Dr Melanie Leonhard, Senator for Economics and Innovation: "We want to further promote Hamburg as a location for innovation and start-ups. To do this, we need people who want to start a business and know how to do it - and as early as possible. The Young Makers Hamburg initiative is a building block for this to succeed. We offer young people the right tools and resources so that they can tackle and realise their ideas as early as possible. They are given space to experiment, learn and grow. This is the only way they will realise their potential."
Dr Rolf Strittmatter, Managing Director of Hamburg Invest: "Promoting entrepreneurial education is crucial for the future viability of our city. Over many years, Hamburg has created a unique environment for people interested in setting up a business and is therefore the right place for young talents to concretise and realise their business ideas. We are focussing on the development of pioneering skills to equip Hamburg for the challenges of tomorrow."
"Young Makers Hamburg" pursues several goals: These include the establishment of a central point of contact for school and non-school stakeholders such as teachers and career guidance specialists, as well as the development of new modules for school pupils. The further development of a network for entrepreneurship education is also on the agenda. The #NextGen4Impact network was founded in 2023 together with the Körber Foundation and already has over 40 members. It is promoted through partnerships and events. The interdisciplinary collaboration between business and education authorities, student representatives, teachers, start-ups, the Chamber of Commerce, foundations and other stakeholders offers Hamburg the opportunity to achieve a sustainable and long-term improvement in the educational landscape. The umbrella initiative serves as a point of orientation, counselling and networking resource.
In addition, "Young Makers Hamburg" offers free counselling services for pupils of all school types, educational specialists and teachers as well as companies and stakeholders in the entrepreneurship education ecosystem.
Melanie Köslin, Project Manager Young Makers Hamburg: "With its cluster-like structures, Young Makers Hamburg offers the opportunity to facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration for a sustainable educational landscape. I am delighted to have met with a positive response from educational stakeholders, pupils and teachers after just a few months and to be able to combine the disciplines of innovation, education and participation."
The umbrella initiative not only aims to introduce new programmes, but also to strengthen existing offers in the field of entrepreneurship education. A central website will gradually make the programmes more visible). The aim is to promote the diversity of existing initiatives and offer stakeholders a platform to make their programmes and resources more accessible.
Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU):
The project recently signed its first Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Social Entrepreneurship City Hamburg, the office of the Hamburg Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship e. V. This MoU emphasises the importance of the partnership, which is promoted by shared goals in the areas of education, networking and talent development in accordance with the Social Entrepreneurship Strategy of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg.