Social entrepreneurship training was held at Abdullah Gül University (AGU), Kayseri within the Social Entrepreneurship Network in Turkey project led by Vehbi Koç Foundation in collaboration with Koç University Social Impact Forum (KUSIF), Ashoka Türkiye, Social Innovation Initiative Association (SIID), Innovative Solutions for Sustainable Development Association (SKYÇD), TED University, Mozaik Foundation (Bosnia and Herzegovina), and Social Enterprise UK.
The training was given by 5 trainers from Kayseri working at Erciyes University, Abdullah Gül University, Middle East Development Agency, and Mersin University who received the social entrepreneurship trainer training at Koç University last year.
Social initiatives aim to create social-environmental impact as a priority and are composed of enterprises who earn more than half of their revenue through commercial activities and spend their profits for social purposes. Within the Social Entrepreneurship Network Project, the training aimed to increase the number of social entrepreneurs who would adopt the principle of creating quantifiable positive social impact rather than distributing profits to shareholders or members, or who would not allow profit distribution affect the said main aim negatively. After Kayseri, similar training sessions will also be organized in Gaziantep, Samsun, Bursa, and Van.
During the two-day training on the AGU Sümer Campus, 25 participants, mostly students and new graduates, were informed in social innovation, social financing and social impact, which are considered indispensable areas of social entrepreneurship. At the event, information was shared and applied on ways of increasing social impact, social entrepreneurship and active citizenship, business plan and revenue model development, community building, the best social entrepreneurship practices in Turkey and around the world, and finding funds. Non-formal education methods were used at the training with the purpose of enhancing social entrepreneurship potentials of the Kayseri youth, increasing their awareness in this area, and supporting them to realize the social entrepreneurship projects in their minds.
Within the Social Entrepreneurship Network Project, training sessions will continue in Gaziantep, Samsun, Bursa, and Van, which are included in the project besides Kayseri, in the following days. The training aims to raise new candidates for social entrepreneurship around the country. Interested parties follow training announcements at socialgirisimcilikagi.org and @SosyalGirisimTR social media accounts.
The Social Entrepreneurship Network Project in Turkey is being implemented under the CSO Partnerships and Networks on Strengthening Cooperation between Public Sector and CSOs Grant Scheme. The scheme aims to support partnerships and networks to be established by civil society organizations that are financially and administratively strong and have prior experience with projects. Thus, through those partnerships and networks, it also aims to strengthen cooperation between the public sector and civil society organizations and to increase the capacity of civil society organizations.
Within the scope of the grant scheme, 10 civil society organizations have received a grant of approximately 4.3 million Euros. The CSO Partnerships and Networks is being financed from the 2014 budget of the "Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance" (IPA II).
