Andry Apostolou report on:
Joining the Dots: Creating Entrepreneurial Networks Project
26 February to 3 March 2017, London UK

Joining the Dots project was very well organised and took place in an inspiring venue in the outskirts of London which is one of the oldest, most entrepreneurial cities in the world. The trainers were very experienced, supportive and willing to share their knowledge and experience with the participants.

Participating in Joining the dots project was a unique opportunity for me to expand my networking and entrepreneurial skills. The workshops enabled me in developing the tools for inter-cultural learning; understand how to develop empathy and how to be effective in cross-cultural communication when developing entrepreneurial teams for cross-border communication.

During the project I met great people from different countries with whom we exchanged cultures, ideas and experience and learnt about the activities of their organizations and institutions. This broadening of networking has inspired me to participate in more European projects, and form cooperation and partnership with them. It is extremely interesting to listen to how people coming from other social and cultural background have established their enterprise along with the skills, strategies, values and enthusiasm on building their own firms according to the realities of their home country.

The activities which took place were very inspiring and valuable as they helped me evaluate my own small business and to decide on some beneficial changes. Additionally my participation in different workshops that were facilitated by elite trainers gave me new insights in fields out of my expertise. However, I have tried to associate the knowledge with my field. I am a teacher and I do not have any academic business background and therefore the knowledge I gained will be of high value as a youth entrepreneur.

I am very willing to disseminate the knowledge and experience I have gained with people and students back home and to encourage more young entrepreneurs to take part in similar projects.

Closing this report, I would like to thank Citizens in Power, the organizers, the participants and especially the workshop presenters for providing me the opportunity to learn through this fantastic project.

Warm regards
Andry Apostolou
Member of CIP