Startup Wise Guys Foundation selected for the Google.org Impact Challenge funding in Estonia
We are excited to share that Startup Wise Guys Foundation is among the 13 organizations selected for the Google.org Impact Challenge for Central and Eastern Europe. With the support from Google.org the Foundation will work on its first big project – Jump for CEE, aimed at unemployed or otherwise economically vulnerable people. We will be training their digital and entrepreneurial skills for faster personal and economic recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, looking ultimately at helping these folks develop their own digital businesses.
Startup Wise Guys Foundation is the non-profit arm of Startup Wise Guys’ accelerator fund and was created to develop sustainable local and international startup ecosystems and to help existing and future startup founders to become entrepreneurs. We believe that is our responsibility to create a barrier-free and inclusive environment where everyone with an entrepreneurial spirit can succeed. We are driven by creating a stronger and more digitally and socially inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem in Central Eastern European countries by keeping the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in mind.
JUMP for CEE
“If nothing else, the pandemic has certainly proven the power of entrepreneurial thinking! We have witnessed a record number of newcomers into the startup bubble – people that have either lost jobs or whose businesses were severely struck by the crisis. Learning to build tech products, research markets, and do things the “startup way” have been significant improvements in bleak times for many people. This is also what our “Jump For CEE” project is all about – bringing the startup world closer to people in various CEE countries, giving them access and knowledge that can transform their lives, and building a more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem along the way. We are happy to partner with Google.org to make this a reality!” shares Evita Kreile, Jump For CEE project manager at Startup Wise Guys.
The Jump For CEE program will start in autumn 2021. It will consist of a series of events, starting with Idea hacks and Hackathons and leading into “best-in-class” Pre-acceleration program. The Pre-accelerator program will cover such topics as company building, sales, fundraising, product development and legal basics to help turn ideas into investable businesses.
Google.org Impact Challenge for Central and Eastern Europe
In total, €2 million will be distributed among the selected organizations for Google.org Impact Challenge for Central and Eastern Europe for charitable projects promoting inclusive economic growth and creating equal chances for everyone to succeed in the digital world.
Technology has helped to ease the burden of the pandemic on European businesses and communities. But the last year also highlighted the urgent need to create equal opportunities for everyone to access those benefits, particularly as the EU economies come out of this crisis more digitized than before. That’s why Google launched in January its Impact Challenge dedicated to Central and Eastern Europe – to help rebuild this more digitized economy with social inclusion at its core.
The projects were selected by an international panel of experts from Google and INCO from a wave of applications from across the region. Each will receive between €50,000 – €250,000, along with support and mentoring from Google to help make their project proposals a reality.
