Regional Innovation Hubs for Strengthening Social Entrepreneurship through Cross-Border Community Projects Erasmus Project

Project Title

Regional Innovation Hubs for Strengthening Social Entrepreneurship through Cross-Border Community Projects

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 vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Labour market issues incl. career guidance / youth unemployment; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education

Project Summary

The youth unemployment rate is considerably high especially in the case of Spain, but too in Slovenia, where the options to start an apprenticeship or to gain work experience are difficult. In Germany the youth unemployment rate is rather low, but the transition from school to work needs to be improved. New learning approaches are needed, in which the students receive a tailored made entrepreneurial education in order to boost their creativity and confidence as well as raise their chances to get a job or to consider self-employment as an option for the future. At the same time, techniques to create fast-growing businesses are needed in such an accelerated society like ours in order to avoid failure and to succeed in a shorter period of time.

The objective of this project was the creation of regional Innovation Hubs as part of the schools’ structure, where the students run these themselves supported by their teachers. The target of these regional Innovation Hubs is the students’ acquisition of entrepreneurial competences by solving current social problems happening in their regions and in the regions of the project partners in Europe. They also act as mentors for other groups and organizations in their regions, solving social and general problems. Besides, they are able to guide individuals or groups willing to start new startup businesses, but lack the knowledge and methodology needed.

Six institutions from three European countries (Germany, Slovenia and Spain) were part of the project consortium. Each partner country was represented by one vocational school and one institution from the private or public sector acting as a promotor.

Four outputs were developed throughout the project, in which several activities were planned: a social entrepreneurship training, a validation training, a manual for creation and management of regional innovation hubs and a social entrepreneur badge distinction for students’ competences recognition were originated. For all these products, conception, implementation and optimization were carried out. Three cross-border teaching and learning activities took place in order to promote students’ and teachers’ exchange and learning. Additionally, three multiplier events in all partner countries were organized to assure a wide dissemination of the initiative and its products.

Each of the project partners were responsible for several more of the outputs developed within the project. The product development was controlled by the project management and by a Lean Startup Feedback Loop based process. Parts of the outputs were regularly tested and adapted, what supported the continuous quality of product development. A summative evaluation for project impact analysis was carried out at the end of the project.

As a result, regional Innovation Hubs were created and established as a part of the schools’ structure in the partner countries. Here students are able to manage them and develop entrepreneurial and social competencies as well as raise their employability while doing so. The process of creating and establishing these regional Innovation Hubs was recorded as best practices in a manual. All products are available on the ECAS results website after the project completion. Thus, ensuring information about the project idea and encouraging other European schools to join this cross-border community projects initiative.

The project generated impact in three ways:
– Create: by designing products that develop students’ entrepreneurial and social competencies in an innovative teaching environment.
– Boost: by establishing regional Innovation Hubs targeted with the development of innovative solutions to current social problems in other European countries and in their own regions.
– Inspire: by disseminating the project results and encouraging others to be social entrepreneurs and to start their own businesses as an option. Additionally, bringing Europe together by solving foreign social problems in an intercultural approach.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 253399 Eur

Project Coordinator

UNIVERSITAET BREMEN & Country: DE

Project Partners

• SOLSKI CENTER KRANJ
• BSC, POSLOVNO PODPORNI CENTER, DOO
• CENTRE INTEGRAT PÚBLIC DE FORMACIÓ PROFESSIONAL – CATARROJA
• Wilhelm Wagenfeld Schule
• FLORIDA CENTRE DE FORMACION SOCIEDAD COOPERATIVA