40 managers of youth organisations from 15 different countries had a chance to sail in entrepreneurial waters in Denmark!
From 27 October till 4 November 2019 we had a chance to participate in Contact Making Event (CME) – the first activity of the project “EntrepreneurShip -Sailing to Success” organized by Danish organization InterCollage who gathered 40 managers of youth organizations in a small town near Aalborg called Slettestrand. This CME cofounded by Erasmus+ put together people from Denmark, Slovakia, Latvia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Austria, Italy, United Kingdom, France, Romania, Turkey, Cyprus, Philippines and Croatia to talk, discuss, create and share good practices on topics of entrepreneurship. Croatian representatives from Association Strive! in this project were Mateja Gabor and Danka Brumen.
During this 9 days, we create a concrete network of youth organizations across Europe and a proposal for promoting entrepreneurial spirit among youth using non-formal education and programs such as Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs and/or European Solidarity Corps. Cooperation with other participants brought us a new and fresh perspective in the fields of entrepreneurship, and increase our competences and toolbox for delivering non-formal entrepreneurship education to young people. Our motivation and examples of good practice increase a field visit to GrowAAL, “the craziest entrepreneurial environment in Aalborg” with offices, co-working places and drop-in workstations. We had a chance to talk with founders of StartUp Club Aalborg who opened up a StartUp Café, a place for all entrepreneurs where they can work on their business idea, get advice from experts in their field and also once a week get first-hand advice from a lawyer specialized for the bureaucracy barriers young entrepreneurs come across. It’s worth to mention that these activities, as well as whole co-working space, are supported by the local government.
“The most memorable thing for me was a field visit to coworking place, creatively named “Mama I MADE it!” which was a perfect example of how small businesses can work together and help each other grow using services from each other. It was beautiful to see all those young people who started up with nothing but an idea, and now, they created one of the most popular coworking places in Aalborg.”, says Danka.
In the real entrepreneurial spirit, we continued exchanging project ideas, conversations and experience after official parts of the project, in a nice cosy house Danishly named “hygge hytte”. There was also a time for sharing our traditions about All saints day and Halloween, spiced up with traditional food and Intercultural night.
“What I have really enjoyed it was the entrepreneurial spirit of the people who participated in this project, amazing organization, and I love the fact how much I have learned from the best practices in the field of sustainable entrepreneurship of this wonderful country”, added Mateja.
Although intense, this 9 days passed so quickly, and suddenly came time to say goodbye to all partners and friends we made, breathtaking Slettestrand, lovely local food, cosy rooms, beautiful pool and sauna… But, like true entrepreneurs, our projects and collaborations will continue long after the official end of this CME.
Written by: Danka Brumen
Participants: Danka Brumen, Mateja Gabor
Video: Jakob Gerhard Ruppenzwang
Music: Stratosphere, a song by Adam Vitovský, licensed under CC 3.0
Host: Inter Collage
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