The Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs programme was a great opportunity for Laura & Eleni (as well as for EKO’s team), because it gave them the chance to connect & address both personal & organisational needs. Laura (from Tenerife), was looking forward to gain practice in a multinational team like EKO’s, located in Greece, with previous experience in international mobility & European project proposals & implementation. She also wanted to gain international/intercultural team working experience, explore the national market & the good practices in the field of social innovation & entrepreneurship. Eleni wanted to extend her professional network of her organisation & build an international forum of professionals, gain fresh creative ideas & insights; get support in the coordination in the on-going projects & in the creation of new ones. Both of them had previous knowledge & experience in areas of their interest & the collaboration was fruitful & long-lasting because they complemented each other and improved themselves.
Laura had the opportunity to participate in all the phases of the EKO´s ongoing projects & as well propose new ideas (related with her personal & professional interests: social inclusion, employment, entrepreneurship, gender equality, EU citizenship, multinational networks of knowledge) & involved herself in the writing, editing & submitting of the new proposals. She was shadowing her tutor & other team members at EKO, asking questions, taking notes & participating in all the tasks assigned in each part of the projects, getting directly involved in more than 10 projects. She learned how to develop & plan a marketing strategy with excellence & an innovative approach & obtained insights on creating, financing, managing & coordinating an NGO. Eleni supported her at any time. Laura also developed skills such as: ability to analyze & solve problems, ability to plan, organize & prioritize work, critical thinking, facility for communication, resistance to stress, adaptability & flexibility.
Eleni (left) and Laura (right)
For Laura, the experience of this internship allowed to bridge the gap between academics & professional environment. In these 5 months she was able to achieve her main goals which were: obtain insights & tools on creating, financing, managing & coordinating an NGO learn how to design new project proposals & to write, edit, submit them under different financing opportunities & different calls gain practice & knowledge in communication, implementation & reporting of local, regional, national or European projects exchange relevant contacts/ideas for future opportunities in partnerships with businesses abroad the country Eleni & EKO also gained fresh insights & experience. Laura involved herself in all the ongoing activities & did her best to bring value to each activity. Some of the projects in which Laura was directly involved were approved & will be implemented by EKOs team in the following year. They also exchanged relevant contacts/ideas for future opportunities in partnership.