UP-AEPRO (https://eaea.org/project/up-aepro/?pid=11709) aimed to address the constant need and interest of adult education (AE) trainers and staff to learn more about European developments in adult education and other countries’ systems and innovation. After more than 2 years, the project has effectively contributed to deepen the knowledge and foster the discussion about a recently launched European strategy in adult education: the Upskilling Pathways initiative (UP), which happened through the whole project and culminated with the project IO6 - The Advocacy Toolkit and its final conference/ multiplier event. The initiative, which approved by the European Council in December 2016 within the New Skills Agenda, aimed to tackle the need for basic skills and qualification in Europe through 3 steps: skills assessment; tailored-made learning offer; and validation and recognition of the skills acquired. After 4 years of implementation, the consortium members believe they have managed to contribute for its interim evaluation. The choice of the Upskilling Pathways initiative is due to an advocacy need, because AE providers and organisations (like the partner organisations) have the interest in knowing more about it. Thanks to UP-AEPRO, AE organisations and providers are now more capable in what concerns our advocacy skills and we feel empowered in being involved in the initiative implementation. The project activities managed to involve more than 60 different organisations, in different project phases. The initiative’s three steps will also provided the teams with the opportunity of an enriching deepening and exchange about their organisations’ and members states’ practices. Participants used from each other´s innovations and knowledge and thus the aim of a better professionalisation and quality of adult education staff will be reached. Thus, the project had the following objectives, which were met: - Increase the knowledge about the Upskilling Pathways initiative and other Lifelong Learning policies at the European level - Allow the exchange of innovation across Europe on the Upskilling Pathways initiative related topics - Improve quality, professionalisation and capacity building of AE staff and providers - Support UP-AEPRO learners and partners to develop online learning and introduce ICT tools into their daily work (this was especially useful with the boom of distance learning initiatives during the pandemic) - Increase the intercultural skills of AE trainers and staff - Strengthen the cooperation with peers and policy-makers in their countries and in Europe - Improve the UP initiative implementation at different level by enabling AE trainers and staff (and the organisations for which they work) to be involved The project results were the following: - An online course on the Upskilling Pathways initiative including four innovative modules on the following topics: Policy overview and European Advocacy (IO1), Skills assessment (IO2), Tailored-made offer (IO3) and Validation and recognition (IO4); - Five peer learning sessions (IO5) organised by the learners themselves with the support of the UP-AEPRO partners; - An advocacy toolkit (IO6) - A transnational learning activity (C1-2) - A final conference (ME1) The benefits of the project are already very visible. Thanks to extended and developed competences of educators, the learning provision is now more effective, meaningful and inclusive for all learners. After learning from each other's systems and innovation, trainers and staff are now able to improve their own practice and methodologies, which is fostering the supply of high quality learning opportunities tailored to their needs (low-skilled or low-qualified adults and the UP initiative potential users in particular). More coherent and grass-rooted education policies obtained through the engagement of trainers and staff into the UP initiative implementation, lead to an increase of participation (especially of disadvantaged learners) and the reaching of the ET2020 goals. An enhanced technical and ICT skills of trainers was both inspiring for them, enriching for their future learners and very valuable for the project sustainability. The fact that 2020 was the year where all the teaching/ learning methods were transformed due to the pandemic, made more visible the efficiency of our distance learning UP-AEPRO course and methodologies. Due to their online nature, the project outputs are open, free and highly sustainable. Partners are now working on a sound and effective dissemination and exploitation plan to reach the highest number of AE trainers and staff and thus maximise their impact. With a relatively low budget and in only two years, the project contributed to a better quality and an increased innovation in adult education that will support the progress towards a truly European area of lifelong learning.