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Female founders in focus: Viadrina launches innovative FoundHERs Academy!
The FoundHERs Academy starts on March 19, 2025 at Viadrina and supports female founders through mentoring and practical training.
Female founders in focus: Viadrina launches innovative FoundHERs Academy!
On March 19, 2025, the starting signal was given for the first FoundHERs Academy at the European University Viadrina. This new program, part of the EXIST Women funding program, aims to support women interested in starting a business from the initial idea to the development of a viable business model. Viadrina has developed this funding program for the first time to support women from various sectors who want to gain a foothold as entrepreneurs. European University Viadrina reports that there has already been a personal meeting of the seven selected participants with their mentors, coaches and network partners. The motto of the kick-off event was "Empower. Build. Connect."
The focus of the FoundHERs Academy is on intensive impulses, creative work and building relationships within the community. Methods for dealing with personal sources of strength and sustainable self-leadership are also used. In the first phase, the participants develop visualizations of their start-up ideas and receive individual support from six mentors. The participants' start-up ideas are diverse and range from a yoga platform for women and children in rural areas, to a compliance platform for the German-Polish economic area, to AI-supported learning platforms for soft skills.
Diverse ideas and support
The participants bring innovative business ideas from different areas. These include, among other things, a sustainable haircare line for curly and frizzy hair as well as concepts for a specialized language school for technical specialists and a meditation app to promote mindfulness. These various projects outline an ambitious vision that encompasses both the promotion of mental health and culinary innovations, such as creative catering concepts and complementary food meal kits for babies.
Eight female founders have already been supported by the program, while five other women are taking part in workshops and networking opportunities. It is hoped that these five women will also subsequently receive financial support to further develop their projects. The overarching goal of the program is to shape an innovative and equal future through the ideas and projects of the participants. The theoretical framework for this project is provided, among other things, by research in the area of gender and entrepreneurship, which emphasizes the positive impact of role models in entrepreneurship. SCE highlights the importance of diversity in the entrepreneurial world and how critical it is to broaden the understanding of who counts as an entrepreneur.
The FoundHERs Academy is designed and implemented by the Viadrina start-up center under the leadership of Ulrike Käfer and receives support from partners such as SIE grünt e. V. and the Social Impact Lab. In addition to the practical transfer of knowledge and individual support, the development of a strong partnership network is also a central element of the program. Those interested are invited to become mentors or enrich the program in a variety of ways.