Sharing best practises with the support environment in Norway
Vrtojba, 1.6.2023
Between 30/5 and 1/6/2023, Primorska Technology Park organised an exchange of best practises with the most successful startup ecosystems in Norway. The focus was on two key topics: how to create the best conditions for startups to develop and how to empower teachers to promote entrepreneurship in the most modern way. The Norwegian experts also met decision-makers from supporting institutions in Goriška and worked with them on the green specialisation of the region. The event ended with the annual evening meeting of the Primorska Technology Park entrepreneurial community, PTP Day. On this occasion, special plaques were awarded to companies that had reached important milestones in their development. The event took place against the backdrop of Primorska Technology Park’s efforts to make the Goriška region one of the most attractive business environments in Central Europe.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP ACADEMY FOR TEACHERS
On 30-31 May 2023, Primorski Technologski Park organised an Entrepreneurship Academy for teachers, where participants – primary and secondary school teachers and workshop facilitators, as well as entrepreneurs – had the opportunity to share best practises in teaching entrepreneurship and mentoring young start-up teams in schools. On 31 May, the meeting was also attended by Prof. Dr Vegard Johansen, who holds the Chair of Lifelong Learning at the Norwegian Institute NTNU and whose studies focus on entrepreneurship education. The Teachers’ Academy took place within the framework of the project POMP, which is funded by the Norwegian Financial Mechanism.
SPECIALISATION IN STARTUP ECOSYSTEMS
In 2022, Primorska Technology Park started networking with the best startup environments from abroad and sharing its knowledge with stakeholders in the Goriška support environment. This year, an in-depth workshop on 1 June at Xcenter focused on the green economy as a future priority.
From the Hydrogen Valley of the Northern Adriatic to the Green Technology Centre, the specialisation of the Goriška region in the field of green technologies is a great opportunity to which the support institutions can also make an important contribution. During the workshop, the guests presented their experiences of how the city of Hamar, as a small centre in Norway, was put on the map of leading ecosystems for VR and AR technologies. The participants, decision makers in the funding institutions in Goriška, identified how to connect in the field of green technologies, what role the different institutions can play, where the region stands at the moment and what the next steps should be to make Goriška visible in the chosen specialisation theme. The discussion was moderated by David Pitschmann from the Lake Science and Technology Park in Klagenfurt, who also has extensive experience in the field of specialised entrepreneurial ecosystems.Norwegian Deputy Ambassador Herman Baskår and Embassy Assistant Timea Ruzsbaczky also took an active part in the meeting and later met with the Deputy Mayor of the Municipality of Nova Gorica, Mark Tribušon.
STARTUPS THAT HAVE ACHIEVED IMPORTANT MILESTONES IN THE LAST YEAR
The evening event 1.6.2023 PTP Day is the annual gathering of the entrepreneurial community of the Goriška region, which is considered the fastest growing entrepreneurial ecosystem in Slovenia. During the event, development plaques were awarded to companies that reached milestones in terms of turnover and jobs created in 2022.
Category Turnover generated
Golden plaque for more than € 1,000,000 turnover: Enetra d.o.o.
Category jobs created:
Bronze plaques for the first job in 2022: Scherz d.o.o., Rok Velo d.o.o., ErgoHide, Hilarij Kusterle s.p., Gina’s Woofs, Matjaž Kljajić s.p., VITAL LIFE d.o.o, Kookidi, Manca Pavlin d.o.o, Coaching and Business Consulting Maruška Likar s.p., Tangible Growth, Andrej Peršolja s.p., Vital Life d.o.o.
Silver plaque for the 5th job created in 2022: Red Pitaya d.o.o.
Gold plaque for the 10th workplace created in 2022: Protectus d.o.o. and Šent Valid Institute
PTP Director Tanja Kožuh said on this occasion:
“The community is important because the environment in which startups work strongly influences their development. It is important because it is driven by success stories and the support of new generations of entrepreneurs by experienced members. I am happy that one of the most important components of our community is to share knowledge, experience and connections”.
Dr Jure Knez, founder and co-owner of one of Slovenia’s most successful technology companies Dewesoft and founder of the Katapult Accelerator, was the guest of honour at the event. Dr Knez is a visionary who is working on a new business incubator in Trbovlje, which will be one of the most advanced in this part of Europe. He spoke about the importance of investing in the start-up environment, which creates the conditions for faster development and more value-added products and services in the region, which in turn leads to a better quality of life. It was pointed out at the event that attracting talent and promising companies to the region is crucial for its development. This requires investing in the development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem where people can make the most of their knowledge, skills and strengths.