Did you know that every Tartu youth center has its own focus area? For example, Lille youth center focuses on health, while Ilmatsalu focuses on nature. Anne youth center's focus is on developing youth entrepreneurship. For this purpose, the Tartu Youth work camp takes place every summer, where young people can gain their first work experience. To develop entrepreneurship, Anne youth center also offers a workshop called 'An Idea as a Seed of Success'. But what exactly is entrepreneurship, and why is it important to develop entrepreneurship in young people?
Proactiveness vs. Entrepreneurship
Although these two words sound very similar, they are not quite the same. The concept of 'ettevõtlus' (entrepreneurship) focuses more on the creation and management of businesses, the so-called economic aspect. 'Ettevõtlikkus' (entrepreneurial spirit), however, is a more abstract word that encompasses several qualities – creativity, problem-solving skills, initiative, leadership skills, conscientiousness, taking responsibility, projects, ideas, and risk-taking. Entrepreneurial spirit is an important personal trait when starting a business and can eventually lead to it, but not always and not necessarily.
Why is youth entrepreneurship important?
In youth work, developing youth entrepreneurship is a priority, and in youth centres, we strive to encourage, support, and foster it in every way. Developing the skills mentioned above helps young people to cope more successfully independently in their future lives and to enter the labour market. A quiet and shy young person can become a future project manager or entrepreneur. It is important to start developing entrepreneurship at a young age, as new skills are better solidified this way and are highly likely to persist into adulthood.
How can we support youth entrepreneurship?
Alongside school and hobby activities, youth work is an ideal opportunity to foster enterprising citizens. As we must be youth-centred, young people can largely shape their own lives through youth work. We listen to young people's wishes and ideas, offer them the opportunity to implement and organize these themselves, and step by step, we foster their courage to express their ideas boldly and bring them to life. We also offer young people opportunities to contribute to event organization as volunteers. Youth workers here act as guides and mentors. If an undertaking doesn't go as planned, that too is an important lesson, helping them to prepare better next time and avoid previous mistakes.
From January to April, Anne Youth Center is participating in the pilot project 'Entrepreneurial Youth Center,' during which the level of participating youth centers will be assessed based on various entrepreneurship-related criteria. A maximum of Level 5 can be achieved, which indicates the highest level of an entrepreneurial youth center – young people are supported and involved whenever possible, included in decision-making processes, given the opportunity to express themselves, and recognized for their contributions.
Naturally, our center aims for the highest – 2025 will be an entrepreneurial year!
If you also have an idea you want to implement but need help and encouragement, feel free to come to the youth centre, and we'll try to get your plan off the ground together!
Author: Maarja Enumäe
