Girls lead: Supporting young women into finding their place as social entrepreneurs and in taking on leadership roles early in life Erasmus Project

Project Title

Girls lead: Supporting young women into finding their place as social entrepreneurs and in taking on leadership roles early in life

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 youth

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education; Social entrepreneurship / social innovation; Gender equality / equal opportunities

Project Summary

The Girls Lead Project was a collaboration of 7 European Organisations highly motivated in exploiting the future Girls Lead outputs and results. European collaboration in the field enabled us to find more sustainable solutions along with facilitating implementation. Project outcomes were designed and available as free on line resources so that they are open for use at any level – local, regional, national, European and international, which is prerequisite for sustainability. The difficult labour market situation of young people in Europe has become an increasingly urgent challenge and their integration into the labour market is now a major policy issue. Unemployment is proven to be affecting young women more than young men (https://plan-international.org/eu/youth-unemployment-facts.) A potential solution to tackle unemployment and to ensure sustainable growth and development, was to foster an entrepreneurial culture and mindset. It is important for youngsters to access affordable knowledge and positive examples to up-skill adding social perspective to their existing or planned business. Accessing such skills is even more challenging for NEET’s (young people not in education, employment or training). Supporting girls’ and young women’ entrepreneurship and their entrepreneurial mindset through role modelling and exemplary leadership constitute some of the most effective ways of laying the foundations for the attainment and sustenance of economic and social development and vibrant entrepreneurial communities.
The partnership developed innovative tools in order to extend and develop the social entrepreneurship competences of girls and young women alongside providing them with tools to develop their leadership qualities.

‘Girls lead’ project has provided innovative and flexible ways for young women to get involved in entrepreneurial and social learning, enabling them to act as a force for change in their local communities and in wider society, and thus to overcome deprivation, inequality, educational disadvantage and social exclusion.
The project addressed young women, aged 15-29, NEETs, with the aim of contributing to cultivate and enhance youth social thinking and confidence, to developing their leadership attitude and deep community connections, and to reduce the opportunity gap for disadvantaged youth. It raised awareness of needs of changing girls’ attitudes towards leadership and entrepreneurial thinking and learning by showing clear pathways to excellence while applying “confidence-building” measure and effective methodology for youth work in the field.

“Girls lead” developed a culture of initiative among young women, built their leadership skills and helped them realise their first enterprising ideas. Actions were planned in four steps: first step was to inspire the girls; second – to train them with regards to leadership skills; third – to help them network; fourth – to let them get involved and act.
The project activities included:
– Promoting the Impact stories of female social entrepreneurs;
– Developing curriculum for Girls’ Leadership Support training program;
– Developing Girls’ Leadership Support Training kit with digital materials;
– Creating and reinforcing an online platform for young women’s interaction, communication and meaningful information about opportunities with social entrepreneurship and tools for generation of entrepreneurial idea with social impact.

The main project results (both during the project lifetime and after its end) were:
– Enhanced ability of young women to influence the future of their society and their own opportunities in their neighbourhoods and towns;
– Increased and further strengthened understanding for “social entrepreneurship” as an entrepreneurial model among young women;
– Improved motivation, confidence and leadership skills of female NEETs to consider careers in social entrepreneurship in different economic and life sectors;
– Increased sense of initiative and entrepreneurship;
– Effective methodology for high-quality youth work in partners countries and beyond based on combination of role models and digital storytelling, changing the attitudes towards social entrepreneurship;
– Developed and piloted curriculum for modular training in leadership skills based on blended learning approach, together with a training kit of innovation methods and materials
– Developed tools and models for integration of gender perspectives in education;
– Knowledge and experience gained by partner organisations in the field of transnational cooperation, project management, innovative practices to inspire and involve girls into “social entrepreneurship” .

Through the Girls Lead project:
* over 140 stakeholders were interview for research
* 6 role model short films were produced
* over 90 participants tested the learning modules from the training kit.
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Project Website

http://girls-lead.eu

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 245534 Eur

Project Coordinator

Point Europa Ltd & Country: UK

Project Partners

• SOCIAL YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CIVIL NONPROFIT SOCIETY
• Inthecity Project Development
• Fundatia Centrul Educational Spektrum
• Avangard Personal Consulting
• PISTES SOLIDAIRES
• FONDO FORMACION EUSKADI SLL