EuroSkills 2025 to Strengthen Diversity in Vocational Education with New Funding

Electricians, furniture makers, hairdressers, waiters, mechanics, social and healthcare assistants, florists, blacksmiths, and beauticians. These are just some of the students from a total of 38 trades who will compete in the official European Championship for young skilled workers under 25 years old, the so-called EuroSkills Herning 2025, in September 2025.

For the first time ever, Denmark will host the competition, with nearly 600 young skilled athletes from 32 countries coming together in Herning, supported by a large number of volunteers, delegates, and, of course, judges and professionals. The organizers expect up to 100,000 spectators over the three days the competition lasts.

An event like this requires solid funding, and Villum Foundation is contributing to this with a grant of 17 million DKK. The grant will go to EuroSkills 2025, which will particularly focus on the green transition in 2025, in collaboration with Divérs, an organization that works for equal opportunities for all. This includes a central focus on increasing diversity in technical vocational fields. Both themes are important to bring forward in a European context, says program director Agi Csonka: “EuroSkills Herning 2025 contributes to strengthening interest in vocational education, and the green focus aligns well with Villum Foundation. We are excited to contribute to young skilled workers becoming leaders in the green transition, and by focusing on diversity, we also support more people choosing vocational education. This benefits both Denmark and Europe.”

For EuroSkills 2025, the grant is great news, says Chairman Poul Nyrup Rasmussen: “Villum Foundation’s generous grant makes me especially proud because it enables us to host a world-class event and, in collaboration with Divérs, put the focus on diversity in vocational education and industries before and during the event.”

European Networks

Divérs works to create equal opportunities for all and has been running its core project, Boss Ladies, since 2018. This project aims to encourage more women to pursue technical vocational education, where women are still underrepresented. In collaboration with EuroSkills 2025, Divérs is building on the methods from the Boss Ladies project. With the grant, a European network will be established with ten female athletes from technical vocational fields who will serve as role models for young women in their home countries. Along with a number of selected Boss Ladies, Divérs will highlight diversity at the event through numerous activities, both at MCH Messecenter Herning and in the Skills Village (Lalandia), where the skilled athletes will stay during the event. At the same time, Divérs will use the event to establish international cooperation on the diversity agenda that can continue once the guests have returned home.

"The grant from Villum Foundation gives us at Divérs the opportunity to bring diversity to the European stage. We know how important communities are when you're a minority in your educational institution or workplace, and that's why we're excited to create a community for women from all over Europe. At the same time, it's crucial for us to emphasize that no one should be limited in their opportunities to win medals at EuroSkills simply because they are women. That's why we're so proud of this grant, which strengthens our project of putting diversity on the European agenda," says Nina Groes, Director and Founder of Divérs.

For the Chairman of EuroSkills 2025, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, Divérs' activities add an extra dimension to the event:"Diversity in the workforce is a cause close to my heart, and now we have a unique opportunity to introduce Divérs' methods to more European countries. This way, Denmark's hosting of Denmark's largest ever education summit will take on an entirely new dimension – and make an international impact on increasing diversity in vocational education."

At Villum Foundation, there are also high expectations for what Divérs can achieve on a European level: "Villum Foundation already supports Divérs' Boss Ladies project in Denmark, and their activities have led to some vocational schools nearly doubling their intake of women in technical education. It will be exciting to expand those experiences into a European context, as there is a real need for more skilled craftsmen across Europe," explains Agi Csonka.

Everyone Can Try Their Hand at the Trades

Almost half of the 17 million DKK grant will go towards Divérs' activities related to the event, while the remaining funds will be used for the organization of EuroSkills Herning 2025. The plan includes establishing a EuroSkills village – Skills Village – modeled after the Olympic Village, where the many athletes and delegates can stay during the competition. Around the competition area, there will be arenas where the public can get closer to the trades and even try them out themselves.

EuroSkills Herning 2025 will take place from September 9-13, 2025, at MCH Messecenter Herning. Admission is free, and the competition itself will be held from September 10-12.