- Our project: 4 Green Innovation Camps and 5 Teachers meetings
- Partner schools: Foss School, Oslo, Norway and Lillerudsgymnasiet, Karlstad, Sweden.
- Participants: Entrepreneurship students and teachers.
- Other Partners: Junior Achievement, Oslo and Junior Achievement, Värmland. BI Oslo business School.
- Taskgivers: ELVIA, electricity company, Norway. BWELL health app, Sweden. Q-MEIERIENE, dairy, Norway. LÖFBERGS KAFFE, coffee company, Sweden.
All posts by Eline Hjelle
Learning to do business in Europe: LATVIA, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. PROJECT 2014-1016
OUR FOURTH CONFERENCE IN OSLO
Monday 8. February
In the morning the Latvian students, teachers and headmaster arrived, and met the Norwegian students, teacher and headmaster for lunch at Foss school.
After lunch we had an entrepreneurship lesson with a presentation of all the seven mini companies that were present. From Latvia: Framed Lights and Bbag. From Norway: Minihagen, Matfatet, Usefood, eldre@nett and EnergYou. This lesson we also prepared the Oslo Trade Fair at Wednesday.
In the evening the Latvian group went to the Norwegian Opera to see the ballet “Giselle”. The Norwegians were very busy preparing the Trade Fair.
Thuesday 9. february
This day was also dedicated to Trade Fair preparations, and everybody met for lunch at Foss.
After lunch the Swdish group arrived and we had presentation at the entrepreneurship lesson. The Swedish mini companies were: Let’s be proud, Lact and Soda Speakers. The five more mini companies at Foss were: Libellus, Lucio, Dux, Tidsklemmen and Billisa.
In the evening we all had a Thai-dinner at school together.
Wednesday 10. February
This was the big Trade Fair day! Everybody arrived at Norges Varemesse at Lillestrøm at 8 o’clock ready to prepare the stand for two hours before the welcome ceremony.
The Latvian and Swedish mini companies participated in the following four competitions: Best pitch, Best stand, Best salesteam, Best seller. And the Latvian mini company Framed Lights won the 1st prize for the Best Salesteam!! One of the Swedish students were nominated among the best sellers and Bbag from Latvia was nominated among the best Pitches. Congratulations!!
8 of the 10 Norwegian mini companies won 11 prizes and had 11 nominations so our student group could not complain about the results:)
After the Trade Fair we had a dinner at one of Oslo’s best pizza restaurants, Villa Paradiso. We were tired, but happy!
Thursday 11. February
This day was our day for cooperation, inspiration and evaluation! We started in the morning with an Innovation Camp, arranged at Foss school by the company EVRY.
As one of the largest IT companies in the Nordics, EVRY provides very extensive deliveries to Nordic companies, financial institutions, national public sector entities, municipalities and health authorities. Thomas Hafstad (a former Foss entrepreneurship student) and Miriam Øyna from EVRY divided the students into international groups to work with this task: “Future banking for young Europeans”.
After three hours intense work, the students presented impressive solutions for future banking! The winners were Group 4 with “Budget Bracelet“, well done!
After lunch at school together we had a lecture by a Norwegian gründer, Arne Kollandsrud from Tide Tec. TideTec is a Norwegian tidal company focused on developing the most efficient and flexible turbine technology for tidal barrage/lagoon and flood protection systems. TideTec holds several patents for state of the art tidal turbines and construction of tidal power plants.
Arne focused on innovation and how to get an idea into a real product and how to start up a company.
In the end of this day, the students wrote their CV’s, using the Europass web site, that helps you to fill in five documents to make your skills and qualifications clearly and easily understood in Europe.
The farewell dinner was at the restaurant at PS hotels, close to school, which is a hotel that is a innovative place that “works as a tool for people who need advice, knowledge and experience on their way to full employment, in an inclusive workplace”.
Friday 12. February
Tha next day the Swedes left early for Strömstad in their cars, and the Latvians had planned some sightseeing. We started out with a small concert in Oslos’s oldest church, Gamle Aker kirke.
Then we had a (cold!) stroll in The Vigeland Park and headed for Holmenkollen. We went by lift all the way to the top of the skijump and also visited the Ski museum. After this visit it was time for some refreshments and later on dinner at Grünerløkka and in the evening the plane to Latvia:)
THANK YOU, EVERYBODY FOR AN INSPIRING WEEK TOGETHER!
Thank you, Ola, Irene and Gunilla!
These days in Strömstad with one day at Koster, were very refreshing and inspiring for us from Riga and Oslo. It was really an experience to visit Koster, and everybody wants to return already!
It was interesting and challenging to be involved in solving a task from “real businesslife”, as we understand that also Strömstads authorities and tourist offices are working with.
Thank you Ola, Irene and Gunilla for a impressive and wonderful planned event!! See you in Oslo in february.
PRESENTATIONS IN FRONT OF THE JURY
The jury was very impressed and a lot of brave and creative solutions for Koster Islands in winter were presented, among these:
- Glass tunnels under water
- A lobster and music festival
- A sustainable resort
- A hotel with underwater rooms
- Base camp activities
- A restaurant with seafood you have caught yourself and cooking classes before you eat the food
Working with the task
Most of Wednesday the international groups worked hard with the task. We also went to Daftö Camping to get inspiration and information.
The groups had to prepare a buiness plan, a marketing campaign, a commercial and a vision: What will Kosterhavet National Park and the surrounding environment look like in 10 years?
Hard work, all in English while learning about each other’s different ways to solve tasks.
Everyone has to adapt and work concentrated to get a good result for the group.
THE TASK
Assignment 1 Business concept / Business plan / Marketing campaign
CREATE A BUSINESS CONCEPT WITH EMPHASIS ON SUSTAINABLE TOURIST ACTIVITIES IN KOSTERHAVET NATIONAL PARK AND THE SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT.
Your target group is European youths age 20 to 30 years. The business idea should be based on sustainable activities which should meet the certification criteria of Nature’s Best (a Swedish national quality label for nature tours).
Asssignment 2 Create a Vision
CREATE A VISION ABOUT KOSTERHAVET NATIONAL PARK AND ABOUT THE SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT WITH A TEN YEAR PERSEPCTIVE. WHAT WILL IT LOOK LIKE TEN YEARS FROM NOW?
A great day at Koster
At Koster we visited Koster Sea National Park Center and saw a film and then divided into two groups: one group had a guided tour in the Center and the other group had a crab fishing competition outside.
Later on we all rented bikes and had a guided tour around Koster, we looked at the sorroundings and had a very nice lunch at charming Koster Gardens: carrot soup and apple cake.
After lunch we climbed the island’s highest point to see the view.
Impressed to have been watching this island’s many charming places we went back to Naturum to get the task for Innovation Camp.
OUR THIRD INNOVATION CAMP IN STRÖMSTAD’S ARCHIPELAGO
In September we met again, 9 students from Latvia, 10 students from Sweden and 12 students from Norway. And 3 Latvian teachers, 3 Swedish teachers and 1 Norwegian teacher. Everybody excited about getting to know the other entrepreneurs. The first evening we had dinner together and then went to school to present our countries and mini companies.
THANKS TO OUR KIND HOSTS IN THE BEAUTIFUL CITY RIGA!
We are very grateful to our kind and hospitable hosts, both students, teachers and Headmaster. They have all been working very hard to plan and conduct these eventful days for us in the beautiful city Riga! We went home with a lot of new exciting experiences and interesting knowledge.
We look forward to meet again in Strømstad this autumn.