From November 13 to 14, 2024, all local partners of the Changemaker program came together in Vienna for the first Changemaker Market Day Summit, where they engaged in a lively exchange to reflect on and further develop the program. Thanks to the hard work of everyone involved, the Changemaker Market Day is now active in every Austrian province.

The event took place as part of the Entrepreneurship Education Summit held by the IFTE (Initiative for Teaching Entrepreneurship). The participants also had the opportunity to network with international guests from the OECD Youth Entrepreneurship Policy Academy. One of the absolute highlights of the summit was the presentation of the Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year award to WU’s Changemaker Market Day. This distinction was signed and personally presented by Austrian Federal Minister of Education, Science and Research Martin Polaschek. “We are delighted about the incredible appreciation for our work, which is a great source of motivation for us,” said Monique Schlömmer and Rudolf Dömötör from the WU Entrepreneurship Center.

The Changemaker Market Day

With the Changemaker Market Day, the WU Entrepreneurship Center gives elementary school children the opportunity to experience first-hand what it means to think and act like an entrepreneur. The event piques the children’s curiosity to learn more about economic relationships, and, through active project work, it encourages them to participate in economic and social life with confidence. The Changemaker Market Day was selected by the MEGA Education Foundation as one of the top three educational projects in the field of entrepreneurship education in 2023. Under the leadership of the WU Entrepreneurship Center, the program is now active throughout Austria, thanks to the involvement of strong university partners.

More about the Changemaker program: www.changemaker.wien

Changemaker Austria: www.changemaker.university

Entrepreneurship Education Summit

Every year, the Entrepreneurship Summit Vienna provides a great opportunity to get to know inspiring people and their ideas. In various panel discussions and interactive workshops, the topic of entrepreneurship is examined from a wide variety of perspectives. In this way, we want to empower young people to develop and their own ideas and put them into practice.

In addition to stimulating keynotes and panel discussions in the large plenary session, the wide range of workshops also offers ample opportunity to network with experts from the fields of business, social, educational, ecological, and cultural entrepreneurship in a smaller, more personal setting. The summit is also the main event of the Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) in Austria.

We would like to congratulate our colleagues on this award and are delighted to see that their work has received this kind of recognition!