Author: wpadmin

Implementation of REEP’s International Summit “Youth entrepreneurship – possibilities, problems and challenges”. The purpose of the summit was to discuss the main problems and challenges facing the business development of young people living in small settlements, to discuss the development opportunities, as well as the tools for the peculiarities of the entrepreneurial initiative. During the meeting, the tools that will be developed under the project were presented – a training and self-learning platform, educational materials, a manual and motivational videos.

The forum was held on the following agenda: introduction of the participants, presentation of the results that will be developed in the current project, presentation of the memorandums of understanding, discussion on youth entrepreneurship, problems, challenges and opportunities to serve as a starting point for further development of project results.

The forum was implemented on 27.07.2022 – 14:00 CET. 26 participants from the 6 partner countries took part in it.

Three different Living Labs were organized and took place on different days – June 6, 20 and 30. All events took place online and were attended by various representatives of stakeholders: youth organizations, VET schools and regional organizations related to rural development and agriculture. The events started with an opening part and an informal presentation and debate, among all, about the activities of the stakeholders, their experience with the topics addressed by DigiRUR and their participation in similar initiatives and projects. This first moment was followed by a presentation of the project and clarification of the conditions of cooperation (the activities and events in which the stakeholders will participate, their responsibilities, etc.), according to a Memorandum of Understanding (which the participants signed and sent later on email).

After that, a debate on youth entrepreneurship in rural areas and its opportunities and shortcomings was held on the questions previously prepared and included in the questionnaire created by the partnership. The multiple perspectives covered by the large number of participants was very useful as we were able to hear the views of persons already very familiar with young people and youth entrepreneurship (GeoClube), professionals working in rural development and activities of regional level (Central and Northern Regional Directorate of Agriculture and Fisheries) and of vocational training schools, themselves also embedded in more rural areas or counted with a significant percentage of students coming from these rural environments (Escola Profissional da Campanhã and Escola Profissional de Carvalhais).

The MoU in Portugal was signed by 3 regional rural development agencies and 1 VET provider.

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;

On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.

Univiersity of Barcelona held its Living Lab on 24/05/2022. The event was held online and was attended by the Mayor of Ayuntamiento de Los Molinos, CEO of COCEDER (NGO), Mayor of Ajuntament de Vilalba dels Arcs and EFA Professor Quintanes. Each of the participants completed the pre-created project questionnaire, after which the answers were discussed and debated.

The MoU was signed by 2 VET providers

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;

On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.

The event was held on May 31, 2022 online. Representatives of 3 municipalities from the target region, youth and members of non-governmental organizations were present. In addition to information about the project, the event also shared information about the upcoming international event and the possibility of concluding a memorandum of understanding, to which the attendees showed considerable interest.

At the end of the event, there was an open discussion during which resources were shared from publications of the National Youth Council of Macedonia on youth perceptions of entrepreneurship

The memorandum of understanding was signed by 1 government office, 1 municipality and 2 non-governmental organizations

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;
• On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.

The two organizations worked together to organize the Living Lab. They had a delay at the local level in recruiting interested parties (municipalities/VET/NGOs etc.), although the idea was very positively received, some of the representatives of the relevant institutions/organizations were difficult to identify and engage especially remotely.

The practical workshops in Greece took place on 09 August 2022 with the mayors of Ancient Olympia and Pyrgos.

The Greek Ecosystem Panel was established in the Peloponnese region with the participation of the prefecture and the directorates of agricultural development. On 23.11.2022 DigiRUR representatives from CRETHIDEV and Guruservices were invited and participated in the online meeting of the Agricultural Growth Directors of the 3 NUTS level 3 regional units in the Peloponnese region and discussed details of the implementation of the ecosystem panel activities for the development of youth entrepreneurship, including the selection of participants from the region for pilot training, as well as future implementation of the educational resources for entrepreneurship in Greek language developed under the DigiRUR project for larger groups of young people from the region.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the Vice-Governor of the Peloponnese Region, the Administrator of the Peloponnesian Union of Social Enterprises and the CEO of Diastasis VET Center based in Peloponnese.

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;

On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.

The event took place on 06/09/2022 at 10:00 a.m. in the municipality of Sadovo, in the community center “Hristo Smirnenski” in the town of Sadovo. It was attended by two people from the team of the Institute for Technological Transfer and Innovation and 9 interested parties – the mayor of the municipality of Sadovo, a municipal councilor and employees from the municipality of Rodopi, 2 young entrepreneurs, 4 representatives of the NGO sector working with youth in rural areas. The project and its activity results were presented. After that, a discussion was held on the topic, and recommendations were made for the future implementation of the project. The event ended with a presentation of the Rural Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Panel and the upcoming international meeting. The Memorandum of Understanding was also presented.

The Memorandum of Understanding from 1 municipality, 1 VET provider, 1 private company and 2 NGOs.

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;

On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.

The event was held at the office of the LAG Panagyurishte, Strelcha, Lesichovo on June 10, 2022. It was attended by three people from the LAG team and 6 interested parties – 2 representatives of municipalities – Strelcha and Lesichovo, 1 representative of the Vocational High School in Panagyurishte, 2 representatives of local NGOs working with young people and 1 employer. The project coordinator presented the project – the partners, the project activities and the expected ones were presented. Then, an individual Q-TEST, specially developed for the project, was conducted, during which each of the participants had to fill in their own scale regarding the most important problems that hinder the development of youth entrepreneurship in rural areas. After that, a discussion was held on the topic, and recommendations were made for the future implementation of the project. The event ended with a presentation of the Rural Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Panel and the upcoming international meeting. The Memorandum of Understanding was also presented, which aroused special interest among representatives of the two municipalities.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by 2 municipalities and 2 NGOs

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;

On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.

The event took place on 08 June 2022 at the CARDET office. Regarding National Living Labs, the organization contacted municipalities to involve them in the project. In addition, CARDET involved 9 representatives from the two public universities in Cyprus, local entrepreneurs and local NGOs and received very positive feedback about the project. These stakeholders have expressed interest in participating in future DigiRur activities.

After the workshop on local entrepreneurship, barriers to youth entrepreneurship in rural areas were outlined, with participants noting the following:

• Difficulties in connections with the city, Limited jobs in rural areas,
• They expressed the need to build a network for local entrepreneurs, etc

The memorandum of understanding was signed by 1 municipality and 1 non-governmental organization.

The main conclusions after the discussions in all partner countries were:

• Young people should see role models – successful entrepreneurs who came from the same environment as them. In addition, the family environment is very important. Young people whose parents/relatives are entrepreneurs have an additional incentive to start a business. If they live among entrepreneurs, they will probably end up being entrepreneurs too.
• Encouraging many trips abroad so that young people can get to know other experiences, good practices and ideas.
• Teaching young entrepreneurs to focus on soft skills, – negotiation, critical thinking, resilience, this is everything behind knowing how to create your own business.
• Digitization enables young people to learn online. But the problem is that the villages do not have optical connections to ensure that young people can get a digital education.
• Creation of municipal councils for the promotion of (youth) entrepreneurship in the municipalities, in which representatives of relevant municipal directorates, municipal councilors, representatives of educational institutions (schools, universities), of local business organizations, student councils, as well as recognizable and socially engaged young entrepreneurs;
• Competitions for young entrepreneurs by municipalities, as they most fully reflect local characteristics and opportunities for starting a business
• Initiation of local mentoring programs with people from practice for students and high school students in order to stimulate entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurial activity;

On this basis, the following project results will be developed. In the month of July, the International event will be held, where the participants in the Rural entrepreneur ecosystem will be determined and a Memorandum of Understanding and future cooperation will be signed.