Demographic change, social inclusion and the protection of the ecological system are main challenges of the near future not only in Europe with a huge impact on the economy, the welfare system and the job market. For some years now there is a movement of a so-called Blue- or Social Entrepreneurship. The EU Commission has already started to promote the movement of social innovations. Social business is seen as a main key scope to social innovation and (social) economy. The concept of “Blue Living Labs” combines new approaches of social innovation, social entrepreneurship and social integration. There is now a huge demand for new learning concepts and innovative adult learning approaches linked to competence development and skills training to support the encourage of developing blue (sustainable) and social entrepreneurship, social licenses and fair-share models of benefits and participation especially for segregated people and people which are not regular involved in adult training programs and experiences. One main innovation of this Living Lab concept is, that the development and training/learning process is done together with the potential users in their social context. It is also intended to involve disadvantaged people like immigrants, minorities or people with special needs as testing users or innovators and entrepreneurs themselves. Especially the integral and inclusive learning approach is new and quite unusual but there is an obvious potential for human resources and innovation in this target group. The second innovation is the learning and testing of new business-beneficiary and contracting models like FairShare- and Social Licenses. One of the main goals is to identify empower and train/educate new human resources, which are indispensable in the context of social entrepreneurship.The third innovation is the FairSharesLab Exchange and Cooperation platform. Through this platform people can put their ideas and challenges on the virtual table, inviting others to participate in finding solutions or creating social innovation/business together on European level. The project is developed and will be carried out by a strong European consortium consisting of 6 partners from 5 European countries (UK, DE, NL, HU, HR) running over 29 months. The partners have worked together before and have a lot experiences in Adult Training and blue/social entrepreneurship. A well developed working plan, a management and communication plan as well as plans for Evaluation/QM, dissemination and exploitation of results and at least for Gender and Accessibility aspects will help and guarantee a successful development and implementation of the scheduled core intellectual outputs and other outputs.During the lifetime of the project 12 blended pilot trainings will be provided, a train the trainer training concerning the FairSharesLabs methodology and the trainings with potential blue/social entrepreneurs in local labs and hubs as well as Transeuropean virtually. The intellectual outputs will be:1. FairSharesLabs methodology how to develop and implement social and blue projects/enterprises 2. Guideline and Self- and blended learning tool for FairShares hubs, labs, learning groups3. FairSharesLabs Exchange and E-Learning platform4. FairSharesLabs train the trainers tool for coaches and mentors 5. Summarizing report of national implementation activities The results of the project will be disseminated through the partnership internally to members of their networks and externally to a broad range of audience from local stakeholder and civil society organisations up to regional and national authorities, European agencies and Networks by a Website, Newsletter, press releases and articles, social media like Facebook and Linkedin/XING.The project partner will provide 1 public stakeholder seminars/workshops and 1 final international conference to inform the relevant stakeholder and the interested public about activities and intellectual outputs of the project.The expected impact for the involved local population and stakeholder will be the empowerment to act as experts in own affairs and interest and to take actively part as blue and social innovators in the entire process but on different levels as test person. This informal, non formal and partly formal blended learning process is fostering entrepreneurial mind-sets and skills, to encourage active citizenship and Entrepreneurship as impact in general. At least 180 learners should been targeted and 6 successful Blue and Social projects implemented The impact for regions and communities is their regeneration as well as the development of innovative solutions for local, national and even EU-wide social challenges e.g. labor market issues at the target regions, like unemployment of youth and migrants, the demographic challenges, care system, pollution, energy and recycling.
The FairShares Labs project has developed and tested adult education solutions to new economic and environmental challenges. Demographic change, social inclusion and the protection of the ecosystem have enormous implications for the economy, the welfare system and the labour market. FairShares Labs combine new approaches to social innovation, collaborative and social entrepreneurship, and social inclusion, as detailed in a FairShares Labs methodology.FairShares Labs was implemented by a European consortium of 6 partners from 5 European countries (UK, DE, NL, HU, HR). They had extensive experience in adult education, European project work and social, sustainable and cooperative entrepreneurship.The first major innovation of the FairShares Lab concept is that the development and learning process takes place in its social context. In particular, it has also succeeded in successfully including disadvantaged people such as minorities or people with disabilities as learners in the roles of investors, founders, employees and customers.The second major innovation was the development and implementation of cooperative learning, work, and enterprise models, FairShares values and principles, and the FairShares model. FairShares is a multi-stakeholder brand and development model for self-managed social enterprises operating under association, cooperative and corporate law.The third innovation is the FairShares platform (https://fairsharesplatform.eu/) and the FairShares planner. Through the FairShares platform people can put their ideas on a virtual table and invite other players from the 4 essential stakeholder groups to join in the search for solutions or collaborate to create social innovation / businesses at local, national and European, as well as international levels. The FairShares Planner has created an interactive learning and working tool that allows the 4 stakeholder groups to respond intuitively and on the basis of key questions from the perspective of each stakeholder, and to produce a common outcome considering and evaluating FairShares values and principles.FairShares Labs developed a learning methodology and curriculum. The tutorial course consists of 14 lessons and can be fully self-paced as e-learning via a Moodle platform or by downloading all course materials, also on paper, and through the FairShares laboratories, with the help of a trainer, as blended learning.At the end of the project, a summary of the practical report and a manual for the implementation of new FairShares laboratories was developed.Totally 16 FairShares laboratories were built and tested. In these FairShares laboratories, 16 ideas, 32 incubation and 18 planning workshops with 155, 101 and 90 learners took place. 55 projects have been started, 8 of which are transnational, 17 projects are in the idea status, 21 FairShares plans are in progress, 7 FairShares plans have been completed and 8 FairShares companies have been registered. In total, we had 155 different learners in the workshops, 41 of them with disabilities / restrictions. There were 6 training courses for trainer with more than 30 future FairShares trainer.In addition to a project website, a Facebook page, a brochure, flyer and 6 newsletters were published, 6 multiplier events with 133 participants and a final conference in Pécs with about 90 participants happened.With the help of FairShares Labs, foundations of sustainable social enterprises were initiated and implemented. Important processes of rethinking have been initiated among company executives and employees, customers or the financing bodies.The target group of FairShares Labs users benefited from start-up and development potential. Especially participants with limitations helped to lower the learning and action thresholds of the methods and instruments and to participate fairly as experts in their own interests. For many participants, significant increases in social and communicative skills were noted. This informal and non-formal learning process promoted fair, social entrepreneurial thinking and skills.The FairShares platform has created a sustainable international network of FairShares stakeholders and has helped launch new FairShares laboratories. In collaboration with the FairShares Association and the creation of an international FairShares Labs community, the project's results are secured over the long term and FairShares Labs evolves.