The 30th HRDWG meeting, held in Bohol, Philippines from 15-18 April 2008 began with two parallel thematic policy sessions: - 'Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century through Education' and 'Bridging the Development Gap: Addressing the Social Dimensions of Globalization' and was followed by a presentation from the OECD on 'Benchmarking 21st Century Skills,' all of which provided important information for participants for further discussion in separate Network meetings and in Plenary.

Initiatives in progress are:

• The Strategic Plan for English and Other Languages; 
• Innovations for Teaching and Learning Mathematics in Different Cultures;
• Mapping Qualifications Frameworks across APEC;
• Measures Affecting Cross Border Exchange and Investment in Higher Education in APEC; and
• Capitalizing Information Technology for Greater Access among Poor and Rural Communities.

The HRDWG developed a new Strategic Vision for a 21st Century HRDWG, a Review of Future Directions of HRDWG, focusing on the increasing importance of human resources development in the world today and the APEC Leaders and Ministers' 2006 call for ongoing reform in working groups to ensure that activities are targeted, efficient and effective.

In line with this, HRDWG adopted a streamlined and focused set of three objectives1 to guide its three networks:

1. Develop 21st Century Skills for All
2. Integration of HRD into the Global Economy
3. Address the Social Dimensions of Globalization

Recently completed working group projects illustrate how HRD, through its Networks, help advance APEC goals:

• Increasing the Productivity of APEC Economies through High Performance Workplace Systems. High Performance Workplace Systems (HPWS) can improve productivity and allow member economies to exploit their competitive advantage, thereby promoting economic growth. This project undertook a review of research undertaken on the use of HPWS in APEC economies as well as an assessment of policies designed to support the adoption of HPWS. The research and policy lessons discovered were shared and discussed in a workshop held in August 2007.

• New Corporate Procurement Strategy on Trade in Goods and Services in the APEC Region - Supply-chain Options with CSR Perspective. Being involved in the global supply chain opens new opportunities for business but also poses challenges for companies in meeting international rules and standards. Today, there is growing pressure to take into account corporate social responsibility (CSR), under which business activities are scrutinized by various stakeholders. This project conducted workshops participated in by members of the academe, business and NGOs on the issue of CSR in the region and culminated in the publication of a case book on good CSR practices in the supply chain
• Collaborative Studies on Innovations for Teaching and Learning Mathematics in Different Cultures (II) - Lesson Study focusing on Mathematical Thinking. Curriculum reform in mathematics and science has been identified as one of the priority areas by education ministers. This project conducted a series of workshops for key mathematics educators and specialists to collaboratively share ideas and ways of mathematical thinking which is necessary for science, technology, economic life and development and collaboratively develop teaching approaches on mathematical thinking through Lesson Study among the APEC member economies.
• APEC Learning Standards for English and Other Languages. Global citizens in the 21st century need to have proficiency in various languages for communications in a variety of contexts. To develop skills in English and other languages that individuals need to participate in the global economy, education ministers recommended the development of clear standards for student learning and standards to support teacher language accreditation. This project compared the language learning standards used in APEC economies with a view to reaching an agreement of common standards and best practices to promote them. The project also addressed the need to 1) align language learning standards for students; 2) align language fluency standards to support language teachers' accreditation; and 3) promote e-learning strategies for language teachers' professional development and creativity in classroom instruction.

Further information can be found about the outcomes of these projects and other reports and publications produced by the HRDWG.