Foundation

Entrepreneurship is a fundamental factor of the economic development of all countries.  Eve though the European Union promotes the idea of entrepreneurship and innovativeness to its member states, there is still a lack of entrepreneurial culture and mindset in many of these countries.  The Institute of Entrepreneurship Development, therefore, aims to strengthen the entrepreneurial spirit of all countries and citizens, and especially in youth - who hold the key to the future. The Institute was founded on these grounds in 2005 in Larissa, Greece and is a non-profit organization.

Vision/Mission

Our vision is to create an environment that promotes entrepreneurship, research and the entrepreneurial spirit and mindset of businesses, creating long-lasting relations with society and the academic community. Our vision is anthropocentric and our basic concern is to provide assistance to citizens and disadvantaged groups in order to improve their place in society, by increasing the level of social inclusion and social cohesion of these groups.

Objectives

The Objectives of the Institute include both social and economic development objectives, including the following:

Social Development Objectives:

• - Assistance to developing countries in the fields of education, economic and social development
• - Promotion of human rights and democracy
• - Promotion of activities that contribute to the development of intellectual, economic, social and cultural levels
• - Promotion of voluntary effort and volunteerism
• - Empowering social responsibility and cohesion

Economic Development Objectives:

• - Promotion of the philosophy and principles of entrepreneurship
• - Development of the scientific field of entrepreneurship, promoting dialogue and cooperation
• - Support of innovative ideas

Main Activities

The main activities of the Institute of Entrepreneurship Development include the following:

• - Contribution to the planning and the adoption of regional and national policies for economic and social development issues
• - Initiatives in the field of research and cooperation
• - Consulting of disadvantaged groups
• - Conferences & workshops
• - Electronic Forums
• - Publication and distribution of electronic materials
• - Networking
• - Education & Training
• - Studies
• - Support of innovative entrepreneurial ideas
• - Consulting services for institutions, businesses and individuals on issues relating to entrepreneurship
• - Collaboration with other institutions, unions, universities…etc
• - Publication - Newsletter
• - Promotion of economic, cultural and social development
• - Materialization of national and European programmes and projects
• - Projects Materialised

The main projects that the Institute has materialised and participated in are the following:

• - European Programme Leonardo Da Vinci: European Certification of Advisors/Educators of Social Economy, 2008: The Institute is the lead partner for the ongoing project that focuses on the accreditation of informal knowledge for consultants of social economy.

• - European Programme Leonardo Da Vinci: EMC_Pro, European Professional Experience in Marketing: partner in the project that developed a European system of Certification for professionals in the field of Marketing that do not have any formal educational background.

• - Youth in Action - Action 4.3 “Entertaining and Edificial Web Design” in Manisa, Turkey, 2007

• - Network of promotion of equality through the support of women’s employment and entrepreneurship in the Municipality of Kallithea (Rhodes)

• - Women’s Entrepreneurship - Examination of the obstacles that women entrepreneurs face and the opportunities offered for women’s entrepreneurial activation

• - Networking Actions - Cooperation with the Center of Development of culture of Adapted Sports, 2008

• - Youth in Action Programme - Youth and Enterprises: Focuses on the development of an environmental conscience of youth, businesses and the general public

• - Operational Program of Education and Initial Vocational Training: “Researching obstacles of Women e-Entrepreneurship” - Archimed II, 2006 - The investigation of gender relation with entrepreneurship over the internet and more specifically the diagnosis of obstacles that prevent or even deter women from professional activation on the internet

• - INTERACT Program: Financial Management of the Interreg Project (FIMIP), 2007: In the frame of the particular program, the Institute materialized a number of activities, including the monitoring, evaluation and provision of technical advice to the project management, contribution to the development, documentation and evaluation of questionnaires and statistical analysis, evaluation and composition of report based on the questionnaires in Eastern Macedonia-Thrace.

• - Operational Programme Employment and Vocational Training, EQUAL-Society Actions for NGOs: Support network for gender equality in terms of social entrepreneurship and active support of volunteerism.

• - Cities for Peace and Democracy in Europe: Local sustainable development - Promoting the Voice of Youth

Contact Information

Address: Ioustinianou 3, 41222 Larissa, Greece

Telephone/Fax No.: +30 2410 626 943

E-mail: info@entre.gr

Website: www.entre.gr