Closing conference in Sweden

On Friday 28 March the Swedish team arranged the closing event for the Silver Entrepreneurs project in Sweden, where 20 deeply engaged seniors have learned about entrepreneurship, developed their own projects, and supported each other by creating a wonderful network. The participants pitched their project ideas in front of their peers as well as a jury consisting of external stakeholders from three local organisations working on entrepreneurship, start-ups and innovation. The best pitch was awarded, and the three best ones will take part in the Silver Entrepreneur Closing Event on 28 May in Riga, Latvia.

The Swedish group is a diverse crowd where some participants are still working full-time or part-time, others are retired but very busy with various projects and engagements, some have health challenges and need to take time off for treatments, some are active with their own businesses already, others have developed an active business through the Silver Entrepreneurs project, some have a long-term perspective on their entrepreneurship ideas, while others have been with us to learn something new in good company with other seniors. This variety has been largely positive since it has created a varied and interesting learning environment in which the participants´ lived lives have been the nexus. Focusing on the participants´ own experiences and expertise have created an inclusive and tolerant learning environment with great potential for personal growth, benefitting us all on a personal as well as societal level.

While the Swedish project team has extensive experience in adult learning and entrepreneurship, we have really advanced our learning on entrepreneurship among seniors. There are many lessons learned that we will reflect on and make available to external stakeholders working on senior issues, on adult learning, on innovation and entrepreneurship, and on how to create better communities in our ageing society.