Welcome to WIESD LABS - Women in Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development
“Women’s strength, industry and wisdom are humankind’s greatest untapped resource.
The challenge is to show how this resource can be effectively tapped in ways that benefit all.”
Michelle Bachelet (President of Chile, and Former Executive Director of UN Women )
The challenge is to show how this resource can be effectively tapped in ways that benefit all.”
Michelle Bachelet (President of Chile, and Former Executive Director of UN Women )
WIESD is a unique education, capacity-building, and leadership development platform designed to foster entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial skills, innovative thinking and sustainable development knowledge toward the creation of a new business or the evolution and expansion of existing businesses, and women-owned/women-led projects, companies and community enterprises and cooperatives.
WIESD is a flexible interactive program that works with academic, governmental and cross-sector partners across cities, regions and countries. We provide access to educational modules and resources, advanced tools and technologies, subject matter experts, and hands-on training, mentoring and support to equip women to start up and scale their businesses/models based towards new business and economic paradigms. It is an environment created to support women of all ages and backgrounds, from youth to mid-career and seniors, who wish to develop innovative businesses, projects and organizations which can grow beyond the founder, produce more jobs, increase financial and creative opportunities for the owner, and generate concrete contributions toward a sustainable community and the world.
PHASE I LAUNCH PROGRAM: WIESD SWEDEN
in Partnership with BTH University and the Government of Sweden.
WIESD is a flexible interactive program that works with academic, governmental and cross-sector partners across cities, regions and countries. We provide access to educational modules and resources, advanced tools and technologies, subject matter experts, and hands-on training, mentoring and support to equip women to start up and scale their businesses/models based towards new business and economic paradigms. It is an environment created to support women of all ages and backgrounds, from youth to mid-career and seniors, who wish to develop innovative businesses, projects and organizations which can grow beyond the founder, produce more jobs, increase financial and creative opportunities for the owner, and generate concrete contributions toward a sustainable community and the world.
PHASE I LAUNCH PROGRAM: WIESD SWEDEN
in Partnership with BTH University and the Government of Sweden.
Target Group:
- Women at all stages of life who have entrepreneurial ideas, aspirations and dreams.
- Women that already own their business, interested to evolve and enhance their model and team with innovative and sustainable design-thinking, technologies, products and services;
- Women who are aiming to achieve regional and/or international markets and ready to take their business to scale in a mindful and sustainable way;
- Women wishing to make a change in their current careers by exploring and/or creating their own business in parallel with their current jobs and responsibilities;
- Experienced Women interested in an "encore career".
- Women who wish to develop and co-develop "intrapreneurial" enterprises that will generate growth, jobs, and additional markets or opportunities for their current organization or employer.
THE WIESD "SPIRAL UP"™ MODEL(S) AND JOURNEY
Program Structure - 12 months (Sept 2013 – Sept 2014)
The program is thoughtfully designed to be both flexible and adaptable, with 75% exchanged online, through Webinars and online interactions, and 25% exchange on-site, through workshops, site-visits, mentoring and coaching. This hybrid model allows you to keep up with your current activities and also be part of this transformational experience.
The program is structured in 3 modules, using the "spiral-up"TM concept (Figure I), where each activity builds upon the previous one:
Module 1 - EDUCATION: Participants engage in weekly educational forums, online webinars and workshops presenting a diverse array of topics to broaden awareness and inform thinking around the conscious design of their idea, start-up or business, including ideation, business models, financing, marketing, emerging and advanced technologies, scalability, and perspectives on regenerative business practices, sustainable development and the UN SDG's. (In Collaboration with The StartUp Academy and the School of Entrepreneurship.)
Module 2 - APPLICATION: Participants are equipped with a set of principles, tools, models and approaches to support them in the application of their learning journey insights to start, develop or advance an innovative business idea or venture.
Module 3 - IMPLEMENTATION: Participants have access to ‘hands-on’ information and practical resources to create/grow a realistic and viable business plan (and minimum viable product or prototype if applicable) that must be ready for implementation at the end of the program.
Stewardship-Leadership Thread: Throughout the program, participants engage in a parallel journey to support them in connecting the "head and heart" of leadership, business and personal development in a way that ignites them to create conscious, transformational enterprises for themselves and for society.
Module 2 - APPLICATION: Participants are equipped with a set of principles, tools, models and approaches to support them in the application of their learning journey insights to start, develop or advance an innovative business idea or venture.
Module 3 - IMPLEMENTATION: Participants have access to ‘hands-on’ information and practical resources to create/grow a realistic and viable business plan (and minimum viable product or prototype if applicable) that must be ready for implementation at the end of the program.
Stewardship-Leadership Thread: Throughout the program, participants engage in a parallel journey to support them in connecting the "head and heart" of leadership, business and personal development in a way that ignites them to create conscious, transformational enterprises for themselves and for society.
Synergy Circles: The SOUL of Collaborative Leadership and Innovation
WIESD is founded on the principles of Dignity, Diversity, Interdependence and Conscious Design. We believe Collaboration, Co-Creation and Shared Leadership are core to supporting a culture of innovation and cooperation for sustainable success. We will explore and apply these principles in greater depth in WIESD II through our learning labs and enterprise development programs.
WIESD is founded on the principles of Dignity, Diversity, Interdependence and Conscious Design. We believe Collaboration, Co-Creation and Shared Leadership are core to supporting a culture of innovation and cooperation for sustainable success. We will explore and apply these principles in greater depth in WIESD II through our learning labs and enterprise development programs.
WIESD is a Special Project of Blekinge Tekniska Högskola in Karlskrona Sweden, with program support from Lund University, Lund University Social Innovation Center (LUSIC) and BTH Innovation. WIESD works in collaboration with partners from the US, Europe, Asia and South America. The WIESD Program is an International initiative. We are currently interviewing Regional and Country Partners and collaborators. Please inquire directly if you have interest in participating or learning more.
