Avitae News

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A.V.I.T.A.E

Avitae day = innovation day Ideas and visions fill the conversations around the tables in room 400 at Ørestad Gymnasium. We are four teachers from Faarevejle secondary school who are attending this special and innovative schoolday. While discussing their ideas, the students work in a practical and creative way and this combination makes room 400 buzz with activity and energy. On our way home we discussed the day and the input we got from the AVITAE-project and decided to establish international contacts, so our kids have to communicate in a foreign language in order to participate actively. Lise, teacher at Faarevejle Secondary school. At Oerestad Gymnasium we had our Avitae day March 26. The idea behind the day was to disseminate what we

had done with students until now. Focus for Denmark had been to teach teachers and students of the project the innovative method ”Design to Improve Life” in which you get to think out of the box, cooperate in groups, be creative in forming ideas, defining problems, give and receive feedback, present your solution and be specific in analysing target groups and background knowledge. We created a workshop in which a first year class from our school, teachers both from our school and from a secondary school participated and worked intensively with innovation in a historic context all day. With knowlegde from various historic periods the students had worked with in their history class, they had to think new solutions. One solution was Another was to create an to reuse old trains to make app with various features for cheap homes for students in grandparents and grandchilthe center of Copenhagen. den getting to know each

other better through activities and story telling. As one student said at the end of the workshop, ”It was a

fun and educational day. We used the innovative part of ourselves, we defined problems and found solutions to our chosen problem. Beyond that we also learned the importance of working together in our groups”, Nicolai 1e

as assistent teachers of the workshop. Now the AVITAE students had to experience the method from the inside. Ask Urheim from the project said, ”To be an assistent teacher was as much to teach as to learn yourself. Didactic and knowledge became one, and it became very clear to One of the purposes of me that both were needed.” the workshop was to use history in a modern con- After the workshop we had text and make the students a reception for students, experience one way to use teachers and parents where their newly gained historic we told about what we had knowlegde. One student done in the project. We also put it like this, ”I really think had an exhibition of protoit was a successful day. First- types from both the visit in ly because we were able to Copenhagen and the workwork and think in innovative shop earlier that day. ways. Secondly because we could choose which historic Claus and Charlotte, Denperiod we wanted to work mark with, we chose the Middel Ages”, Katja 1e

Since the students of the AVITAE project had tried out the method several times, four of them acted

sivu 6 August

2015

tĞ ŵĞƚ ƚŚĞ ĨĂƚŚĞƌ͕ <ŽƐƚĂƐ͕ ǁŚŽ ƚŽůĚ ƵƐ ŝƚ ǁĂƐ ŚŝƐ ĨĂƚŚĞƌ ƚŚĂƚ ŚĂĚ ƐƚĂ P y h ä j o e A.V.I.T.A.E n K u u l u m i s e t – 2 6 . 9 . 2 0 15 ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ďƵƚ ƵŶĨŽƌƚƵŶĂƚĞůLJ ŝƚ ĚŝĚŶ͛ƚ ŐŽ ǁĞůů͘ ^Ž ŚĞ ƚŽŽŬ ŝƚ ŽǀĞƌ ŝŶ ϭϵϲϱ ĨƌŽŵ ƐĐƌĂƚĐŚ͘ LJ ϭϵϴϮ ŚĞ ĞdžƉŽƌƚĞĚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ^ƚĂƚĞƐ͕ ĂŶĂĚĂ ĂŶĚ ƵƐƚƌĂůŝ /ƚ ǁĂƐ ŚŝƐ ǁŝůůƉŽǁĞƌ ƚŚĂƚ ƵƌŐĞĚ Śŝŵ ƚŽ ŐĞƚ ŝŶǀŽůǀĞĚ ǁŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ƉůĂĐĞ͘ ͞/ƚ ǁĂƐ ŶŽƚ Ă ŶĞĞĚ ďƵƚ Ă ǁĂŶƚ͕͟ ŚĞ ƐƚƌĞƐƐĞĚ ƌĞƉĞĂƚĞĚůLJ͘ ,Ğ ŐŽƚ ǁŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ũŽď ǀĞƌLJ ĞĂƌůLJ ŝŶ ŚŝƐ ĐŚŝůĚŚŽŽĚ ďƵƚ Ăůů ƚŚĞƐĞ LJĞĂƌƐ ŚŝƐ ĚƌŝǀĞ ŚĂ Monica feels her work and effort is compensated ƐƚƌŽŶŐ ǁŝůů͘ when she sees new people enjoying the activity, especial,Ğ ǁĞŶƚ ŽŶ ƚŽ ƐĂLJ ƚŚĂƚ ŝƚ ǁĂƐ ǀĞƌLJ ĚŝĨĨŝĐƵůƚ ƚŽ ŵĂŬĞ ŚŝƐ ĨŝƌƐƚ ƉƌŽĨŝƚ ĂŶĚ ly when she sees the audience has enjoyed ŶĞǀĞƌ ĐŚĂŶŐĞƐ ďƵƚ ŝĨ LJŽƵ ǁĂŶƚ ƐŽŵĞƚŚŝŶŐ ƐƚƌŽŶŐůLJ ƚŚĞŶ LJŽƵ ĐĂƌƌLJ ŽŶ͘ a function and congratulates her for her ,Ğ ĚŝĚŶ͛ƚ ĨĞĞů ƐƉĞĐŝĂů ǁŚĞŶ ŚĞ ŐŽƚ ŚŝƐ ĨŝƌƐƚ ŐŽĂů ďĞĐĂƵƐĞ ŚĞ ǁĂƐ ĂůƌĞĂĚ work.The most negative thing is preparing a play knowing that the ƚŚĞ ŶĞdžƚ ŽŶĞ ƚŽ ĂĐŚŝĞǀĞ͘ ,Ğ ĂůǁĂLJƐ ƚĂŬĞƐ ƌŝƐŬƐ ďƵƚ ŽŶůLJ ĂĨƚĞƌ ŚĞ ŚĂƐ Ɖ show is great and not many people turn up. ŚŝƐ ŶĞdžƚ ŵŽǀĞŵĞŶƚ͘ She has taken a signifidŚĞ ŐŽŽĚ ƚŚŝŶŐ ĂďŽƵƚ ďĞŝŶŐ ĂŶ ĞŶƚƌĞƉƌĞŶĞƵƌ ŝƐ ƚŽ ƐĞƚ Ă ŐŽĂů͕ ƚŽ ĂĐŚŝĞǀ cant risk by operating the business but she liƚŚĞ ŶĞdžƚ ŽŶĞ͘ EŽ ĞŶƚƌĞƉƌĞŶĞƵƌ ĞǀĞƌ ƐŝƚƐ ďĂĐŬ ĂŶĚ ŝƐ ĐŽŶƚĞŶƚ ǁŝƚŚ Śŝŵ kes that she is her own boss and makes decisions onƐƵĐĐĞƐƐ͘ ,Ğ ŝƐ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ĂůĞƌƚ ƚŽ ŵŽǀĞ ŽŶ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ŶĞdžƚ ƐƚĞƉ͘ ,Ğ ĂĚĚĞĚ ƚŚĂ her own. Monica believes that ƐŚŽƵůĚ ƌĞůLJ ŽŶ ŚŝƐ ŐŽŽĚ ũƵĚŐŵĞŶƚ͕ ƋƵŝĐŬ ƚŚŝŶŬŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ ŽŶ ĚĞĂůŝŶŐ ĞĨĨĞĐ the worst thing about being an entrepreneur is thatĚŝĨĨŝĐƵůƚ ƐŝƚƵĂƚŝŽŶƐ͘ ŽŶƐƚĂŶƚ ĐŽŶĐĞƌŶ͕ ĐŽŶƐŝƐƚĞŶĐLJ ĂŶĚ ŚĂƌĚ ǁŽƌŬ ĂƌĞ there are no schedules, having to work a lot. open to change constantly, Throughout this interview, huge. ƋƵĂůŝƚŝĞƐ ƚŚĂƚ ůĞĂĚ ƚŽ ƐƵĐĐĞƐƐ͘ evaluate your project and the Monica has transmitted us the The key to success is consis- needs of the public. great enjoyment her work gives tency,,Ğ ĨŝŶŝƐŚĞĚ ďLJ ĞŵƉŚĂƐŝnjŝŶŐ ƚŚĂƚ ŚĞ ŚĂƐ ŶĞǀĞƌ ďĞĞŶ ŐŝǀĞŶ ƐŽŵĞƚŚŝŶŐ ƌ dedication and to being her and the personal reward is ďƵƚ ŚĞ ŚĂƐ ƐƚƌƵŐŐůĞĚ ĨŽƌ ĞǀĞƌLJƚŚŝŶŐ ŝŶ ŚŝƐ ůŝĨĞ͘

The Path to Success -Spain Timanfaya Theater By Carlos Acosta IES Canarias Cabrera Pinto, Tenerife I found it quite interesting knowing why someone starts to develop a business activity aimed at entertainment and culture. So I interviewed Mónica Lorenzo Díaz, a businesswoman who is currently the director of the Timanfaya Theater in Puerto de la Cruz and she shared her experiences and love for her business with me. Monica started her business operation at the Timanfaya Theatre in May 2011, when she thought it was necessary for the town of Puerto de la Cruz to have a theater because up until then there had not been any space dedicated to the Performing Arts. She knows that culture is a fundamental part of the development of human beings.

She invested her savings, obtained a loan and restored a former cinema and converted it into a theater. That's how she became a theatre entrepreneur. When she was a child She wanted to be an actress. Mónica studied dramatic arts and when she tried to build her business project she did a Masters in Cultural Management. Although there haven’t been any financial benefits, because culture isn’t profitable economically, she has managed to create habits of cultural consumption. It has made the Timanfaya Theatre a meeting place for artists and audiences. There is a large group of people who benefit from their varied activity program: children, youngsters, adults, senior citizens, foreign residents and tourists.

The Path to Success -Greece by Nantia Dimitriou, Ioanna Karydi, Stefanos Dallas For the purpose of the interview we visited the dairy factory of Mr Karalis. We chose this one because we were told that it’s the business with the biggest turnover in the area and the one with the biggest export activity of hard cheese (kefalograviera) in Greece. It’s a family business, currently run by father and son.

got to his first goal because he was already thinking of the next one to achieve. He always takes risks but only after he has planned his next move carefully.

should rely on his good judgment, quick thinking and on dealing effectively with difficult situations. Constant concern, consistency and hard work are some of the qualities that lead The good thing about being an to success. entrepreneur is to set a goal, to achieve it and plan the next He finished by emphasizing one. No entrepreneur ever sits that he has never been given back and is content with himself something ready or easily but or his success. He is on the alert he has struggled for everything to move on to the next step. in his life. He added that a businessman

We met the father, Kostas, who told us it was his father that had started the business but unfortunately it didn’t go well. So he took it over in 1965 and started from scratch. By 1982 he exported to the States, Canada and Australia. It was his willpower that urged him to get involved with the business in the first place. “It was not a need but a want”, he stressed repeatedly. He got acquainted with the job very early in his childhood but all these years his drive has been his strong will. He went on to say that it was very difficult to make his first profit and it still is. “This never changes but if you want something strongly then you carry on.” He didn’t feel special when he

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The Path to Success -Slovakia Simon Sicko, Slovakia

How did you start your busiWe have decided to visit a very ness? successful entrepreneur Simon Sicko and interview him, as he In 2007 I decided with three is the co­founder and CEO of Pi- other people from the gaming xel Federation, an independent business that we would estabgame developer and publisher lish our own independent comheadquartered in Slovakia. This pany, which should deal with making. We had a clear company is well­known in Slo- game­ vakia and we know the games vision of the claim our products should have: From Players to they develop. Players. After finishing his studies in architecture at the Academy How did you realise you of Fine Arts and Design in Bra- wanted to be a businessman? tislava, Simon briefly worked in his field and started developing When I had understood that freedom, responsibility were computer games in 2002. very important factors for me. In 2007, along with three other partners, Simon co­founded Did you want to do this job Pixel Federation. The first sig- when you were a child? nificant success came in 2010 with the well­known game title Yes I did, it was my big dream. TrainStation, currently played Computer games was someton Facebook by more than hing which I was totally fasci1million players a month. Si- nated with- it was love at first mon is an investor in the Slo- sight. Even though I finished vak Venture Fund, managed by my studies in architecture and Neulogy Ventures, and advises earned a living from it during the Fund as well as portfolio the studies. So I grabbed the companies in the area of inter- very first opportunity to get national business development, employed in a company which produced computer games. particularly in gaming.

It is questionable what can be meant by the first profit. To make a profit for a company which started through B2B was a very simple equation derived from concrete questions. When we turned to B2C with our own products, this equation got more complicated and ROI (return on investment) was a harder task to accomplish and especially define.

August 2015

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can be considered for risky if the company is not running according to patterns of success. After the years we try to adapt the scale of risk proportionally to our financial reserves. What is the best thing on being an entrepreneur? “Sky is the limit.”

What is the worst thing How did you feel the first on being an entrepretime you got a profit? neur? I would rather rephrase this question and change the term Profit to Success. In my opinion success can be signalized not only according to the defines KPI’s (key performance indicator) of the project, but in our case also according to the reactions of our customers and players, which were positive from the first moment. Then we started to feel that we were on the right path (after 5 proceeding failures). Do you often take risks?

The extent of responsibility not only for myself, but also for my colleagues. What do you think a person needs to become an entrepreneur? Most important quality for an entrepreneur is the staying power. Except for that one has to define clear vision and values. What is the key to your success?

At the beginning of our entrep- You must not be afraid of reneurship we had to take risks mistakes and losses. Here are his answers to our Was it hard to make the first very often. Despite detailed profit? analyses, every single action questions

The Path to Success -Finland Liikenne Grekula is a taxi and bus company which is probably known by almost every person in Pyhäjoki. It has started working a few years ago. Entrepreneur Toni Grekula can’t say an exact day or year when he opened the company. He says that he started driving a bus little by little. The first bus for the company was acquired in 2008 and taxi licenses in 2010. Nowadays Liikenne Grekula has 9 to 10 cars in professional traffic. Grekula has always been interested in cars and machines. Even so, when he was little he didn’t dream even a bit of being a taxi- and bus driver, not to mention being an entrepreneur. However the first school year’s taxi trips, which were driven by Kaino Kaivosoja and later by Pentti Grekula, have stayed in his mind. "Maybe something was ingrained in the little boy's mind." Even so, his career leading to the traffic sector is also due a lot to the demand for taxi and bus services, rather than searching for a specific sector. Some people think that the entrepreneurship is a lucrative thing, but before the first actual profits you must do much work. The taxi and bus business is challenging also that in the respect that the equipment costs a lot and it has to be replaced and maintained regularly. Especially when starting the company’s whole funding causes trouble, and most need to pay in instalments or use bank loans. Also because of this results and first real profit

to turn out be very challenging for the entrepreneur and the company’s starting years might also feel unprofitable. Probably exactly for this reason getting first the profits were very interesting and rewarding for Grekula. Good side of entrepreneurship is often described as 'the freedom of the entrepreneur' and the opportunity to influence their own salary. However, Grekula says, that things don't always go that way. Entrepreneurs freedom is often overstated. The entrepreneur's life is uneven and not as safe and steady as the salary worker's life. In business, the hardest part is its absoluteness. Especially small business owners are often forced to leave for work without looking at the clock. Also competition in this industry is hard. However, entrepreneurs are needed, it's a fact. Without entrepreneurs there wouldn't be as many jobs, and it's often said, that entrepreneurs build the Finnish economy. A ccording to Grekula, an entrepreneur has to have

courage to take risks, he has to be hardworking and also a so called workaholic. The risks of being a businessman are normal to him. He tells that he won’t take risks in traffic at least on purpose, but on the other hand in the working life he tells that he takes maybe too many risks.’’But on the other hand a businessman must always have faith in success.’’ Responsibility is also required from a good entrepreneur. Especially, if an entrepreneur has his/her own employees, he/she has to take care of them and always remember, that they are as important as you are. In the life of an entrepreneur, family is also in the business, and he/she has to therefore also get some

flexibility and faith from them. ‘’Family is an important thing in the life of an entrepreneur.’’ Entrepreneurship is like a lifestyle, whereby the whole family lives’’, says Grekula. His own family supports and also helps in hard moments; without their support it would be hard to keep on and succeed. Every entrepreneur

surely hopes for success. Actually there is not key to success, you just have to be hard working and hope for the future. In the life of an entrepreneur achieving success means that you will lose some of your free time. Grekula wouldn't say he is successful yet. In his opinion his success should be reconsidered in 15-20 years. The

success doesn't come quickly, meaning that you can’t get money instantly. The profits you get will probably be invested back into company and true success can’t be known until the end of the business." An entrepreneur's life has its price", says Grekula, " but I am happy with my choices”

One day of AVITAE Pyhäjoki high school in Finland is participating in the AVITAE PROJECT, an international project between schools from different countries. In this project there are seven different schools from Spain, Italy, Slovakia, Greece, Denmark, Finland and Cyprus. Students are visiting each other in almost every country, and they will meet the local people and get to know each other and the culture of the host country.

re was a short presentation on every country in which we were told some basic facts about the countries, about AVITAE and about visits that had already been made or will be made in the future. There were also two foreign teachers communicating with the school via Skype. Delia Tocchini from Italy started the international day, and in the afternoon Ourania Karantzeni from Greece told some facts about AVITAE. Everybody was very happy to have theRelated to this, Pyhäjoki se international guests, and high school had a day, the they gave something really 28th of May, on which the special to the day. students participating in the project told about their ex- Heidi, 17, and Matias, 18, periences and about what’s told about their visits to still about to come. All the foreign schools with their students of the high school classmates. Heidi was very and the last grades of the impressed by her trip to secondary school were able Greece, and she and the otto take part in the day. The- her students had a conver-

sation about their journey and experiences with the listeners. Matias, who visited Denmark, had prepared a game with his fellow travellers. The listeners made up a problem, which they then were supposed to resolve together. Mostly the day was about learning something new about the AVITAE-project and the host countries, and mainly just having good time together. The project has been going on since last autumn, and it will continue still two years. The project will be finished in two years, in the autumn 2017. The whole Pyhäjoki high school is very happy to take part in the project, and we hope and believe that everyone is able to understand how rare and special this occasion is for us.

WKHLU LGHDV RQH PXVWQ W JLYH XS ,I \RX OLNH IHHOLQJ VDIH DQG VHFXUH \RX VKRXOG ILQG D GLIIHUHQW OLQH RI ZRUN DV DQ HQWUHSUHQHXU \RX KDYH WR WDNH FKDQFHV 8 P y h ä j o e A.V.I.T.A.E n K u u l u m i s e t – 2 6 . 9 . 2 0 15 August 2015 sivu :KDW ZRXOG \RX VD\ LV WKH EHVW WKLQJ DERXW EHLQJ DQ HQWUHSUHQHXU" 7KH HQRUPRXV DPRXQW RI SRVVLELOLWLHV \RX FDQ GR ZKDWHYHU \RX ZDQW WR ,I \RX DUH ZLOOLQJ WR WU\ VRPHWKLQJ QHZ LWÂśV MXVW VR LQWHUHVWLQJ WR VHH ZKDW \RX FDQ DFKLHYH ,WÂśV LQFUHGLEO\ JLYLQJ By Bianca Rasmussen, 2.j Ă˜restad Gymnasium EHLQJ DQ HQWUHSUHQHXU EHFDXVH \RX JDWKHU VR PXFK H[SHULHQFH GXULQJ WKH SURFHVV How did you realize you Was this a job you had wanted about money. I was focused on :KDW LV WKH ZRUVW WKLQJ DERXW EHLQJ DQ HQWUHSUHQHXU" wanted to become an entrep- as a child? working on my idea and making reneur and how did you start it a reality. Money just sort of 7KH XQFHUWDLQW\ <RX QHYHU NQRZ DERXW WKH HFRQRP\ RU ZKDW WKH HQG UHVXOW RI \RXU LGHDV ZLOO your business? Yes, I think I always wanted to came along the way, but it deEH <RX MXVW KDYH WR WDNH WKH ULVN DQG WU\ WR EH D JRRG QHJRWLDWRU %XW RI FRXUVH WKH XQNQRZQ start something up myself. As a finitely wasn’t my top goal from LV DOVR DQ LQWHUHVWLQJ DQG H[FLWLQJ SDUW RI P\ MRE Well, I grew up deaf myself and child I also wanted to be an aut- the beginning. met a great deal of people in hor or a journalist, so I guess it my youth who’d never given a must have been in my genes How did it feel to turn your :KDW GR \RX WKLQN D SHUVRQ QHHGV WR EHFRPH DQ HQWUHSUHQHXU" second thought as to what it ever since childhood. For me first profit? felt like being deaf and therefo- it was just so interesting to do Well it was great to get your <RX FDQÂśW EH DIUDLG WR WU\ QHZ WKLQJV DQG \RX KDYH WR EH JRRG DW VHWWLQJ \RXU PLQG RQ re had a lot of questions. I felt something like this, something first paycheck, of course - the VRPHWKLQJ DQG VWLFN WR LW $SDUW IURP WKDW EHLQJ RUJDQL]HG LV D NH\ZRUG DQG WKLQNLQJ RXW RI there was need to create some that also fits the life I lead. As fact that other people actually platform to provide informati- an entrepreneur you can deci- wanted to pay money for what WKH ER[ ,W ZRXOG EH D JRRG LGHD WR KDYH D VSDUULQJ SDUWQHU WR KHOS \RX FRPH XS ZLWK QHZ on about the deaf community de for yourself what you are to I had spent my time working on LGHDV 7KH SHUVRQÂśV JRDO VKRXOG EH H[HFXWLQJ JUHDW LGHDV QRW MXVW WKH PRQH\ and give answers to all these do and what ideas to work on, was really awesome. You feel reaffirmed in the value of your questions. Up until then there which I find very exciting. weren’t a lot of means for my product and your labour. 6R ZKDW ZRXOG \RX VD\ LV WKH NH\ WR VXFFHVV" peers to learn about sign lan- Was it hard to turn your first guage in Denmark. So “Tegns- profit? Would you say you take a lot 7R VWLFN WR WKH LGHD \RX ZDQW DQG QRW JLYH XS RQ LW tuenâ€? was created, as one of the of chances? first places to do so. Back when I started Tegnstuto as an entrepreneur. When en, I didn’t think all that much Yes, often I do, I think you have you get a good idea, it’s just all

The path to success -Denmark

about holding on to that idea and keep on going.

So you’re not afraid of failure? No, because by making mistakes you simply get new ideas out of it. All entrepreneurs live by their ideas - one mustn't give up! If you like feeling safe and secure, you should find a different line of work - as an entrepreneur you have to take chances! What would you say is the best thing about being an entrepreneur?

The enormous amount of possibilities - you can do whatever you want to! If you are willing to try something new, it’s just so interesting to see what you can achieve. It’s incredibly giving, being an entrepreneur, because you gather so much experience during the process.

AVITAE DAY -Slovakia tions and were proud to be a part of Erasmus+ project. All students and teachers were invited to join the project and get We decided to connect AVIprepared for the next project TAE day with the celebration of meeting that will take place in 10th anniversary of eTwinning our school in October. on 7th May.

Hotelova akademia, Slovakia

The students enjoyed the exhibition, talking about the project and discussion with the participants of the meeting in Denmark and Greece. In addition, they had opportunity to taste some sweets and a big cake made for this special opMrs Katarina Biela, the headportunity. mistress of the school opened the whole event and welcomed The most interesting part of the AVITAE project coordinator day was the skype call with the Delia Tocchini, who was present students and the teachers of online – through Skype call. our partner school from Denmark and Cyprus. It was great Students of the school accomto see enthusiasm and real joy panied by teachers visited the of the students communicating classroom and had opportunity together online. to see the presentation of the project, activities and pictures. AVITAE students and teachers were ready to answer all quesAVITAE students prepared a nice presentation about the project and invited all teachers and students of our school to visit a classroom prepared for the celebration.

&RS\U What is the worst thing about things and you have to be good being an entrepreneur? at setting your mind on something and stick to it. Apart from The uncertainty. You never that, being organized is a keyknow about the economy or word - and thinking out of the what the end result of your ide- box. It would be a good idea to as will be. You just have to take have a sparring partner, to help the risk and try to be a good you come up with new ideas. negotiator. But of course the The person’s goal should be unknown is also an interesting executing great ideas, not just and exciting part of my job. the money. What do you think a person So what would you say is the needs to become an entrep- key to success? reneur? To stick to the idea you want and not give up on it. You can’t be afraid to try new

Info:

Mette Bertelsen is 33 years old and resides in Copenhagen, Denmark. Mette has a degree in E-business, cand. merc. (it) from the IT university of Copenhagen. She started the business “Tegnstuen.dk�, which offers courses in sign language and equips deaf and hearing people with the means of communication between each other, in form of lectures and materials. Furthermore, Tegnstuen offers external education and information workshops for school children. Their newest project is E-learning, an online portal that provides education on sign language as well, to meet the high demand and reach out to the deaf community.

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August 2015

AVITAE DAY -Cyprus The European Programmes team of Laniteio Lykeio decided to organize a common event in order to celebrate the 10th anniversary of eTwinning and all the European Projects running in our school during the school year 2014 – 2015.

an exhibition in the school’s main hall opened where the activities of all projects were presented through photographs, posters and students’ creations. Furthermore, all students were invited to attend the celebration which was organized in the school’s historic library The event was held in the se- where a small birthday party cond week of May and lasted was held, complete with a birtthree days. During these days hday cake for eTwinning. The

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party included presentations of the eTwinning Programme and platform, as well as, of all the European Projects our School had participated in. The exhibition in the school’s main hall remained opened until the end of the school year.

The AVITAE Students at Liceo Machiavelli in Lucca interview Italian entrepreneur Attilio Attilieni, Š‡ –—†‡�–• ƒ– ‹…‡‘ ƒ… founder of the Lelly Kelly shoe brand

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Thanks to our Erasmus project AVITAE, in May 2015 we had the opportunity to meet a very famous Italian entrepreneur; during the meeting we asked him the questions that had come out of our AVITAE students’ sessions in ARTA, where we learned what it means to develop an entrapreneurial mindset - which is substantially the aim of our project. Thanks to this initiative we got to know Mr Attilio Attilieni, the founder of the world-famous Lelly Kelly brand: in 1992, together with his wife Mariella, Mr Attilieni had the idea to launch a new young girl-focused footwear and accessories trend which in the early 2000s made the company achieve an annual turnover of over ₏60 million. Thus, the company’s earnings let the brand open up to foreign markets in the EU but also in the US, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand. Sales abroad now represent up to a third of the company’s total turnover. This our interview to Mr Attilieni: How did you start your business? When I got out of high school (I was a student of this same school), I decided to go to the UK to improve my English, and when I made my way back to Italy I came in contact with

Italy’s very dynamic and well promising shoe business which was at the time able to heavily attract US buyers. In my family, which had been running a shoe manufacturing company for years, I had been appointed to be in charge of our American customers. Yet, my mind was heading somewhere else...

ding success and in creating new things; profit automatically comes next, but it’s the least important thing for a real business man, contrary to what many people think. How did you feel the first time you made a profit?

The first time I made a profit, How did you realise you it was thanks to the Lelly Kelwanted to be a businessman? ly shoes and I was very happy: I was happy to see that I was I never actually realised it. Still better than my competitors, nowadays I do not consider that I was making a product myself a businessman but so- that customers liked and, as a mething like a creative person; consequence, I was happy for however, after so many years the profit. spent in the business world, the others look at me as to a busi- Do you think it is better to ness man, but I’m not one. take risks or to analyse the market? Have you always wanted to be a businessman? This is a very important question, because it goes straight to No, in fact my call was to the the heart of the problem, which world of journalism and politics; is whether you are or you are but my family needed me to not an Entrepreneur. If you help them with their business, think too much, all this thinking so I had to give up my call and may end up in a failure; the grebe supportive. From those days atest success is always achieved until now, I’ve been here in Italy through instinct and intuition; selling shoes. if you use your instinct, indeed you have a better chance to Was it hard to make the first make your project or idea work. profit? Yes, we have to take risks and it’s not always necessary to First of all, I never consider analyse the market. my activity in terms of profitmaking. I’m interested in buil- What are the best and worst

things about being an entrepreneur?

The best thing is to be able to create something, to know that you are better than your competitors, to see that you can satisfy the needs of the market and of your potential customers. The worst thing is that if you don’t put a stop sometimes...well, your job can negatively affect your life because you never stop working, Š‡ ˆ‹”•– –‹Â?‡ Â?ƒ†‡ ƒ Â’Â”Â‘ÂˆÂ‹Â–ÇĄ ‹– ™ƒ• –ŠƒÂ?Â?• –‘ –Š‡ ‡ŽŽ› and there is no room left Šƒ’’› –‘ •‡‡ –Šƒ– ™ƒ• „‡––‡” –ŠƒÂ? Â?› …‘Â?’‡–‹–‘ for the rest.

…—•–‘Â?‡”• Ž‹Â?‡† ƒÂ?†ǥ ĥ ƒ …‘Â?•‡“—‡Â?…‡ǥ ™ƒ• Šƒ’’› ˆ‘

What do you think a person needs to be an ‘ entrepreneur? You cannot learn, either you are or you are not an entrepreneur. To better understand my words, just read entrepreneurship-related books written by analysts and by sociologists: they basically argue that you’re supposed to have an entrepreneurial mindset to become a successful businessman, and that cannot be built from scratch but just implemented once you were born with this gift.

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™‡ Šƒ† –Š‡ ‘’’‘”–—Â?‹–› –‘ Â?‡‡– ƒ ˜‡”› ĥÂ?‡† Š‹Â? –Š‡ “—‡•–‹‘Â?• –Šƒ– Šƒ† …‘Â?‡ ™‡ Ž‡ƒ”Â?‡† ™Šƒ– ‹– Â?‡ƒÂ?• –‘ †‡˜‡Ž‘’ ƒ ƒ‹Â? ‘ˆ ‘—” ’”‘Œ‡…–Ǥ ŠƒÂ?Â?• –‘ –Š‹• ‹Â?‹–‹ƒ –Š‡ Â™Â‘Â”ÂŽÂ†ÇŚÂˆÂƒÂ?‘—• ‡ŽŽ› ‡ŽŽ› „”ƒÂ?†ǣ ‹Â? –Š‡ ‹†‡ƒ –‘ Žƒ—Â?…Š ƒ Â?‡™ ›‘—Â?‰ Â‰Â‹Â”ÂŽÇŚÂˆÂ‘Â…Â— ʹͲͲͲ• Â?ƒ†‡ –Š‡ …‘Â?’ƒÂ?› ƒ…Š‹‡˜‡ ƒ …‘Â?’ƒÂ?›ǯ• ‡ƒ”Â?‹Â?‰• Ž‡– –Š‡ „”ƒÂ?† ‘’‡Â? ‘Â?‰ ‘Â?‰ǥ ‹Â?‰ƒ’‘”‡ ƒÂ?† Šƒ‹ŽƒÂ?†Ǥ Š‹• ‹• ƒ ˜‡”› ‹Â?’‘”–ƒÂ?– “—‡•–‹‘Â?ÇĄ „‡…ƒ—•‡ ‹– ‰‘‡• •–”ƒ …‘Â?’ƒÂ?›ǯ• –‘–ƒŽ –—”Â?‘˜‡”Ǥ Š‹• ‘—” ‹Â?–‡ ‹• ™Š‡–Š‡” ›‘— ƒ”‡ ‘” ›‘— ƒ”‡ Â?‘– ƒÂ? Â?–”‡’”‡Â?‡—”Ǥ ˆ ›

sivu 10 August

P y h ä j o e A.V.I.T.A.E n K u u l u m i s e t – 2 6 . 9 . 2 0 15

2015

AVITAE DAY, Avitae Day FEELING PART OF EUROPE -Greece

IES CANARIAS CABRERA PINTO (TENERIFE) A cultural week is celebrated in our high school every year and this event was chosen to show our AVITAE project to all the community. From 13th to 17th April our students had the opportunity to know about the project through a poster which summarizes the concept of AVITAE, the schools involved and the dates of the mobilities.

posters elaborated by the students about the origin of entrepreneurship in the Mediterranean sea: trade routes, products, coins. Hermes, the god of trade, played a special role in our day, with a amazing picture. Many students enjoyed the exhibitions, guided by the AVITAE teachers and students.

ses and talked about their experience in the project showing the activities they had done: prezzis, prototype designs, power points, videos, pictures… They answered all the questions asked by the other students and invited all of them to participate. All the students could appreciate the different educational opportunities that these kind of In addition, AVITAE stu- international meetings can We also showed some dents went to different clas- offer them, feeling that the

Canary Islands are closer to Our school decided not Europe. to have a special AVITAE Day as the visit of the partTo finish off the week, we ner schools to Arta was late had the performance of a in the school year. We felt puppet show called “Travel that the presence of all our with Aeneas”. Aeneas was friends here had made a one of the heroes of classical great impact on the local times who persistently tried community, school teachers to succeed despite all the and students, parents, and troubles he had to encoun- to the people of Arta in geter. An ancient model for any neral. Everybody still speaks modern entrepreneur. about the experience and we still get congratulations on the event. However, the last day of the school year we got the school staff together and we presented them the educational material and

methods we used for the development of the project, the educational skills we aim at promoting and of course the outcomes of the first year of running it.

P y h ä j o e A.V.I.T.A.E n K u u l u m i s e t – 2 6 . 9 . 2 0 15

August 2015 sivu 11

Liceo Machiavelli’s First Avitae Day

On Saturday 23rd May our Liceo organized its first AVITAE DAY. An unforgettable opportunity to build the school of the future

(By Class IB, with special thanks to I. Tabaku) and by Ms Vietina’s salutations: she delivered a poignant talk on the importance of the European Dimension at school, and in fact we were all hanging on her encouraging words which also promised us help and support for the AVITAE Final Event to be held at our liceo in March 2017.

Our AVITAE Day took place on Sat 23rd May at our Committee Room, which is called, in high-sounding Latin, the Aula Magna. At the meeting there were a good number of students both from our school and from several middle schools in Lucca (those who last February enrolled at our Liceo), alumni, teachers, parents and the deputy to Lucca’s Lord The first session was then Mayor, Ms Ilaria Vietina. The dedicated to a number of fievent was introduced by our nal year students who have teachers’ opening speech gained important experien-

ce in the field of European matters. First, we listened to student Kevin Spagnolo’s clarinet performance; Kevin is a final year student at our school but last year he went on a special leave to join the Rai (Italian Tv-Radio-Broadcast) Juvenile Orchestra in Rome as a leading clarinetist. He is currently a member of the Berliner Philarmonic Orchestra and a student at Genève Conservatory. A truly European Ambassador! Kevin entertained us with some Berio pieces for clarinet solo. Second, Alessandro Agnitti, another final year students, reported on his participation into the national competition called “Citizens of Europe, Citizens of the World”, which was promoted by our Ministry of Education and by Tuscany’s Educational Department. The competition was dedicated to Italian politician Luciano Bolis, one of EU’s founding fathers. With his essay on the future of the EU Alessandro got the first prize and has now become a member of the European Youth Federalist Movement. Last, final year student Irene Petroni told us about her participation to the AVITAE meeting

Special thanks to our Spanish partners who kindly sent their AVITAE DAY poster to us to share it. So we just translated it in Italian!

0XRWRLOWX 2LNHD in Arta last April as a readyto-leave-senior-student! She was so enthusiastic about it that the young students’ eyes started to glisten!

The second and final session was directly held by our class, who split into different groups to offer the audience various standpoints on the project’s life: the first group was in charge of the AVITAE newspaper both in its digital and paper formats; some of us had to illustrate the paper and explain the decisive role of our Finnish partner school in the production of this important output. Our “Oerestad Team” (those among us who had been to Copenha-

gen: Filippo Ficini, Camilla Angelotti, Meave Buchignani, Noemi Biagini and Bianca Vannucci) illustrated to both students and parents their amazing visit at Oerestad Gymnasium last January; no wonder they used a digi-diary for the purpose! The audience was in their grip all the time and looked at Oerestad’s futuristic architecture and design with amazed eyes! The third party was of course composed of the “Mega Penta”, the five among us who had taken part into the Arta meeting (Ilda Tabaku, Pietro Mei, Ilaria Nenna, Chiara Bartoli and Irene Petroni); they presented the lykeion, illustra-

ted the places of interest they had visited and tried to explain the meaning of their newly-acquired entrepreneurial lexis: entrepreneurhisp, risk-taking, innovation and branding etc.! At the end of the day, all the guests were invited to join a gourmand buffet prepared by our mums, grannies and aunties! There is nothing better than food to conclude such a pleasant meeting. Food and its socializing power…..but this is another chapter of the story, to be started in Bratislava in October 2015, at our partner school Hotelova Akademia. See you there!

0XRWRLOWX )RQWWL

sivu 12 August

2015

P y h ä j o e A.V.I.T.A.E n K u u l u m i s e t – 2 6 . 9 . 2 0 15

An Interview with Paris Thomas to do what I wanted, the way I wanted. When I lost that aspect of my job, I knew it was time to Paris is a passionate communi- do something about it. cator and a serial entrepreneur. He holds a BA in Communicati- Did you want to do this job on Science, an MBA in Strategic when you were a child? Management, and is one of 30 globally certified trainers on I had no idea what “this” job Osterwalder’s groundbreaking would shape out to be. I knew Business Model Generation I wanted big things for me and methodology. His solid backg- I knew I wanted to continue round is comprised of serving growing as a person and as a major Canadian organisations professional. The job itself is a at senior management level, vehicle. The innate desire in me lobbying government, and fa- since I was a child was and is to cilitating and training throug- always enjoy the journey. hout Europe, America, and the Middle East. Was it hard to make the first Aside from being co- profit? founder and Director at Open Box Communication, he is also Yes. It’s one thing to get paid; the co-founder and COO of it’s a totally different story to ENERMAP (a Cleantech star- make a profit. During our early tup) and co-founder and Direc- stages we had no idea what our tor at Chrysalis LEAP, the first own time was worth, and since accelerator platform in Cyprus. we are a company providing Paris effectively combines his services, not selling products, background in public relations, we had to learn how to adequacommunications, crisis mana- tely cost our time. gement, and his skills in facilitation, training, and strategic How did you feel the first brainstorming, into a portfolio time you had a profit? of services that delivers results in a sleeves rolled-up type of Relaxed. It wasn’t about being approach. excited. The feeling we had was more of a reassurance that Skills we can indeed make a living from this new venture. As an Training & facilitation, Leader- entrepreneur you always worship development, Business ry about what’s in the bank. model innovation, Strategic Many people make the mistake thinking & planning, Public of overreacting the first time speaking, Change management they make a profit and begin to spend a bit more freely. For us How did you start your busi- it was important to change our ness? mind-set into a savings mode and to not think of our profits I quit my day job together with as cause for celebration, but a colleague and we dove in the as a small pat on the back that deep end by committing to our we are competent and that the goal: to start our own business. market desires our services. It took a lot of hours of hard work and a lot of determinati- Do you often take risks? on, but when you decide you are going for it, you are uns- Every day. If you don’t you toppable. might as well be an employee and stop dreaming of entrepreHow did you realise you neurship. Taking risk is analogowanted to be a businessman? us to the concept of cash flow. The concept is simple in that in I’ve always had the urge to be in order to generate more cash, control. This urge of mine was your money needs to flow. satisfied as long as my supervi- For it to flow you need to take sors gave me enough freedom the first step, which is to spend BIOGRAPHY

Made by Elias Hirvikoski from Finland.

it. That said, it makes sense to assume that without spending money you cannot make money i.e. be it for marketing purposes, purchases of assets you need in order to delivery your service, research & development etc. Every time you spend you take a risk. Every time you say no to an opportunity in order to focus on what you do, you take a risk. Every time you try something new and spend hours and hours developing it, you take a risk. Risk blends with the air you breath, without which you begin to lose the very essence of being an entrepreneur; the thrill of the ride.

back as you take a break from it and you begin to wonder why all. Make no mistake about it; it it is you’ve chosen this path. takes years to get there. Knowing that time is running out and that you have the urWhat do you think a person gency to do something during needs to become an entrep- the time you have, is one of the reneur? things that tweaks my focus and allows me to get back in the Passion for what they do and game, as difficult as that may the understanding that time be. is running out. The first allows you to bring your A-game to What is the key to your sucyour business and to be bet- cess? ter than anyone else while still enjoying the ride. The second Communication. If you can is what I consider the jet-fuel present your ideas and not be that carries you through in tho- afraid to network, you have a se difficult times when everyt- better chance at making your hing around you is collapsing business successful. There are

plenty of exceptions of entrepreneurs who built an app from their basement and became millionaires sitting behind a computer screen. They are indeed the exception. For everyone else, you will have to get out of the building and talk to people: your customers, your partners, your investors etc. Being good at talking is key.

What is the best thing on being an entrepreneur? You get full control of what you make of your life. I’d rather be an entrepreneur and make minimum wage, deciding every day how I spend my time, than become a factory assembly line worker for a company that uses my capabilities to buy yachts and expensive cars for its shareholders. I exaggerate the options available to me, but in my mind that’s how I make sense of the world. We probably get one chance to go through this lifetime and I want to make the most out of it. What is the worst thing on being an entrepreneur? Decision overload. If you are uncomfortable taking a stance and making a decision, this will throw you off balance. As an entrepreneur you never get the “down time” you need to relax properly. You hear people saying that they will turn off their phones and go on holiday. Sure, that’s nice, but if you run your own business it’s not that simple. Your business becomes part of you, and you care for it as you do for a child or a pet. Would you leave you child uncared for at home and go on holiday? The Holy Grail of entrepreneurship is when you finally reach the level that allows you to be confident in a team of people that will watch your

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