Blog

Getting Europe’s youth into STEM

Minna Melleri, Chief of Advocacy and Growth

Policy-makers have for decades set out goals to get more young people, and especially girls, to choose STEM education and STEM-related careers. A series of policy recommendations and objectives have been drafted and implemented to bridge the gap between the labour market’s needs and the numbers of STEM graduates entering the job market.

Boosting digital health and innovation through entrepreneurial hubs

Salvatore Nigro, CEO JA Europe & Milena Stoycheva, CEO JA Bulgaria

The COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated that it is not possible to have a successful #ECONOMY without good #HEALTHCARE. This is a wake-up call we all need to heed – it cannot be business as usual when the pandemic is over. In order to protect our people and economies against future public health threats it is crucial to improve the long-term #SUSTAINABILITY of our health systems. According to Mary Harney, we must promote #INNOVATION, and ensure that data and evidence are the basis of decision-making, to future proof our health systems and ensure their long-term sustainability.¹

How social innovation helps to promote a more sustainable and inclusive society

Fleur HUDIG, Head of Corporate Citizenship, NN Group

The COVID-19 pandemic is putting our economies under unprecedented pressure. Increases in unemployment figures are unfortunately reported every day and the continued uncertainty is threatening many companies of all sizes, across all sectors. 

While governments are putting forward rescue packages to support their economies, we believe it is important to remember that the former challenges have not gone away: sustainability or social inequalities, to mention a few, shall still deserve our full attention.

Making European youth resilient and ready for the future

Therese Noorlander, Sustainability Director, Coca-Cola Europe & Salvatore Nigro, CEO, JA Europe

As the COVID-19 crisis continues to unfold, its impact grows across the globe. Thousands of businesses, of all sizes, are threatened and entire parts of the economy such as the tourism industry and the hospitality sectors are in jeopardy. In this challenging context, businesses and individuals’ resilience is being put to a test. 

The JA Europe network and Coca-Cola in Europe and its bottling partners have teamed up over the past years to develop and implement entrepreneurship and employability education programs that contribute to helping the younger generation to build their resilience, adapt to the ongoing challenges and be better prepared for their future professional lives. 

This is our shared mission: prepare young people for this journey of development, provide them with knowledge, attitudes and skills for life and improve their access to entrepreneurship.

Blended learning experiences boost girls’ entrepreneurial and digital skills

Milena Stoycheva, CEO of JA Bulgaria

Over the last 9 months, close to 600 girls aged between 12 and 18 have taken part in 20 workshops dedicated to digital and entrepreneurial skills. The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and a consortium of Junior Achievement offices, composed of JA Bulgaria, JA Greece, JA Lithuania, JA Romania, JA Serbia and JA Europe, together with our partner Apps for Good, teamed up to deliver trainings to equip young girls with the entrepreneurial and digital skills essential for their future working lives and support the EU’s Digital Education Action Plan.