Apply now for the YES Initiative Gathering in April 2016!

Building a network of cooperative enterprises for empowered employment and sustainable change

More than 10 million young people in Europe are unemployed. With 50%-60%, the rates are the highest in Spain, shortly followed by Greece, Portugal, Italy, France, UK. Traditional concepts fail to bring them into work and so a lot of our generations' potential remains unused. On the other hand, the way we work and live changes quickly and profoundly. More and more people are looking for jobs where they can involve all their creative potential and have a sense of purpose in their work. But still, a lot of young people are bound in jobs that restrict their potential through strict hierarchies and old-fashioned working styles, while others are pushed to work towards an early burnout in corporations serving profit as their only goal. Creating entrepreneurial cooperatives can serve to combine the power of entrepreneurial drive to shape and change the world, and create employment, with the wisdom of co-creation and collective intelligence. The YES Initiative aims to inspire and support young people across Europe to start founding cooperative enterprises to reshape the way we do business and work together, creating an economy actually serving society's needs in a sustainable way. We aim to contribute to an ultimate vision of overcoming youth unemployment across Europe through forming a network of self-governed initiatives.

On 7.-10. April 2016, the first YES Initiative Gathering will take place at Schloss Tempelhof Community, Germany. Be invited to embark on a learning journey together with us and set up a fourday laboratory for collaboration, developing concrete projects and a network of mutual support. We are looking for participants (age 18 to 30) from across Europe who are interested or already starting a cooperative and entrepreneurial project in their country.

What to expect from this gathering:

• First of all, an open process with space for everything you bring – your questions, experiences, and ideas – and for deeply connecting with each other to seize the highest potential of the present moment together in a co-creative way
• Applicable knowledge and experience shared by the YES Initiative Team, other expert contributors and all participants about cooperative entrepreneurship, social business and collaborative decision-making
• Insights into the organizational structure, growth experience and daily life of the Schloss Tempelhof community, which has grown into a cooperative of almost 100 members over the past 5 years and employs about 40% of these in a number of small businesses and organizations within the community
• Meet inspired people from all over Europe and more and form lasting personal connections to build a network of ongoing mutual support and inspiration

You should apply to be part of this, if

• You are actively interested or already engaged in founding an enterprise or cooperative to empower and employ yourself and other young people in your home country or country of residence,
• You want to contribute your talent and energy into such a project going beyond old-school hierarchical structures of organization and releasing the power of co-creation and collective intelligence
• You have experience with, or want to learn more about, how to co-create such a self-governed, values-based cooperative enterprise with a social purpose
• You are between 18 and 30 years old, from any European Union country, fluent in English language and can cover or fund-raise your travel and accommodation independently. (If funding is a critical issue for you, please let us know early on.)

Call for Applications by 05.02.2016: https://goo.gl/p7brGS

Concept Note & Team: goo.gl/6Yse9W

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/yes.europeinitiative

Get in touch via email: yes.europelnitiative@gmail.com