The Foundation for Partnership and Civil Society Development
Conference "Entrepreneurship in Service of People: Developing Social Enterprise Ecosystems for Labor Integration in Croatia"
On Thursday, June 6th, a conference titled "Entrepreneurship in Service of People: Developing Social Enterprise Ecosystems for Labor Integration in Croatia" took place at the Coworking Center in Pula, organized by the Foundation Istria, ACT Group, and the University of Zagreb.
The conference featured a series of engaging lectures and interactive workshops on the topic of opportunities, challenges, and guidelines for the development of the labor integration sector in Croatia. Presentations were delivered by Assoc. Prof. Nikola Buković and Assoc. Prof. Danijel Baturina (European and Croatian trends in labor integration and social entrepreneurship, Current situation of labor integration and the existing sector: skill shortages and future needs prediction), Jelena Pavlović (B-WISE community of practitioners and stakeholders in the sector: sectoral skills strategy and future development plans), and Helga Možé, the manager of the Istria Foundation (Proposal for public policy on the development of social innovations and social entrepreneurship in Istria).
The conference brought together representatives from social enterprises, several civil society organizations, as well as public institutions including educational establishments, county institutions, and the Center for Vocational Rehabilitation.
Social entrepreneurship, defined as business based on principles of social, environmental, and economic sustainability, where the generated profit/surplus income is fully or largely reinvested for the benefit of the community, unfortunately receives little attention in the Croatian public sphere. The Istria Foundation actively raises awareness about the importance of this topic and presents various opportunities for social entrepreneurs through its initiatives. ACT Group, as a civil society organization, plays a crucial role in promoting business practices that provide valuable returns to society and the community.