ChangeMakers – Start-ups for sustainable environment created by youngsters

All Central Baltic countries face the same cross-border challenge: society and business activities should operate on the environment based approach to be sustainable. ChangeMakers aims to enhance entrpreunership mindset yought and development of 50 cross-border mini companies (i.e. student start-ups) with business plans. These student’s start-up simulations are based on enviromental challenges gained from from local business and industry in project activities.

From each country, students 15-19-year-old students and teachers from upper secondary schools or vocational schools are attending the project. They will work in co-operation with each other, together with the experts from partners universities and mentors from enterprises and SMEs. The schools are: FI: Merikarvia upper secondary school, Eurajoki Upper secondary school, Å: Åland vocational school, SE: Värmdö Gymnasium, LA: Salacgriva Secondary School and Engineering High School of Riga Technical University, and EE: Viimis Riigigümnaasium and Gustav Adolfi Gümnaasium. Totally 250 students will participate.

The long-term tools established, developed, tested and improved in ChangeMakers and available beyond the project is an open access ePlatform tool ’ChangeMakers’ on 1) environmental aspects (safety, regulations, legislation) 2) facts on/for entrepreneurs (guideline how to do business and for distance communication), 3) tools for teachers for coaching their students on business making with sustainable elements and 4) pedagogical study module for vocational school and for upper secondary school.

Participating youngsters have built an entrepreunership mindset think out of the box’ within environmental challanges and business opportunities on them with. The tools developed (as part of the ePlatform) and mindset will be shared wider in Central Baltic area and beoynd using various communication channels such as social media.