Towards collaborative practice - European conference on youth work, social innovation and enterprise

With high levels of youth unemployment in Europe entrepreneurship is increasingly proposed to young people as an alternative way to realize their potential. A wide range of skills are seen as entrepreneurial and useful to entrepreneurs. They can ensure a better transition from education to the labour market for young people, improving their employability and giving them more chances to find or create the jobs to which they aspire. Youth work enables young people to develop the entrepreneurial skills which are important in all aspects of their daily lives. However the role of youth work in fostering entrepreneurial learning and entrepreneurship has rarely been a topic of inquiry in its own right. Nevertheless, youth work is a field which has developed tremendously across Europe, whilst ‘Erasmus+ Youth in Action’ has been particularly influential in bringing young people closer to the soft skills they need in a competitive labour market. There are many ways in which youth work can support entrepreneurship, in addition to enhancing entrepreneurial skills in young people. Youth work can help young people make informed decisions through shedding light on the risks of choosing an entrepreneurial career. It can enable more responsible economic behaviours by making young people reflect on the values and ethics of young people’s enterprising ideas. Youth work may therefore encourage young people’s participation in alternative business models – as actors in the social economy – such as associations, cooperatives, foundations and social enterprises. These types of business are in line with the values, practices and attitudes promoted by youth work. They are based on European principles of cooperation, team-work and social impact awareness, and often bring a high level of social innovation. This cross-sector European conference will provide you with the perfect opportunity to engage in a debate on what is within the capacity of youth work when it comes to social entrepreneurship support, to articulate the purposes and value of youth work to policy-makers and the public, promote youth work achievements in the field and explore the bridges that can be built with other entrepreneurship support structures/programmes and the business sector. What’s in it for me? This event is expected to be a forum for meeting and exchange, where you will be able to explore the role of different actors in supporting social entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial learning in different European contexts, share your experiences, examples of good practice, and initiate or strengthen co-operation. You will grasp the connection between youth work, social entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial learning and social innovation by meeting a variety of experts and social entrepreneurs in dynamic settings. Through field visits of a wide range of social businesses and meetings with entrepreneurs you will gain inspiration for new projects. You will get information, inspiration and plenty of networking opportunities. This will help generate innovative ideas and projects with a strong social impact in Europe. Objectives of the conference - Clarify and promote the role of youth work in providing entrepreneurial learning and supporting aspiring young social entrepreneurs; - Create a common understanding of social entrepreneurship among youth workers; - Map social entrepreneurship support structures/ actors/ policies/ programmes/ financial schemes at national and European level; - Initiate and reinforce future cooperation between youth workers and other relevant stakeholders; - Facilitate the sharing of practices and methods useful for social entrepreneurship creation and support; - Promote “Erasmus+” contribution to supporting entrepreneurial learning and social entrepreneurship.