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Description
The project proposes four objectives. First goal is improving education through a course on sustainable entrepreneurship, jointly developed in the partnership, and a COIL module on the topic of entrepreneurship, special interest tourism, international leadership to be included in relevant courses. The second objective is the training of the academic staff at OUC. Third, we want to develop mobility windows for student exchange in relevant study programs, making it easier for Romanian students to spend a semester in Norway and likewise for HVL students to come to OUC. Finally, we will work together to transfer good practices and offer assistance to the local business and non-profit organizations addressing regional economic challenges in southeast Romania, also involving local businesses in rural Norway.
The target groups are: students from both OUC and HVL, academic staff members, entrepreneurs from southeast Romania and rural Norway.
The expected results are: a course on sustainable entrepreneurship jointly designed and the corresponding study materials, improved curricula of several degree programs, to integrate the new course, a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) module that can be included in several courses, exchange possibilities for students from OUC and HVL, summer school for students, training materials and viii) a training course to prepare the teaching staff on sustainable entrepreneurship, a COIL project-based learning experience for students, to assist local business in changing their business models, knowledge transfer from universities to business and/or NGOs, two scientific articles and xii) final research conference.
The impact of the project will be reflected in the increased collaboration between the two universities and within the ERASMob European University Alliance, resulting in enhanced education, research and engagement with the local communities.
Summary of project results
The project was initiated in the context of two major problems in South-East Romania snd Western Norway. Assisting firms active in the tourism and wellness sector to change their business model and extend their operations beyond the regular summer season is a present challenge. Introducing models of sustainable entrepreneurship to use available resources while taking care of the environment is the second part of the challenge. At university level Ovidius university aimed to improve the education services for students in both entrepreneurship and sustainability. A part of this task was training its academics in these two fields. Both universities aimed to involve students more actively in practical preparation, with the help of digital technologies. Therefore, sharing the COIL approach that HVL had seemed an interesting way to achieve it.
the project aimed 4 main objectives achieved through the intellectual output, activities and events organized during the 19 months duration. 1. Improving education through a course on sustainable entrepreneurship jointly developed by the two universities, including a COIL module. The course was created and included in 3 study programs at OUC - Communication and Journalism, Psychology and Economic Sciences. 2. Training the academic staff at OUC to improve their professional competences and digital skills. This was achieved through 3 study visits on both sides, 2 training sessions and practicing on interdisciplinary topics involving entrepreneurship and sustainability through COIL. Third objective was to develop mobility windows for student exchange. We achieved this goal by 3 study visits on both sides, summer school on sustainable entrepreneurship, COIL module and signing an Erasmus Agreement between universities. The fourth objective was related to community involvement, transferring good practices and offering assistance to local business and NGOs from South-East Romania and involving local business in rural Norway. The objective was achieved through 2 transfer events, organized one inNorway and one in Romania.
On a broader and long-term perspective, the collaboration between the two universities increased, through Erasmus Agreement signed but also within the ERASMob European University Alliance, resulting in enhanced education, research and engagement with the local communities, raising awareness, increased competitiveness and genuine incorporation of sustainability dimension in current business practices.
- Curriculum on Sustainable Entrepreneurship with a COIL module incorporated;
- Sustainable Entrepreneurship Basic Academic Course;
- Methodological Guide for trainers of trainers on Sustainable Entrepreneurship;
- Two academic papers submitted to peer-reviewed international journals;
- Database with relevant organizations (health and wellness tourism and social entrepreneurship) and their sustainability needs;
- Four business models with a sustainability component and 3 BA/MA thesis on Sustainable Entrepreneurship;
- Academic course on Sustainable Entrepreneurship with research results. case-studies and business plans with sustainability component introduced in three study programs.
Summary of bilateral results
Both Ovidius University and Western Norway University of Applied Sciences have recently pledged to establish , together with five other higher education institutions, the ERASMob consortium, an European University Alliance. The two universities plan to gradually align their development strategies and enhance all three pillars of their mission: education, research and engagement through strong collaboration.Sustainability and sustainable entrepreneurship is a common practice in Norway while in Romania we are just at the beginning of the process. Although there was some awareness regarding the importance of the concept, practical examples on how to do it on a daily basis of business operations still lacked. Also, there were no courses and/or practica activities offered to students at OUC, related to understanding sustainability dimensions and sustainable entrepreneurship.Therefore, the expertise in this field of our colleagues from HVL was aimed to help us create and develop our capacities in this respect. Through joint training and mobilities for students and staff, joint events, implementation of new courses and didactic material, common research and institutional agreements, we managed to foster our capacity in offering education and knowledge transfer services related to sustainability to our students, staff and local community.