Consortiums

Overview

The SocialEASE Consortium Project is a mobility initiative funded by the European Union and coordinated by TED University. It aims to encourage students in Turkey to shape their career paths with a focus on social impact by gaining hands-on experience in social entrepreneurship. Through Erasmus+ Traineeship Mobility, the project offers students opportunities to engage with European social enterprises and creative industry organisations and support institutions working in social entrepreneurship.

In the 2023 Erasmus+ call for proposals, of the 23 applicants, SocialEASE was one of the four projects that passed the quality assessment and earned accreditation for five years. The project was awarded a total of 28,700 EUR to support its implementation.

The ultimate goal is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge gained through international experiences, contributing to the development of Turkey's social innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. Participants will gain practical experience and engage in projects related to social entrepreneurship and creative industries. These activities aim to equip participants with the essential knowledge and skills to create value in these fields.

Objectives

The project's objectives are threefold:

1. The goal is to enable students to immerse themselves in social entrepreneurship practices abroad through traineeships, thereby gaining practical skills and insights to enrich their academic and professional development.
2. To facilitate the transfer of acquired know-how from international experiences to Turkey's social entrepreneurship landscape, thereby enhancing the capabilities of the local ecosystem. 
3. To foster collaboration among participating HEIs in Turkey, establish an organic network of institutions actively engaged in social entrepreneurship. This collaboration aims to strengthen Turkey's growing social entrepreneurship community further.

Key Components

The key components of SocialEASE include traineeships in social enterprises. Participants will engage in hands-on experiences and member-led projects, attend workshops, and participate in events. These activities will equip them with practical knowledge and skills essential for a career in social entrepreneurship.

Participating Organisations

The projects include three valuable partners: Van Yüzüncü Yıl University, Yaşar University, and ORIGINN, which promotes social entrepreneurship and cross-cutting issues and bridges academia with public-private actors.

Upcoming Activities

The Consortium aims to initiate student traineeships in Europe starting in the summer semester 2024, marking a significant milestone. Students will have the chance to apply for life-changing experiences in Europe and contribute to the growth of social entrepreneurship in Turkey.

Networks

Students interested in applying for a traineeship in social enterprises and creative industries can contact the following networks to find suitable host organisations:

• Social Enterprise World Forum
• Euclid Network
• Social Enterprise Denmark
• Social Enterprise Netherlands
• Impact Hub
• European Creative Hubs Network
• Arts & Humanities Entrepreneurship Hubs
• DESIS Network | Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability

For further information about these networks, contact İstasyonTEDÜ via istasyon@tedu.edu.tr 

Meet the Project Team

• Berkay Altunbaş from the International Programs Office
• Sinem Güravşar Gökçe from İstasyonTEDÜ
• Elif Muratoğlu from İstasyonTEDÜ