HERE – SOCIAL ECONOMY OF PROXIMITY Erasmus Project

Project Title

HERE – SOCIAL ECONOMY OF PROXIMITY

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Cooperation between educational institutions and business; Access for disadvantaged; Social entrepreneurship / social innovation

Project Summary

HERE aims to design a business incubation methodology for people at risk of exclusion in their own neighborhood. We will work in degraded neighborhoods. The aim is to promote what we will call social economy of proximity. This means that, we will primarily map the needs of the neighborhood and then we will train the vulnerable neighbords, who usually live in vulnerable situations so they can be the ones creating companies in order to provide to their own needs and jobs. The project aims to carry out a mapping of opportunities in degraded neighborhoods, to design a adapted training for this vulnerable neighbords, to implement the incubation of entrepreneurship projects among the neighbors and put all this practical information on a MOOC.

For this purpose, HERE will consist of 6 entities from 5 countries (Latvia, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Turkey and Austria):
1) SHELTER: NGO whose mission is to develop support services for victims of human trafficking, immigrants and refugees. It has multiple projects with the public administration and social entrepreneurship (LV)
2) ASOCIACIÓN CON VALORES: it is an NGO with a business focus that works with groups at risk of social exclusion and marginalization; its members are professionals from the business world with long experience in entrepreneurship (ES)
3) UNESSA is a civil society organization, a federation of reception, accompaniment, help and care for people. UNESSA federates 900 structures in Wallonia and Brussels, among them an organization specialized in social entrepreneurship (BE)
4) ANZIANI: is an NGO focused on entrepreneurship and social inclusion. Experience in incubating businesses with people from groups at risk of social exclusion and in managing microcredits (IT)
5) DOKUZ: is a dynamic university which keeps growing with 14 faculties, 10 institutes and graduate schools, 3 schools, state conservatory, 7 vocational schools, 54 research centers. It also embodies Dokuz Eylul Technology Development Zone (TK)
6) BEST: is a training institute that has provided support to clients in the field of human resources for over 25 years, also developing training programs for vulnerable groups (TA)

The objectives of HERE for the 30 months of the project will be:
– To measure ex-ante the impact that these companies might have on selected neighborhood in order to identify their strength/weaknesses.
– To create a map of entrepreneurial opportunities in degraded neighbourhoods
– To create new models of collaboration between neighbors at risk of exclusion, associations, administrations, NGOs, and companies.
– To implement an incubation methodology for neighbors at risk of social exclusion.
– To raise awareness of these intellectual results among the ecosystem of social entities, companies, and administrations.
– To improve the social fabric of neighborhoods, creating mutual relationships among the neighbours.
– To design an inclusive and productive framework, through the entrepreneurship of neighbors at risk of social exclusion to meet the needs of their own neighborhood and give an answer.

The project proposes 4 Intellectual Results:
1. A research and practical study: We will analyze the needs/opportunities of entrepreneurship in selected neighborhoods at risk of exclusion. There will be made personal interviews
2. Design a training and mentoring program adapted to the needs and limitations of entrepreneurial neighbors at risk of exclusion
3. To incubate entrepreneurship projects of vulnerable neighbours: the training content will be adapted and designed on them in order to build a proper model of business. The validation will be made by 30 neighbours in 3 degraded neighborhoods.
4. A practical open course MOOC.

HERE activities will impact mainly on:
– Enterprising vulnerable neighbors: 30 in 3 countries
– Degraded neighborhoods: 3
– Local and regional administrations: 12 in 3 countries and 30 contacts.
– Teachers/mentors: about 12 directly involved and 100 contacted.
– Informed business associations: 30, 5 per partner
– Chambers of commerce: 6, at least 1 per partner
– Universities: 12, at least 2 per partner

The impact of URBAN MUTUAL SUPPORT on project partners will be:
– 5 multiplier events (E1 to E5) and 1 final closing event organized with +50 entities from the social, business, entrepreneurial ecosystem, university, technology centers, and administration world (E6)
– An incubation methodology for groups at risk of exclusion in collaboration with the business sector
– An entrepreneurship course for people from these groups
– A report “How to create a HERE incubator in 10 steps” for professionals

The HERE methodology will be the necessary tool to empower people at social risk through EMPLOYMENT; achieving a more FAIR and INCLUSIVE Europe. Now more than ever it is necessary to help the most needy people to get ahead on their own.

This is HERE project.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 278345 Eur

Project Coordinator

Shelter “Safe House” & Country: LV

Project Partners

• DOKUZ EYLUL UNIVERSITESI
• ANZIANI E NON SOLO SOCIETA COOPERATIVA SOCIALE
• BEST INSTITUT FUR BERUFSBEZOGENE WEITERBILDUNG UND PERSONALTRAINING GMBH
• UNESSA
• EMPRESAS CON VALORES