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3-week course where you will develop entrepreneurial skills and gain knowledge of technologies for managing food ecosystems.

The goal of the summer school is to provide students with a strong entrepreneurial and managerial propensity to control complex ecosystems of the food chain by applying new technologies with knowledge and expertise. The more specific objectives of the summer school are:
• Introduce participants to entrepreneurial methods and tools to develop new businesses participating in complex food and agri-food chains;
• Providing information and experience on resource management and leadership of complex teams in the food sector;
• Introduce state-of-the-art methodologies and tools, including digital tools, to address the challenges of food ecosystems and the production of healthy and environmentally friendly food according to the criteria of circular economy and green transport;
• Introduce the principles of the circular economy applicable to agricultural production, industry, packaging and retail;
• Provide detailed information on how to apply the progress of Technology Readiness Level (TRL 1 – 9) and the social responsibility balance sheet in food enterprises;
• Disseminate and raise awareness among future entrepreneurs in the use of new generation computer tools (digital twins) for the management, control and maintenance of food ecosystems.
This activity is aimed at university students (Bachelor, PHD, Post Doctoral) . Given the strategic importance of engaging a diverse audience, our activity will target individuals from all university faculties.
Students will be recruited from RIS countries (Regional Innovation Scheme) , to ensure that our activity has representatives from countries, providing different perspectives and points of view on the topics covered. By bringing together people from countries with different food-related problems/challenges, we are promoting a diversity of thoughts and points of view, enriching the activity for all involved.

Integrating entrepreneurship training with food system innovation will enable you to manage solutions to global challenges such as climate change and consumers health.
The training course has been developed, and will be delivered by an outstanding collaborative group composed of European universities, search institutes and companies in the environment and digital sector. This unique Summer School features teaching by highly skilled mentors in entrepreneurship and innovation from the Asomi College of Sciences (Malta), Euc Inovaçao Portugal (Portugal), Environment Park (Italy) . The Summer School presents the best European projects supported by European Commission on this topic.
The training course is augmented by world-class specific entrepreneurship teaching. This proposition combines academia, applied research and industrial innovation.
You will work in interdisciplinary teams with mentoring/ coaching by experts from the universities, research institutes, start-ups and companies throughout the 3 weeks of full immersion.
The course provides university diploma.

The core of this Summer School is to teach young future entrepreneurs about innovation applied to food and agri-food systems in line with the EIT Food – STEAM strategy.
The opportunity is to create a new generation of European entrepreneurs capable of operating with innovative tools on complex ecosystems. The Summer School will provide access to tools, methodologies and best practices from the best universities, research, innovation, and professional circuits.
Students will be supported towards sustainable and intelligent food and agri-food systems.
The approach is practical with presentations of technological tools. The study curriculum provides support on business development, team creation and motivation, market research, entrepreneurial risk analysis.

The course lasts 3 weeks, from the 4th of July until the 22nd of July 2022.

A group of motivated participants from across Europe will join our Inspire – New technologies to manage food ecosystems. Over a period of 3 weeks, the Summer School will provide a dynamic and supportive environment.

The Training Course will take place online with a combination of online (asynchronous) learning resources; and live (synchronous) interactive virtual sessions:

Total course time commitment = 40 hours plus 20 hours for a total of 60 hours.

The core part of the Summer School focusing on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) plus 20 hours of in-depth ‘Entrepreneurship Spine’ for a total of 60 hours.

The WE Lead Food Programme is designed to equip you with the tools to make a real difference and achieve real results.
WE Leaders benefit from a ready-made network of women leaders from across the entire food value chain, enabling them to draw on knowledge and insights from other parts of the sector that they might not currently have access to. During the programme, you have trusted sounding boards to discuss whatever challenges you might want to take on in the future. This equips you with a range of entrepreneurial and leadership tools to enable you to successfully take on bigger challenges and tackle the system in a way that you might not have done before.

The WE Lead Food programme works with you to:
• explore and develop both your entrepreneurial self and your leadership self,
• define your vision for a more sustainable food system,
• devise a plan to realise your vision.
The programme is made up of interactive sessions designed to unlock and develop your entrepreneurial mindset and capabilities in the context of leading in the complex and changing food industry.
We will work with you to challenge and progress your development plan. Throughout the process, you will have access to an expert group of industry, academic and policy specialists, a cross-sector industry leaders’ network and the tools to leverage both entrepreneurial and collective leadership ways of working.
The programme will take place online over a 7-week period. This includes three full days, and sessions most Tuesday and Thursday afternoons during these 7 weeks. An overview of the programme is available here. Full details and logistics will be provided to applicants offered a place on the programme.”

The afterparty
We know how important continued support and development is, so we won’t leave you hanging. WE Lead Food is designed to have a strong alumni network which helps our awesome agents of change to stay in touch with their cohort. Everyone who takes part in WE Lead Food, will automatically be invited to our afterparty.

This programme is designed for people who identify as women and:
• Have a passion and commitment to drive the transformation a more sustainable food system
• Currently in, or have been in, a leadership* position in the food system.
We love diversity, and so all backgrounds and disciplines are welcome, from research, business, policy, and civil society.
*We don’t discriminate on age and take a broad view on leadership from graduates who have taken a leadership role amongst their peers, founders of local charities, public sector managers, entrepreneurs, senior managers in industry and more.

Applications to join WE Lead Food will be accepted on a rolling basis until all places have been filled.

The full course fees (application deadline 31st August):
RIS country* citizens fee – 850 Euros
Non-RIS/Global citizens – 1,250 Euros

Early Bird Discounts (For applications submitted before the 30th June):
RIS country citizens early bird fee – 175 Euros
Non-RIS/Global citizens early bird fee – 250 Euros

Fee Waivers
We are committed to ensuring that no exceptional woman is excluded from the programme based on ability to pay. Fee waivers are available for excellent candidates who are unable to cover the fee. Decisions are made on a case by case basis. Please apply then contact the organising team.

*The EIT Food RIS strategy focuses on enhancing development within the agrifood sector by implementing activities related to innovation, education, business creation and communication in RIS countries and regions.

Free 3-week course where you will develop entrepreneurial skills and acquire knowledge about sustainable agriculture and targeted nutrition to create a new innovative product.

There is only one planet Earth. Yet, by 2050, the world will be consuming as if there were three. At the same time, the European Commission acknowledges that 2/3 of our soils are degraded, estimating that Europe can only provide 60 more crops if soils are not restored. We are facing all of this under a scenario of climate change. This programme offers a unique and intensive immersion on the topics of sustainable agriculture by linking the role of soil health to target nutrition towards better health and wellbeing.
Guided by an entrepreneurial mindset participants will think of solutions to challenges under sustainable agriculture: how to promote local produce, enhance ecosystem services such as biodiversity and soil carbon sequestration, and reduce children obesity through Mediterranean diet products under the digital framework. Participants will have the opportunity to ideate around these topics namely on how sustainable agriculture can improve nutrition and increase safety and consumer confidence in the food systems, with the support of real examples of the digital transformation in agri-food.
We are seeking undergraduates, MSc students, PhD students, Postdoctoral researchers, young professionals and/or aspiring entrepreneurs interested in innovating in the food system and in improving the lives of specific segments of the population by providing them with safer and healthier products. We are interested in enrolling individuals from multidisciplinary backgrounds (e.g. Food Science, Other Sciences, Engineering, Business/ Marketing, Informatics and Computational Science).

InnovPlanet Summer School will integrate entrepreneurship training with food system innovation, enabling you to create solutions to global challenges such as climate change and health.
The programme has been developed, and will be delivered by an outstanding collaborative group composed of European universities, institutes, food industry companies, farmers, and agri-food startups. This unique programme features teaching by highly skilled mentors in entrepreneurship in the food system from Food4Sustainability (Portugal), University of Beira Interior (Portugal) and Lunds University (Sweden).
The programme is augmented by world-class specific entrepreneurship teaching, which will be delivered by a team from the BGI – Building Global Innovators (Portugal).
You will work in interdisciplinary teams with personal mentoring/coaching by experts from the universities, start-ups and companies throughout the 3 weeks of the programme. Your team will receive feedback on your ideas after pitching them in front of an expert jury.

Training in entrepreneurship and innovation in sustainable agriculture and targeted nutrition can create career opportunities for you as a university student, early career researcher and young entrepreneur:
• Through the creation of start-ups based on the ideas developed during the summer programme
• By boosting your chances of being employed by start-ups, SME and bigger companies across the sustainable food system.
• By improving your chances of being employed in local, national and international activities in administration, teaching and training
• By improving your chances of being employed by NGOs and media companies
The training of students on sustainable and smart farming can make a difference for the current and future generations that will have a reference to follow due to this capacitation. The creation of new businesses will provide a reduction in the current sectoral unemployment but also fill a gap in sectoral innovation.

The course lasts 3 weeks, July 4th to July 15th (exclusively online) and week 3 will run from 25th to 29th for the students selected from the final assessment of week 2.

A cohort of motivated participants from across Europe will join our InnovPlanet Inspire Summer School. Over 2 weeks, the programme will provide a dynamic and supportive environment for you to develop your knowledge of sustainable agriculture and smart farming techniques, and to explore the development of food products for targeted groups of the population. During the full programme, you will develop your entrepreneurial mindset and learn how you can transform your ideas into business propositions. At the end of week 2, the top-performing applicants will be invited to travel to Portugal for week 3 (25th – 29th July), where they will further develop their knowledge on circularity, sustainable value chains, green finance, among others. The applicants’ entrepreneurial skills will also be trained for the final pitch competition.

During the first and second weeks, the programme will take place online with a combination of asynchronous learning resources and live (synchronous) interactive virtual sessions: