Category: International Office

STAND Up! launches a call for applications for textile and fashion entrepreneurs

[:en] STAND Up! launches a call for applications for textile and fashion entrepreneurs to develop their financial literacy skills The call for applications will include an Access to Finance Training and two events in each country in front of potential investors. A minimum of 50 entrepreneurs will be selected in the Mediterranean region. STAND Up! launches a call for applications for ventures in the textile and clothing sector to develop their financial literacy skills, get knowledge on how to raise funds, and get chances to meet with local and regional investors to potentially secure funding opportunities. The ‘Call for Access to Finance’ will select a minimum of 50 entrepreneurs from the 5 partner countries in Lebanon, Egypt, Italy, Spain, and Tunisia. It means that each country will target at least 10 entrepreneurs. As a supporting element for circular and sustainable business models, the 10 selected entrepreneurs per country will participate in a 10-days-long training that will focus on building the financial projections of the start-ups, understanding their readiness, trends, and opportunities in the investment landscape. The training program, which will be held in each country, will be followed by two events organized by each country to provide investment feedback to the entrepreneurs and to receive local and regional exposure with potential investors. The call is open for textile and fashion start-ups that meet the following criteria: Early-stage/Growth-stage start-ups in the textile and clothing industry Venture with potential scalability, innovative and economically viable Venture with a prototype or product/service ready in the market Venture with an environmental and social impact Venture with a unique value proposition and sustainable business model with clear revenue streams Among the selected participants, at least 50% should have participated in the capacity building phase and incubation phase. The ‘Access to Finance’ training, which will be given in a virtual format in English, will review revenue streams in the business model canvas and develop the investment teaser. It will also focus on identifying the sources of revenues and setting the cost and pricing strategy. In addition to that, it will give tools to entrepreneurs to build a financial forecast based on assumptions. Besides, the training will share knowledge on what investors are more interested to know and to see and the concepts of ‘investable’ or ‘investment ready’. Finally, it will help ventures to find funding options and the type of investors in the markets. This capacity-building training will be followed by two pitching events. During the first matchmaking event, the entrepreneurs will get the chance to pitch their ideas in front of an internal jury and investors to receive feedback on their investment teaser. During the second matchmaking event, ventures will pitch their investment teasers in front of potential investors in order to get the chance to secure investments and potential funding opportunities. The two events will be organized from July until September 2022. The application forms must be filled in through The Switchers.org platform, a free-to-use tool that entrepreneurs have used along with the capacity-building program. Applicants must register on the platform in order to be able to apply! Deadline to submit applications: 21st March 2022 Link to apply for the access to finance call [:ar] STAND Up! launches a call for applications for textile and fashion entrepreneurs to develop their financial literacy skills The call for applications will include an Access to Finance Training and two events in each country in front of potential investors. A minimum of 50 entrepreneurs will be selected in the Mediterranean region. STAND Up! launches a call for applications for ventures in the textile and clothing sector to develop their financial literacy skills, get knowledge on how to raise funds, and get chances to meet with local and regional investors to potentially secure funding opportunities. The ‘Call for Access to Finance’ will select a minimum of 50 entrepreneurs from the 5 partner countries in Lebanon, Egypt, Italy, Spain, and Tunisia. It means that each country will target at least 10 entrepreneurs. As a supporting element for circular and sustainable business models, the 10 selected entrepreneurs per country will participate in a 10-days-long training that will focus on building the financial projections of the start-ups, understanding their readiness, trends, and opportunities in the investment landscape. The training program, which will be held in each country, will be followed by two events organized by each country to provide investment feedback to the entrepreneurs and to receive local and regional exposure with potential investors. The call is open for textile and fashion start-ups that meet the following criteria: Early-stage/Growth-stage start-ups in the textile and clothing industry Venture with potential scalability, innovative and economically viable Venture with a prototype or product/service ready in the market Venture with an environmental and social impact Venture with a unique value proposition and sustainable business model with clear revenue streams Among the selected participants, at least 50% should have participated in the capacity building phase and incubation phase. The ‘Access to Finance’ training, which will be given in a virtual format in English, will review revenue streams in the business model canvas and develop the investment teaser. It will also focus on identifying the sources of revenues and setting the cost and pricing strategy. In addition to that, it will give tools to entrepreneurs to build a financial forecast based on assumptions. Besides, the training will share knowledge on what investors are more interested to know and to see and the concepts of ‘investable’ or ‘investment ready’. Finally, it will help ventures to find funding options and the type of investors in the markets. This capacity-building training will be followed by two pitching events. During the first matchmaking event, the entrepreneurs will get the chance to pitch their ideas in front of an internal jury and investors to receive feedback on their investment teaser. During the second matchmaking event, ventures will pitch their investment teasers in front of potential investors in order to get the chance to secure investments and potential funding opportunities. The two events will

the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences - SLU

[:en]ERASMUS mobility program, Live, Work and Study abroad[:ar]برامج ايراسموس للتبادل التعليمي والثقافي للدراسة والتعلم بالخارج[:]

[:en]There’s a reason Heliopolis University has a keen interest in exchange programs.    HU aims to cooperate with the most progressive and most innovative universities in the world that are suitable to contribute to solutions of the challenges we now face. This results in a unique blend of partnerships with national and international universities, with whom we can now offer incredible opportunities to experience life, work, and study alongside regular research and studies. Therefore, we are happy to deepen our cooperation with one of the finest universities in the area of agriculture, worldwide, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences – SLU and offer further staff and now also student exchange opportunities.  To promote this, SLU recently cooperated in a webinar that was organised by the International office at HU. During the webinar, SLU presented the new ERASMUS mobility program and the exchange opportunities that were granted by the EU as a result of a joint application with HU. SLU presented the studies they are offering and the SLU Research interests that researchers pursue in areas relevant to HU. It was interesting to see different cultural angles.  Although, it has been a turbulent semester, with distance learning and many restrictions due to COVID-19. The webinar delivered many points, but the most crucial part was that we will not leave the pandemic effect on our international relations and exchange program.  We believe it will be a fruitful collaboration since our missions are very much aligned with each other. Special thanks to Assem Abu Hatab, Associate Professor, Department of Economics, SLU. Coordinator for Global Development at NJ Faculty, SLU Global, SLU  International Affairs Gabrielle Lagerkvist, International Officer at the Division of Educational Affairs; International Mobility Unit.  Geir Löe, International Officer at the Division of Educational Affair. Yasmin Abass, International Relations Officer of Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development and Sigward von Laue, President of Research and International Affairs, to provide better opportunities to develop HUSD staff and students.   We had the pleasure of meeting amazing people, building a solid network, and exchanging with top industry experts. [:ar]  تهتم جامعة هليوبوليس للتنمية المستدامة ببرامج التبادل، حيث تسعى إلى التعاون مع الجامعات الوطنية والدولية الأكثر تقدمًا وإبداعًا في العالم، التي تساهم بحلول لمواجهة التحديات التي نواجهها الآن، وتتيح فرصًا  لتجربة الحياة والعمل والدراسة جنبًا إلى جنب مع الدراسات البحثية المنتظمة. لذلك، يسعدنا تعميق تعاوننا مع واحدة من أرقى الجامعات في مجال الزراعة، الجامعة السويدية للعلوم الزراعية – SLU لتقديم المزيد من فرص التبادل للموظفين وكذلك للطلاب.   ولتعزيز هذا التعاون، نظم المكتب العلاقات الدولية بجامعة هليوبوليس مؤخرًا ندوة عبر الإنترنت بالتعاون مع الجامعة السويدية للعلوم الزراعية – SLU. خلال الندوة ناقشت الجامعة السويدية للعلوم الزراعية برنامج ايراسموس للتبادل التعليمي والثقافي التي وافق عليها الاتحاد الأوروبي نتيجة لطلب مشترك مع منظمة التعاون والتنمية في الميدان الاقتصادي. كما ناقشت بعض الدراسات والأبحاث التي يتابعها الباحثون في المجالات ذات الصلة. على الرغم من إضطراب الدراسة لهذا العام، ومع التعلم عن بعد والعديد من القيود بسبب فيروس كورونا. إلا أن العديد من النقاط قد نوقشت، ويظل الجزء الأكثر أهمية هو أننا لن نترك الوباء يؤثر على علاقاتنا الدولية وبرنامج التبادل. لهذا نعتقد أنه سيكون تعاونًا مثمرًا بين الشريكين حيث أن مهماتنا تسير على درب واحد. ونخص بالشكر، دكتور عاصم أبو حطب؛ أستاذ مشارك؛ منسق التنمية العالمية في كلية NJ، قسم الاقتصاد بالجامعة السويدية للعلوم الزراعية. الشؤون الدولية غابرييل لاغركفيست، مسؤولة دولية في قسم الشؤون التعليمية؛ وحدة النقل الدولي. غير لوي ، مسؤول دولي في قسم الشؤون التعليمية.  ياسمين عباس، مسؤولة العلاقات الدولية بجامعة هليوبوليس للتنمية المستدامة وسيغوارد فون لاو، رئيس البحوث والشؤون الدولية، لتوفير فرص أفضل لتطوير موظفي والطلاب جامعة هليوبوليس.  لقد كان من دواعي سرورنا أن التقينا بأشخاص رائعين، وبناء شبكة علاقات قوية، والتبادل الخبرة مع كبار خبراء الصناعة. [:]

Ambassador Christian Berger, Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt,

[:en]Ambassador Christian Berger visits Heliopolis University[:ar]السفير كريستيان بيرجر يقبل دعوة جامعة هليوبوليس[:]

[:en] Forty-four years ago, the European Union and Egypt started paving the way for some modest advances in the EU–Egypt relations. It was challenging as the region required a typical response but they managed to turn these challenges into opportunities and achieved International and regional developments. As SEKEM has always been interested in taking part in this union so we invited Ambassador Christian Berger, Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt, and he kindly accepted the invitation to visit SEKEM and learn more about its dynamics and beliefs.     The tour started at SEKEM farm, where the ambassador was introduced to the SEKEM community by Mr Helmy Abouleish. During the tour, they conducted a discussion on the challenges that SEKEM has faced to achieve a community-based organic and sustainable lifestyle and how SEKEM has succeeded in delivering organic products at an affordable price They also talked about the two essential principles of SEKEM’s community; education and health.   The ambassador visited SEKEM school and got to know its different approach in teaching students and helping them unfold their potentials at a young age through different activities like handicrafts, pottery, carpeting and a lot more rather than depending only on the traditional methods of learning and memorizing. There, Helmy Aboueleish expressed his preference to visit the school a lot.  The ambassador also checked SEKEM companies and the entire production process; starting from the raw materials to the final products, and witnessed the making of the solar panels SEKEM uses in its own farms. The tour also included exploring the health services SEKEM provides for its employees through different clinics. After that, the ambassador headed back to Cairo with Helmy Aboueleish to visit Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development. There he learned about the university’s system and checked the entrepreneurship centre and its ongoing projects. And accepted the University’s shield and wrote a message in the HU Memorial book. After the tour, when we asked the ambassador about what surprised him the most during his SEKEM visit, he expressed his fascination with SEKEM community saying:  “I was surprised by the size of SEKEM, and that people don’t give up, people had a challenging start, but they succeeded and I think they are well received by the population of the places around. The area of the SEKEM farm is really huge and people really like it. There is a bond between the people and the farm.“  [:ar] قبل أربعة وأربعين عامًا ، بدأ الاتحاد الأوروبي ومصر في تمهيد الطريق العلاقات للتعاون بين الطرفيين. حيث كانت المنطقة تتطلب استجابة مستمرة للتحديات التى تواجهها، لكنها تمكنت من تحويل هذه التحديات إلى فرص وحققت تطورات دولية وإقليمية. نظرًا لأن سيكم كانت دائمًا مهتمة بالمشاركة تطوير المنطقة بالمزامنة مع الإتحاد، فقد قمنا بدعوة السفير كريستيان بيرجر ، رئيس بعثة الاتحاد الأوروبي إلى مصر ، وقد تفضل سيادته بقبول الدعوة لزيارة سيكم ومعرفة المزيد عن ديناميكيتها ومعتقداتها. بدأت الجولة في مزرعة سيكم ، حيث قدم السيد حلمي أبو العيش السفير لمجتمع سيكم. تناقشوا خلال الجولة حول التحديات التي واجهتها سيكم لتحقيق مجتمع قائم على نمط حياة عضوي ومستدام قائم وكيف نجحت سيكم في تقديم المنتجات العضوية بأسعار في متناول الجميع ، كما تحدثوا عن المبدأين الأساسيين لمجتمع سيكم ؛ التعليم والصحة. تلى ذلك زيارة السفير لمدرسة سيكم وتعرف على نهجها المختلف في تعليم الطلاب ومساعدتهم على اكتشاف إمكاناتهم في سن مبكرة من خلال أنشطة مختلفة مثل الحرف اليدوية والفخار والسجاد وغير ذلك الكثير بدلاً من الاعتماد على الأساليب التقليدية للتعلم والحفظ فقط . هناك ، أعرب حلمي أبو العيش عن تفضيله لزيارة المدرسة كثيرًا. كما قام السفير بتفقد شركات سيكم وعملية الإنتاج بأكملها ؛ بدءًا من المواد الخام وحتى المنتجات النهائية ، وشهد على صناعة الألواح الشمسية التي تستخدمها سيكم في مزارعها الخاصة. تضمنت الجولة أيضًا نظرة على الخدمات الصحية التي تقدمها لموظفيها من خلال عيادات ثابتة ومتنقلة. بعد ذلك عاد السفير إلى القاهرة مع حلمي أبو العيش لزيارة جامعة هليوبوليس للتنمية المستدامة. هناك تعرف على نظام الجامعة ومركز ريادة الأعمال ومشاريعه الجارية. وفي النهاية تقدمت إدارة الجامعة برئاسة الأستاذ الدكتور/ يسري هاشم بتسليم درع الجامعة الشرفي، حيث قبلها السفير ثم كتب بعض كلمات الشكر والتقدير في كتاب جامعة هليوبوليس التذكاري. بعد الجولة ، عندما سألنا السفير عما فاجأه أكثر خلال زيارته، عبر عن افتتانه بمجتمع سيكم قائلاً: “لقد فوجئت بحجم مجتمع سيكم، وأنهم لا يستسلمون، كان بدايات سيكم صعبة، لكنهم نجحوا وأعتقد أنهم استقبلوا بترحاب من قبل سكان الأماكن المحيطة. مساحة مزرعة سيكم ضخمة حقًا ويحبها الناس حقًا. هناك رابط حقيقي خلقته سيكم بالقرى المحيطة لهم “. [:]