)
2.Aikaterini Paltaki (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9147-3396)
The intended objectives of the training program include the following:
•Training university students, farmers, vocational training technicians and primary production workers with basic skills in sustainable Precision Agriculture.
•Acquiring knowledge about emerging technologies applied in agriculture, efficient use of resources, resilience to climate change and the development of entrepreneurial initiatives in rural areas.
•Promoting sustainability through strengthening skills and lifelong learning with the aim of long-term and sustainable development. A necessary step for the transition and supporting the adoption of new technologies and the implementation of sustainable practices.
•Connecting theory with practical application, enhancing skills and innovation in participants.
Upon completion of the training program, participants will be able to acquire basic knowledge about sustainable Precision Agriculture, will understand green and digital skills, and resilience skills. At the same time, they will acquire skills for the transition to climate-smart agricultural practices. Green skills try to direct digital skills towards resource reduction (such as water), the elimination of pollutants, the regeneration of soils and towards the concept of the circular economy. All the above knowledge and skills that will be cultivated will help participants to have the ability to understand theories and principles in the field of Precision Agriculture, to manage complex technical or professional activities with responsibility for decision-making.
The program is addressed to university students, farmers, vocational training technicians and workers in the primary production sector.
Application Form can submit those who have:
Candidates with the following prerequisite criteria can apply:
• Computer skills
• English language skills
• Internet access
• Possession of a personal email
The selection criteria for candidates is priority order.
Application Form can submit those who have:
Candidates with the following prerequisite criteria can apply:
• Computer skills
• English language skills
• Internet access
• Possession of a personal email
The selection criteria for candidates is priority order.
Application Form can submit those who have:
Candidates with the following prerequisite criteria can apply:
• Computer skills
• English language skills
• Internet access
• Possession of a personal email
The selection criteria for candidates is priority order.
Description
This unit provides an introduction to sustainable Precision Agriculture, what it is and why it is important. It analyses the profile of the “successful” farmer entrepreneur and provides an overview of entrepreneurial skills in viticulture. It analyses the challenges leading to the adoption of Precision Agriculture and the benefits of its adoption. It provides the definition and principles of organic farming. Finally, it provides examples of sustainable agricultural practices specific to vineyards, relevant to the management of organic farms.
This unit serves as an introduction to the following 3 units.
Teaching hours
Implementation method Teacher
3,5 hours Asynchronous educationAikaterini Paltaki
0,23 hours Autonomous learning (quiz)Aikaterini Paltaki
Teaching unit 2: Resilience skills
Description
This unit addresses resilience skills, farm management (farm management principles, risk management and mitigation strategies), business management (business strategy and marketing strategy), communication and leadership (social leadership and communication channels), and social responsibility/legislative constraints.
Teaching hours
Implementation method Teacher
22,75 hours Asynchronous educationAnastasios Michailidis
1,52 hours Autonomous learning (quiz)Anastasios Michailidis
Teaching unit 3: Green skills
Description
This unit addresses green skills, soil management (soil health, regenerative agriculture, and alternatives to herbicides), water management (water management principles, water recycling and reuse in vineyards), crop care (protection, nutrition, integrated pest management in vineyards, and grape quality control).
Teaching hours
Implementation method Teacher
19,5 hours Asynchronous educationAnastasios Michailidis
1,3 hours Autonomous learning (quiz)Anastasios Michailidis
Teaching unit 4: Digital skills
Description
This unit addresses digital skills, technological overview of sustainable precision agriculture (with reference to case studies), monitoring (soil and vegetation proximity sensors, remote sensing, and weather monitoring), decision support systems and data analysis, application/operation (smart irrigation systems, variable rate application, and robotics/autonomous vehicles).
Teaching hours
Implementation method Teacher
29,25 hours Asynchronous educationAikaterini Paltaki
1,95 hours Autonomous learning (quiz)Aikaterini Paltaki
Total teaching hours80
ECTS provided3
The educational material that will be provided to the participants will include:
•A pdf presentation (of the ppt presentation) with the basic theoretical approaches of the module
•Lessons (in video format with an Artificial Intelligence Avatar),
•Open access scientific articles on the respective topic of the module or videos from YouTube or other platforms that cover the topic,
•Supplementary documents, which provide additional information not included in the presentation (on some topics of the teaching module),
•Multiple choice self-assessment quiz
•A special Contributors section, which presents all the authors of the courses, along with their contact information and photo.
The program also offers:
•General Training Certificate
•3 ECTS
•Collaboration with the teachers on the theoretical framework
Obligations of Trainees:
1. Participation in the programs of K.E.DI.BI.M. of the AUTH implies full acceptance of the program’s Study Guide and the Internal Regulation of Operation of the K.E.DI.BI.M. of the AUTH.
2. The presence/attendance of trainees in the educational programmes is mandatory. In the programmes which are realized in physical presence, as in those implemented using the modern method of tele-education, the study is generally mandatory and the limit of absences cannot exceed 10% of the prescribed training hours. The monitoring of asynchronous education is implemented according to the study schedule set by each programme.
3. For the successful completion of the programme, the participants should:
A)not exceed 10% absences of the scheduled training hours
B)havepassedtheexams
C)have paid all the tuition fees (there are no tuition fees)
Rights of Trainees:
1. Trainees are informed by the Department of Administrative Support of K.E.DI.BI.M. for all kinds of information related to the operation of the Centre.
2. Trainees are supported electronically through the educational platform by the trainers, as part of the educational process, to resolve questions and provide clarifications related to the thematic units of the programme.
3. Trainees have the right to apply for the interruption/termination of their programme attendance and a refund of their tuition fees, in accordance with the provisions of par. 12.9 hereof.
4. Students’/Trainees’ work is protected under the Copyright Regulations/Provisions.
After successful completion of the program, participants receive a General Certificate of Training, which is issued by the Center for Education and Lifelong Learning of the AUTH and signed by the President of the Center.
Participants, who have attended but not successfully completed the program, will be awarded a Certificate of Attendance.
For further information, please contact:
Name/Surname: Aikaterini Paltaki
Tel: 6973860469
Available hours: 09:30 – 16:00
Email: apaltaki@agro.auth.gr
There is no tuition fees.