Friday 17th May 2019, marked the end of the final workshop for CKM's Interreg: i3 project “i3 – Education for ideas, inventions and innovations for entrepreneurship”.

The last of a total of five trainings took place in Durres, Albania, organised by our project Partner, Albania Center for Sustainable Development. 10 trainees from each of the project partner’s countries joined specialised entrepreneurial trainings, geared towards the Ecology theme in Albania. The project aims to promote territorial development and cooperation by establishing a model for entrepreneurial training and transfer of knowledge for young entrepreneurs.

The workshop opened with speeches by Ms. Albina Ternova, Albania Center for Sustainable Development Office Manager, as well as i3 Project Coordinator, and field experts; Dr. Entela Kaleshi, Ms. Albana Idershai (Msc.). The three of them emphasized the need for sustainable innovations within this theme, in Albania, and the whole Balkan-Mediterranean region.

For the next three days, the trainees would undergo specific training including; Business-model-creation, value proposition, budgeting and planning, state of the “ECO” sector. The 50 trainees from the partner countries (Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, & Republic of North Macedonia) were divided into five teams that represent all of the countries in each. Sector professionals then mentored the teams in applying innovative approaches and tools to “ECO” themed business ideas, that were created by the teams. The workshop ended with awards for “Most Innovative Idea”, “Best Business Model”, “Best Value Proposition”, and “Best Presentation”.

Besides the valuable tailored knowledge gained through the workshop, the trainees also met a vast network of like-minded individuals and entrepreneurs, as well as having experienced a new cultural involvement in a different country. Before the end of the trip, our Albanian partners organized a short sight-seeing exploration of the beautiful Durres. Macedonian participants were led by CKM's I3 project coordinator, Ms. Bisera Smilevska.