The incubation programme cincopontozero won the Good Practices in Active and Healthy Ageing Award in the Centre Region

Posted on February 7, 2023February 7, 2023 by Better Incubation

🏆 The Entrepreneurship5.0 training programme, promoted by Instituto Pedro Nunes and Fundação Bissaya Barreto, won the Good Practices in Active and Healthy Ageing Award in the Centre Region, in the Life+Learning category.

ℹ️ This award, which aims to enhance the recognition and dissemination of projects and initiatives that promote active and healthy ageing in the Centre region, is promoted by CCDR Centro in collaboration with the Ageing@coimbra and AgeINfuture consortia.

Better Incubation Switch Pitch Series 2022 | recordings are available online!

Posted on December 29, 2022January 10, 2023 by Better Incubation

Did you miss the Better Incubation Switch Pitch Series?

Don’t worry! Recordings are now available online!

The series facilitated informal conversations between a diverse range of investors for impact and business support organisations with regards to pipeline building.

Switch Pitch with Seed Capital Bizkaia & Ship2B

In this episode of the Switch Pitch Series, Oscar Ugarte Gamboa, Seed Capital Bizkaia, and Xavier Pont Martin, Ship2B, explain how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses.

Switch Pitch with Cartier Women’s Initiative

In this episode of the Switch Pitch Series, Wingee Sampaio, Cartier Women’s Initiative, explained how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses.

Switch Pitch with Feelsgood Capital and Portus Buda Group FMC

In this episode of the Switch Pitch Series, Renata Brkic, FeelsGood Capital, and Elemér Eszter, Portus Buda Group FMC, explained how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses.

Switch Pitch with World Startup

In this episode of the Switch Pitch Series, Jan Verkooijen, World Startup, explained how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses.

Switch Pitch with INCO

In this episode of the Switch Pitch Series, Jean Michel Lecuyer, INCO, explained how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses.

Switch Pitch with FASE

In this episode of the Switch Pitch Series, Markus Freiburg, FASE, explain how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses.

The last issue of Better Incubation Newsletter is out!

Posted on December 21, 2022December 21, 2022 by Better Incubation

The eighth and last issue of the Better Incubation Newsletter is now available online. In this issue:

Better Incubation final event at EVPA Annual Conference 2022
Better Incubation latest publications: the Better Incubation Roadmap, the Insights Paper, and the Final Policy Recommendations – including the 15 regional manifestos summarising the key outcomes of the regional policy workshops that took place in September and October 2022 in 14 European countries.
Better Incubation highlights for the 5 target groups of underrepresented entrepreneurs: factsheets, videos and training modules.

Find out more information about Better Incubation news by reading the newsletter here: Better Incubation Newsletter 8_December 2022

Better Incubation Project Finale|Towards a more inclusive and impact driven approach to innovative entrepreneurship

Posted on November 23, 2022December 1, 2022 by Better Incubation

The European Action Plan “Building an economy that works for  people: an action plan for the social  economy “ (2021-2030) launched by the European Commission recognises the importance that the mainstream BSOs have in the support of social economy entities (p.14) :

The Commission calls on Member States to encourage mainstream business incubators to extend their support to social economy entities, to improve business investment readiness support opportunities. The ‘Better Incubator’ pilot launched by the European Commission can serve as inspiration’ .

Better Incubation aims to enhance the inclusiveness of BSOs by stimulating a wider cultural change in the incubation ecosystem, therefore involving regional and EU stakeholders (investors, policymakers, social actors, BSOs) that can contribute to this paradigm shift.

After 2 years of project activities, it is time to share key learnings on how to boost the promotion and support of impact-driven and inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems in Europe and beyond.

Organised in the framework of the EVPA Annual Conference 2022, the session “Better Incubation: Project Finale | Towards an impact-driven and inclusive approach to innovative entrepreneurship in Europe” is structured in 4 key moments:

How BSOs can contribute to the implementation of the Social Economy Action Plan? Brigitte Fellahi-Brognaux, Head of Unit, European Commission DG EMPL
Beyond Better Incubation – Partner Networks’ reflections on the way forward A conversation with Tatiana Glad, IHUB; Roberta Bosurgi, EVPA ; Laura Lecci, EBN
“Voices of Better Incubation” We’ll hear different experiences of Better Incubation. What did the programme offer to their orgnisations, their territories and communities? What are the plans for the future?
Scaling Impact. Meet the Winners of the Better Incubation Contest 2022. We’ll discover the entrepreneurial journey of the three finalists of the Better Incubation Contest 2022| Scaling Impact. Their stories, their plans, their impact

The session starts at 14.30 CET and it is going to be live streamed on Better Incubation Twitter account, LinkedIn page and EBN YouTube Channel.

AGENDA

Room Orangerie, on the 2nd floor & Live Streaming

14:30-14:40	Welcome and introduction about Better Incubation, Chiara Davalli, EBN
14.40-15.10	How BSOs can contribute to the implementation of the Social Economy Action Plan? Brigitte Fellahi-Brognaux, Head of Unit, European Commission DG EMPL Beyond Better Incubation – Partner Networks’ reflections on the way forward A conversation with Tatiana Glad, IHUB; Alessia Gianoncelli, EVPA ; Laura Lecci, EBN
15.10-15.30	“Voices of Better Incubation” moderated by Lucia Radu, Impact Hub We’ll hear different experiences of Better Incubation. What did the programme offer to their orgnisations, their territories and communities? What are the plans for the future? Francisco Pizarro, EU\|BIC Fundecyt PCTEX Viktoria Soregi, IHUB Budapest Francesco Rocca, IHUB Lisbon Hrishabh Sandilya, EPIM Gerrit Jan van ‘t Veen, WorldStartup Kristian Mancinone, EU\|BIC Associate ART-ER Nayla Attas, Impact Hub Global
15.30-15.50	Scaling Impact. Meet the Winners of the Better Incubation Contest 2022, moderated by Laura Lecci, EBN We’ll discover the entrepreneurial journey of the three finalists of the Better Incubation Contest 2022\| Scaling Impact. Their stories, their plans, their impact. Fela Akinse Buyi, Founder Salubata Esra Arslan, Executive Board Member at İhtiyaç Haritası Needs Map Ondřej Kolařík, CEO and Co-founder ARBO Technologies
15.50-16.00	Closing session with the three partner networks

Peer for People, Planet, Profit for SMEs | Design Option Paper is out

Posted on June 30, 2022July 15, 2022 by Better Incubation

The objective of P4SME (Peer for People, Planet, Profit for SMEs) EU-funded project was to improve the sustainability support services that the European Science and Technology Parks, incubators, innovation agencies or similar organisations are providing to their tenants or client companies. This Design Options Paper (DOP) aims at providing other European business support organisations with recommendations for improving their sustainability services for companies in their territories through a well-designed sustainability method called “Road to sustainability”.

The EU|BIC CEEI Extremadura (FUNDECYT Science and Technology Park of Extremadura) – active member of our CoP on Youth Entrepreneurship- is one of the three Science and Technology Parks (STPs) involved in the project together with Johanneberg Science Park and Tallinn Science Park Tehnopol.

Download the P4SME Design Option Paper P4SME_DOP

The Better Incubation Switch Pitch Series starts in June!

Posted on May 30, 2022June 14, 2022 by Better Incubation

Join our new Switch Pitch Series, where investors for impact will share insights on how they work with incubators and accelerators – and how this collaboration can be improved to better support impact driven businesses. The series is part of our Better Incubation Project.

The series will facilitate an informal conversation between a diverse range of investors for impact and business support organisations with regards to pipeline building. We will also discuss experiences and ideas on how to foster collaborations. The sessions will reflect different perspectives and country/regional contexts existing in Europe.

What can you expect?

different investment approaches applied by one or two EVPA members,
collaboration experience of social investors with incubators and accelerators
possibility to engage in discussion through an informal space, moderated by an EVPA team member.

Your ideas and insights will contribute to the Better Incubation Chart, a methodological guide for the mainstream business support organisations on how to better support impact driven businesses and connect with investors for impact.

When and what?

Date	Timing	Region	Speakers	EVPA Moderator	Registration
30 June 2022	12.00-13.00	Benelux	Jan Verkooijen, World Startup	Martijn Blom	Register here
5 July 2022	12.00-13.15	CEE	Renata Brkic, Feels Good Capital & Elemér Eszter, Portus Buda Group	Ewa Konczal	Register here
11 July 2022	10:00-11:00	Europe	Wingee Sampaio, Cartier Women’s Initiative	Sara Seganti	Register here
1 Sep 2022	12.00-13.15	Spain	Oscar Ugarte Gamboa, Seed Capital Bizkaia & Xavier Pont Martin, Ship2B	Arnau Picon Martinez	Register here
8 Sep 2022	12.00-13.00	France	Jean Michel Lecuyer, INCO	Gianluca Gaggiotti	Register here
27 Sep 2022	12.00-13.00	Europe	Markus Freiburg, FASE	Martijn Blom	Register here

About the Organisations

Feelsgood Social Impact Investment Fund is designed to invest in Croatian and Slovenian ventures that have typical private equity/venture capital for-profit-aims like commercial business models, led by strong management teams and ready to scale, but in addition can and will deliver measurable social impact. Feelsgood is spotting and supporting businesses that can find a way to address, if they already have not, one or more of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and make measurable impact a conscious sustainable strategy of their business models.
Portus Buda Group FMC is a venture capital fund management company in operation since 2011. Our primary goal is to profitably manage capital entrusted to us while furthering the excellent reputation of Hungary. Our majority owner – Portus Buda Group – created the firm to channel and share its accumulated expertise and sector knowledge. We target companies that – with their products and services – address underserved needs in a well-defined yet broad range of customer groups.

The Cartier Women’s Initiative is an annual international entrepreneurship program that aims to drive change by empowering women impact entrepreneurs. Founded in 2006, the program is open to women-run and women-owned businesses from any country and sector that aim to have a strong and sustainable social and/or environmental impact. Applications for the the 2023 edition are open! Join the Switch Pitch to discover more.

WorldStartup is a collective of international entrepreneurs, experts, mentors and investors, dedicated to help the best impact-driven startups and scaleups. WorldStartup supports purpose-driven innovators creating long-standing impactful ventures and promotes the Learning Circle ‘How to find the right impact investor’.

Seed Capital Bizkaia was founded in 1989 and for more than 30 years of working history it has been firmly committed to encouraging innovation, social impact and the promotion and regeneration of the business fabric in Bizkaia (Basque Country). The Entrepreneurship and Social Impact Fund (FEIS) was established in 2014 with the aim of supporting the promotion and consolidation of business initiatives with social impact. Social innovation initiatives are supported with investments of up to 600,000 euro.

INCO is a global organization that is building in 50 countries a new economy that is environmentally sustainable and socially responsible. INCO invests and supports innovative companies that are the future leaders of the economy. INCO provides training and support to those who wish to work in this new economy.

FASE has the vision to create a thriving ecosystem for social innovation by boosting impact finance across Europe. FASE is passionate about building bridges between outstanding social entrepreneurs and investors inspired by the idea to create a sustainable, positive impact. By helping their clients to raise capital in a highly professional way, we improve their chances to achieve impact at scale. So far, we have channelled more than 45 million EUR with 65+ successfully closed transactions to the sector. FASE also initiated the ESIIF and teamed up with avesco Financial Services and the European Investment Fund (EIF) to offer this new impact investing option for German semiprofessional and professional investors
Ship2B Foundation’s mission is to boost Impact Economy, an economic model in which the main purpose for startups, businesses, investors and organisations is not only to maximise profitability, but also to improve their social and environmental impact. At Ship2B we have the support of the European Commission to boost Impact Investment in Spain, a financing model based on investing in startup capital with the intention of generating and measuring economic, social and environmental impact. To do this, our team of analysts constantly studies impact startups from all over Spain to invest in through the different tools of the Foundation.

International Conference for Sharing Best Practices: Economic and Social Integration of Refugees and Asylum Seekers through Social Entrepreneurship

Posted on April 13, 2022 by Michaela Lednova

The work and experience gathered through the Better Incubation Community of Practice on migrants and refugees was featured on the International Conference for Sharing Best Practices: Economic and Social Integration of Refugees and Asylum Seekers through Social Entrepreneurship, held on 10 March – 11 March 2022.

The exchange event organised by University of Bologna under the Interreg-Adrion REInSER project, brought together scholars and practitioners across Europe to discuss inspiring initiatives of refugees integration through social entrepreneurship and to enrich the debate on some of the most relevant issues surrounding this topic.

The Better Incubation project consortium (EBN, Impact Hub and EVPA) was represented by Lucia Radu from Impact Hub who shared the main findings from the project at the Policy and Practice roundtable “Experiencing Social Entrepreneurship by/for refugees”. She introduced best practices explored by the Better Incubation and its thematic Community of Practice on how to better integrate migrants and refugees into the society through the entrepreneurship and what are the key barriers these entrepreneurs face in the process.

The key challenges include competing priorities, diversity of participants considering their backgrounds and countries of origins, language barriers, difficulties to reach the target groups and recruit them in the incubation programmes. The diverse approaches how these challenges can be addressed by the business incubators through adjusted services and support were also discussed.

Empreendedorismo 5.0: supporting seniors entrepreneurship in Portugal

Posted on April 13, 2022April 13, 2022 by Michaela Lednova

From December 2021 through April 2022, twenty business incubators from EBN and IHUB networks, working in the five thematic Communities of practice, have incubated more than 115 enterpreneurs from under-represented communities across 14 different European countries.

In the upcoming weeks, the series of blogs created by Impact Hub will give you a closer look at stories of business incubators helping vulnerable entrepreneurs such as women, youth, migrants and refugees, seniors and people with disabilities to embark on their entrepreneurial journey.

Empreendedorismo 5.0: supporting seniors entrepreneurship in Portugal

When facing retirement, around 10% of people dream of starting their own business and 73% need to continue working for financial reasons in Portugal. No wonder there is a growing number of people considering a second career and looking to create start-ups. In view of this panoram – and inspired by the successful pilots of the programme in other European countries -, the Instituto Pedro Nunes launched in 2020 the Portuguese version of Empreendedorismo 5.0.

In the framework of Better Incubation, Impact Hub joined forces with European-wide partners to achieve systemic change towards a more inclusive social entrepreneurship environment in the region. For that end, thematic Communities of Practice (CoP) were developed as a means for participants to exchange their knowledge and share their experiences on how to best support entrepreneurs from under-represented groups. Empreendedorismo 5.0 was one of the CoP’s programmatic approaches appointed as an inspiring best practice devoted to supporting seniors’ entrepreneurship.

How are they supporting seniors’ entrepreneurship?

Developed within the scope of EIT Health, a ‘knowledge and innovation community’ of 150 partner organisations created in 2015, Empreendedorismo 5.0 is aimed at people over 50 – employed, unemployed, retired or inactive – who have a business idea and want to develop entrepreneurial skills, as well as enhance their experience, strengthen their network of contacts, share and learn. Its overall goal is to support the creation of startups aimed at healthy living, reducing the risk of financial vulnerability and active aging, providing new perspectives, tools and knowledge through courses.

Empreendedorismo 5.0 is supporting seniors’ entrepreneurial endeavors through an eight-week entrepreneurship capacity-building training and mentoring programme delivered in a mixed format. The format provides a combination of 3 face-to-face sessions and remote online sessions.

In this way, regardless of their place of residence – and level of knowledge, as it does not require prior experience -, participants can engage in the most convenient way for them and adapt at their own pace, whilst maintaining permanent online access to content, trainers and mentors.

WHAT I APPRECIATE THE MOST IS THE SENSE OF COMMUNITY INVOLVED AND THE TRUST THAT THE GROUP HAS BEEN ABLE TO BUILD WHEN IT COMES TO PROGRAMMES. – Emprendedorismo 5.0’s participant

With a previously defined training trajectory including a vast array of topics, the progreamme’s participants learn to explore the market, and receive permanent personal specialized support in various subjects related to entrepreneurship and the world of business.

Despite the fact that Empreendedorismo 5.0 is a recent initiative and is still ongoing, the results achieved so far are worthy of recognition and reveal a promising future: among the more than 50 selected participants, over 40 seniors have been highly involved in the process together with 33 mentors. In addition, three start-up projects have already been created and supported within the programme’s framework.

Author of this post: Impact Hub

Innovation for More Inclusive Urban Spaces: the Case of MiFriendly Cities

Posted on April 13, 2022April 13, 2022 by Michaela Lednova

Innovation for More Inclusive Urban Spaces: the Case of MiFriendly Cities

With over 100 languages spoken daily within its borders, the West Midlands is considered to be the most diverse and heavily urbanised area in the United Kingdom, outside of London. For the same reason, it is also believed to be the second most diverse region in Europe. As one might imagine, all this diversity brings with it an untapped resource of skills and ideas.

Untapping the potential of diverse communities

In October 2017, the European Union’s Urban Innovative Actions fund awarded €4,2 million to Coventry, Birmingham and Wolverhampton for a 3-year initiative called MiFriendly Cities. The project looked to develop innovative, community-led and sustainable approaches to enhance the contribution of refugees and migrants across the region.

In a nutshell, the aim of MiFriendly Cities was to build stronger communities and promote innovation for more inclusive urban spaces. How? By encouraging employers, health services and the wider public to come together and drive change at both city and regional level. While some of the developed activities were tailored to specific groups, the overall programme involved a broad range of residents in the region, including the ones who define themselves as ‘migrants’.

In the context of the Better Incubation’s Communities of Practice targeted at understanding migrants’ challenges to entrepreneurship and leveraging learnings from successful inclusive experiences, MiFriendly Cities was appointed as an inspiring best practice that supports vulnerable entrepreneurs in the European region. Promoted by Impact Hub along with partners, Better Incubation is an Europe-based initiative dedicated to achieving systemic change through enhancing Business Support Organisations’ skills, methods and tools towards a more diverse entrepreneurship environment.

MiFriendly Cities: Approach and Methodology

To reach their goal, the innovative programme of activities delivered by MiFriendly Cities focused on five main themes. For the first one – jobs -, a network called ‘Migration Friendly Employers’ was created. The Network’s aim was mainly centered in strengthening the workforce of the West Midlands by creating a robust infrastructure which offers ongoing support and increases contact between communities in the workplace.

The second axis, skills, aimed at identifying skills gaps in the region and creating pathways towards further education and employment opportunities for refugees and migrants. They put together an innovative training programme that could benefit all communities and acknowledged the region’s aspirations to become the centre for advanced manufacturing in Europe.

Similarly, by supporting local and refugee and migrant entrepreneurs to start new businesses, MiFriendly Cities hoped to expand job opportunities and strengthen the wider economy. The region also faces many social challenges – in areas such as housing and healthcare – they wanted to meet these challenges by nurturing and funding creative grassroots projects, which are aimed at improving the quality of life for everyone.

MOST CRITICALLY TO OUR VISION, REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS WERE INVOLVED AT EVERY STEP OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT. – MIFRIENDLY CITIES

By combining these three fields of action, the project envisioned to empower refugees and migrants to aid in driving the economic success of the region by creating new job and work placement opportunities, engaging with employers about hiring from within this community, and highlighting the skills and passion of everyone in our cities.

Additionally, MiFriendly Cities also focused on supporting refugees and migrants active participation in the civil society and encouraging them to use their voices – to spread a message, share a story, or simply to get to know other people in their city. To build the confidence to do so, the migrants’ comprehension of their legal, civil and political rights was considered an important factor for the program as well.

Finally, by promoting the values and knowledge of effective community building and encouraging innovation for more inclusive urban spaces, the project looked to invest in the future of the region, and inspire cities across Europe to also become the MiFriendly Cities of the future.

Highlights from the wrap up

By the end of 2020, MiFriendly Cities had invested €80,000 in migrant social entrepreneurs, 28 projects were pitched for seed funding and 16 social enterprises were registered as businesses. If that was not good enough, with support of the programme, an initial of 45 jobs were created, more than 40 migrants and refugees were trained, and 2,361 beneficiaries were supported. To date, 44% of the involved social enterprises have been able to adapt and continue throughout the lockdown with many more planning for an uncertain future.

Author of this post: Impact Hub

RCCI: Creating a culture of social innovation and entrepreneurship for youth in Bulgaria

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Better Incubation

Last February, EBN Certification and Impact Manager, Florian Sora met RCCI Executive Director Milen Dobrev, Desislava Dimitrova, Expert EU programs and projects as well as the overall team of the EU|BIC, Innobridge in the framework of Better Incubation project.

RCCI is involved in the Better Incubation project, implemented by EBN with two partner pan European networks (Impact Hub and European Venture Philanthropy Association), focusing on building capacities and providing tools and methodologies for the mainstream business support organisations to adopt inclusive incubation practices. Together with other 10 EBN members and 10 Impact Hubs, RCCI actively participates in the Communities of practice which serve as a platform for the incubators to learn and experiment with the new incubation approaches by reaching out to groups of entrepreneurs who are underrepresented or face greater barriers in business creation and self-employment. Under this initiative, RCCI has launched its pilot programme for young entrepreneurs and provides them with tailored business support services, including coaching and mentoring so they can feel more confident to seize new business opportunities and run their businesses ideas.

Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry is an NGO for the public benefit, providing a wide range of quality services to over 1000 member and non-member companies to help develop and expand their businesses, both at home and internationally. It proactively contributes to the economic development of the Ruse region, provides support and representation of the business and entrepreneurs on a regional and national level (also through the National Network of Chambers of Commerce and Industries and EBN).

Thanks to the recommendations of the EU|BIC community and the EBN secretariat colleagues, the Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) – the regional body responsible for the Promotion of the economic development of the Bulgarian Ruse region – and its EU|BIC were able to share and transfer good practices on those topics. As a result of our common work, our organization was one of the first in the country to support social entrepreneurial ideas even though national legislation on the social economy was not in place in 2015.

With 6 partners from 4 countries, RCCI drew out and promotes the competencies that a European Expert in Social Innovation Incubation should possess as part of ESII project (2015 -2017).

As members of the EU|BIC community, we were among the first to support the creation of an European online ecosystem for social innovation, aiming to match social challenges with their solutions – SocialChallenges.eu. We built on that momentum and now we actively promote the concept of socially responsible business and continue to educate our society on the topic.

At RCCI we believe that the entrepreneurial mindset should be promoted at a very young age, and we took the challenge to transfer the know-how we previously built to the education system. We started involving students aged 12 to 15 in novel education programmes, focused on social entrepreneurship and its importance. We are happy to say that thanks to the involvement of real social entrepreneurs from several EU countries in the process we managed to raise young people’s awareness towards the important social issues and to empower them with the key knowledge and skills. We were deeply impressed by the presentation of children’s ideas within Better Incubation local pitching session in Ruse and are confident to say that among them there are going to be some future social entrepreneurs.

On a more personal level, I am thrilled to say that being part of an international community of practice, as part of the Better Incubation project, was extremely beneficial and further improved my expertise around social and youth entrepreneurship. What’s more, I was able to meet with many high-qualified professionals with whom I hope to continue working in the future.

Desislava Dimitrova, Expert EU programs and projects at RCCI

Picture taken during the pitching session of the Youth Entrepreneurship Support Programme in Ruse CCI.

Better Incubation Inclusive Entrepreneurship Workshop Series

Posted on March 8, 2022March 10, 2022 by Better Incubation

Discover how to make your incubation services more inclusive and supportive of entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups.

The transition to an inclusive and green economy is gaining momentum. To build a better future, one that’s good for people and the planet, we need better business. Now is the time to bring your services closer to the whole of society.

If you have responsibility for designing and implementing entrepreneur incubation services or support programs, this curated series of online events will help you identify ways to modify your offerings for people from groups underrepresented in the enterprise sector.

Come together with practitioners, social entrepreneurs, subject matter experts and leading impact sector organisations to be:

Inspired by a range of best practices and insights related to specific underrepresented groups
Connected with like-minded peers, with whom you can learn from and collaborate with
Enabled to modify your services with knowledge and methodologies you can implement your teams

We start the workshop series with an exploration of common cultural and structural barriers facing groups underrepresented in the enterprise sector, taking a more intersectional perspective before moving on to deep dives on specific groups, offering inspiration and guidance based on actions and methodologies already successfully implemented on the ground across Europe, to support implementation of inclusive practice.

Introduction to Inclusive Entrepreneurship	Inclusive Entrepreneurship Deep Dives
Introduction to Inclusive Entrepreneurship	Migrants and refugees	Women	Youth	Seniors	People with disabilities
29 March	20 April	10 May	31 May	22 June	12 July
10am-12pm CET	10am-12.30pm CET	10am-12.30pm CET	10am-12.30pm CET	10am-12.30pm CET	10am-12.30pm CET

Who should you expect?

Introduction to Inclusive Entrepreneurship

Join a panel of impact sector leaders to explore cross-cutting barriers to underrepresented groups in the enterprise sector, and participate in a discussion about what has been and can be done to change things for the better and to create a just and inclusive economy. You will also connect with and learn from peers from other business support organisations.

Panel: Max Bulakovskiy, Policy Analyst, OECD; Tatiana Glad, Executive Director, Impact Hub Network; Shannon Pfohman, Policy & Advocacy Director, Caritas Europa.

Inclusive Entrepreneurship Deep Dives

The next five workshops will each focus on a specific underrepresented group – Migrants & refugees; Women; Youth; Seniors; People with disabilities. Each workshop will create a safe and supportive space to offer inspiration and guidance for business support organisations, based on actions and methodologies already successfully implemented on the ground across Europe, to support implementation of inclusive practice.

You will learn from subject matter experts, social entrepreneurs with lived experiences of the challenges being explored, and business support organisations leading the way in developing and delivering inclusive incubation services. Line-ups for each workshop will be announced soon.

Who is this workshop series for?

These workshops are designed to support people with responsibility for designing and implementing entrepreneur incubation services or support programs, for example program or service managers. If you work for an organisation that provides business support to entrepreneurs, and you are interested in how you can develop new or modify existing services to make them more inclusive, then these workshops are for you!

There will be a range of experience in the room, from people with years of experience supporting people from underrepresented groups to grow their businesses, to people who are only just starting to think about how they can make their offerings more inclusive of social entrepreneurs and people from underrepresented groups. Some may be building a service from scratch while others will be modifying existing programmes.

Please note that the workshop content is based on European practice, perspectives and knowledge. However, if you work for a business support organisation operating outside of Europe, you are still very much welcome to participate and hopefully find value in the space created.

What is Better Incubation?

Better Incubation is a 2-year programme (2021 – 2023) funded by the European Union Programme for Employment and Social Innovation, and is led by three network organisations: The European Business and Innovation Centre Network, Impact Hub and the European Venture Philanthropy Association.

The aim of Better Incubation is to foster inclusive and social entrepreneurship in Europe by mobilising and empowering Business Support Organisations (BSOs) with capacities to effectively help the social enterprises and potential entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups to grow their businesses. Read more here.

How can you participate?

Please sign up here for as many sessions as you wish!

After completing the sign up for, you will receive joining details enabling you to register for the workshops that are of interest to you.

If you have any questions about this workshop series please reach out to: info@betterincubation.eu.

How inclusive are our labour markets really? Caritas Europa announces the Caritas CARES! European poverty report

Posted on February 11, 2022 by Better Incubation

The new Caritas CARES! European poverty report on inclusive labour markets focuses on the challenges that should be tackled urgently to make European labour markets more accessible and more inclusive, based on our vision for sustainable social models.

This latest Caritas report looks at the challenges that should be tackled urgently to make labour markets more inclusive and accessible, based on Caritas Europa’s vision for sustainable social models and on existing EU and Council of Europe processes, programmes and legal instruments. It also includes an overview of different measures being proposed at EU level to address these challenges and to respond to the lasting consequences of COVID-19 and concludes with Caritas’ policy recommendations.

On February 21st, Caritas Europa will present the report and its findings and recommendations, and will debate with strategic partners and EU policymakers on how to truly make labour markets in Europe more inclusive.

Join Caritas launch event “How inclusive are our labour markets really?”, with Helena Dalli, Commissioner for Equality.

Switch Pitch with Seed Capital Bizkaia & Ship2B

Switch Pitch with Cartier Women’s Initiative

Switch Pitch with Feelsgood Capital and Portus Buda Group FMC

Switch Pitch with World Startup

Switch Pitch with INCO

Switch Pitch with FASE

What can you expect?

When and what?

About the Organisations

Empreendedorismo 5.0: supporting seniors entrepreneurship in Portugal

Innovation for More Inclusive Urban Spaces: the Case of MiFriendly Cities

Untapping the potential of diverse communities

MiFriendly Cities: Approach and Methodology

Highlights from the wrap up

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