Member – Francesca Pogliani brings lifelong learners together

If you visited Foundry at evening time before the lockdown closed the country, you might have seen Francesca and her group of co-learners. Francesca is a learning lover and the ideal founder of the first co-learning pilot concept in Luxembourg, which is fittingly named Deskover. Many of the learners are adults who study higher education besides having a full-time job. The idea behind Deskover is to transform lifelong learning into a social and accessible experience that will open doors to a different idea of adult education, in particular foster it, creating a fresh momentum of upskilling, innovation and progress. “No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated,” Francesca references Nelson Mandela.

Francesca sees the value and importance of learning at any age. Through Deskover she wants to bring lifelong learners together and build a community where everyone supports each other on the way to achieve their goals. Among the co-learners so far, there are people who are preparing for a professional qualification exam, who are studying for a new language, for an MBA or even for online courses, and have to do so next to a full time job. 

This often means a tight schedule at daytime. Many prefer to go to the library, when their atmosphere at home is not really conducive such as not having a dedicated study space, noisy neighborhood etc. Also in Luxembourg there are not many libraries which are open beyond office hours. Deskover saw, amongst other things, this need for a study space outside of the home after working hours, and decided the ideal time for gatherings was during evenings and weekends. 

In other words, a part of the concept is also to provide an inspiring space where to focus. Deskover had the idea to utilize the spare space of coworking spaces, through an application (or online platform) that will allow them to find available spots and allow them to (fully digitally) access those spaces. This on one side supports lifelong learners, needing today more than ever to learn new things and upskill, and on the other helps coworking spaces monetizing their sqm, in other words a win-win situation.

During the lockdown period, when also coworking spaces were closed due to the Covid-19 restrictions and the co-learners were not able to meet physically, Francesca initiated temporary online sessions. But last week she and her co-learners were finally back at Foundry, ready to gain new knowledge. For now Deskover has around 3 gatherings every week, but if the pilot is successful, it’s going to be every day! The celebration of Deskovers re-opening in the Foundry garden on Friday is already fully booked, which is a good sign. 

Deskover encourages lifelong learners, coworking space managers and possible partners to get in touch:

If you are a lifelong learner who wants to study with like minded people, don’t hesitate to visit Deskover’s website and book your studying spot during the pilot phase. You can do that from your phone with few clicks. If you are a coworking space manager interested in developing a collaboration and want to be part of this change from the beginning, send Deskover an email. If you are a professional qualification association representative and you would like to discuss a partnership, drop an email.

Francesca: “Be part of the change, visit the website and participate in our pilot phase. Together, we can make it happen.”

If the Deskover concept sounds interesting to you, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Francesca:

Website: www.deskover.lu

Email: francesca.pogliani@deskover.lu

Facebook: www.facebook.com/deskover.lu/