Last week I was participating on Erasmus+ training “Back to the Roots” in Pontevedra in Spain which was organised by “Ticket2Europe”. The topic of training was how to obtain and promote entrepreneurship in rural areas, keep these areas active and alive. As a past participant of the program Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs, I was very interested into the training, also because I understand the reality of increasing number of deserted rural areas and the importance of keeping these areas interesting for future businesses.
Program of the training was based on practical learning. Each day we were introduced to a new entrepreneurial practice which was adapted to the specific area, its opportunities and its risks.
We saw how a local community can join, stand together and contribute with solving local environmental problem of invasive Eucalyptus in the forests. There were successful examples how to bring back to life deserted villages, in this case with a co-working & co-living space. Each day of the training we had a chance to taste amazing local food and to see innovative ways how to manage gastronomic and welcoming businesses.
In the last days of the training we were introduced to the program Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs. In the year 2020 I had a privilege and an unforgettable chance to participate in this program for three months in Singapore, where I was introduced into Asian business culture and had a chance for developing my yet unrealised business idea. “Back to the Roots” was an unexpected upgrade of my experience in Singapore, it was a learning experience about successful business and it showed me different perspectives on business management.
At the introduction to the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs we also had a chance to find out about an ongoing project of a young Armenian entrepreneur collaborating with a Spanish hostel chain.
At the end of this inspiring experience I realised that the training was perfect intro for the participants getting into the entrepreneurship waters, as it was productive booster and change maker for the ones already active in this area.
I am grateful that I had a chance to participate in this Erasmus+ training which was organised by an amazing team!
Žan Strnad (Slovenia)
Participant from Back to the Roots
