Over the weekend, the “kick-off” of the third and final cycle of the project “Be The Future” took place in the premises of “Impact Hub Liepāja”. For the next 6 months, participants will work in international training companies, developing and testing their business ideas.
The event brought together 75 girls both in person and remotely in Latvia, Estonia and Sweden. The opening of the cycle is just the beginning of the girls’ long adventure in the Be The Future project. 15 teams have been formed, in which four to five young women from at least two partner countries – Latvia, Estonia, Sweden – are working on the development of a joint business idea. In the six-month cycle, the girls will not only learn how to start a business and how to promote their products in the market, but will also test the acquired knowledge in life and improve their English language skills, ”says Zane Feldmane, project manager of the Green and Smart Technology Cluster.
“The weekend positively charged me for a fresh start and gave me more confidence in my ability to do more. It was a fun, intense, creative and active event. I am on a team with four Swedish girls. Together, we plan to implement a business idea that envisages the creation of an application or website for young people who need mental health support. The site will include all the necessary information on the mental health disorders. One of our main goals is to find an opportunity for young people to communicate with each other, express themselves anonymously and meet others with similar experiences, ”tells Kerija Ķeire from Saldus region about the team’s business idea.
At the opening event, the girls were inspired by such industry leaders as Egija Gailuma, CEO of City Bee Latvija, Klāra Lidmane, founder of Red Locker, and Lisa Tswelt, founder of iLLIMOR. The practical lesson on generating ideas was led by Vita Brakovska, Chairwoman of the Board of ZINIS. While Viktorija Martinsone, the founder of co2capture.fund, spoke about creating a business canvas and presenting the idea. Among other things, the girls had the opportunity to meet with several mentors, work in teams, as well as create business canvases, action plans and presentations of business ideas. The event was moderated by the promising student of Ventspils University College Diāna Kukore.
The closing event of the third cycle is planned on August 2022, when the winning team will be determined. It will receive an opportunity to go on a study trip to get to know the start-up environment in one of the European countries.
In Latvia, Estonia and Sweden, the Be the Future project will be implemented until 2022 within the framework of the Central Baltic Program. The project aims to prepare, train and support 225 young women entrepreneurs in setting up and developing international training companies. In Latvia, the project is implemented by the association “Green and Smart Technology Cluster”.
