WoDiLab Participants Take the Stage at sTARTUp Days 2026 in Tartu
From 28 to 30 January 2026, the WoDiLab – Women’s Digital Course Creation Lab project was represented at sTARTUp Days 2026 in Tartu, Estonia – one of the leading startup and innovation events in the Baltic region.
The event brought together thousands of entrepreneurs, investors, mentors, and innovation ecosystem actors from across Europe, creating a dynamic environment for idea testing, networking, and cross-sector collaboration.
Bringing Training into a Real Startup Environment
During the event, project partners organised a dedicated WoDiLab masterclass, introducing the project’s methodology for supporting women aged 40 and over in developing digital skills and launching their own online courses.
Six of the most active participants from the first WoDiLab group were given a particularly important opportunity: they attended the conference free of charge, and three of them presented their emerging course ideas to an international audience.
For many, this was their first public presentation in a professional start-up environment – an important milestone only a few weeks after beginning the 16-week WoDiLab programme.
Early Results: Course Ideas Taking Shape
Within the first weeks of training, participants demonstrated clear and focused value propositions.
Among the ideas presented:
Marina Kožaronoka (Latvia):
“My course is for women over 30 who are mothers or caregivers of teenagers and want a deeper emotional connection with their teens but struggle with communication and excessive screen time in family life. It helps them create meaningful, screen-free bonds through a guided needle-felting process that supports open conversations and emotional closeness.”
Nansy Liiv (Estonia):
“My course is designed for new managers and first-time team leads who are transitioning from being experts to leading others and experiencing self-doubt. It helps them build confidence, discover their leadership style, and grow into their new role without burning out.”
Iveta Graudiņa (Latvia):
“My course is for early-stage founders with high-growth ideas who struggle to communicate their value clearly to investors. It helps them develop concise 3–5 minute pitches that investors understand, remember, and want to fund.”
These presentations show how WoDiLab combines structured online learning with practical, real-world experience. Participants are not only developing digital products but also learning to communicate value clearly and confidently in market-oriented environments.
“Participating in sTARTUp Day enabled our participants to move beyond the training environment and test their ideas in a real entrepreneurial setting. This early exposure strengthens their confidence, sharpens their messaging, and connects them to the wider startup ecosystem in the Central Baltic region,” says Rita Ivanova, WoDiLab project representative and mentor at Daugavpils University.
Cross-Border Learning in Action
WoDiLab connects participants from Latvia and Estonia within a shared learning framework. The programme integrates mentoring, peer collaboration, and structured digital training, while encouraging early testing of ideas in real entrepreneurial ecosystems.
Participation in sTARTUp Day 2026 demonstrates how the project bridges education and market reality, strengthening women’s digital competencies, entrepreneurial confidence, and cross-border cooperation in the Central Baltic region.
WoDiLab is led by Daugavpils University as the lead partner and is implemented in cooperation with Tartu Business Advisory Services in Estonia.
The project is funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg Central Baltic Programme 2021–2027, supporting cross-border cooperation and regional development.
