Business closures and job losses caused by the pandemic forced thousands of people to reevaluate their lives and career paths. Individuals who had never considered launching a startup began creating businesses out of a combination of necessity and opportunity. According to data from the Census Bureau, Americans filed paperwork to start 4.3 million businesses last year, a 24 percent increase from the year before. That number is expected to go up in 2021. As the economy continues to recover in the U.S. and abroad with entrepreneurship at the forefront, it’s more important than ever to rethink and reboot as one global ecosystem to support a more sustainable and equitable world.
Global Entrepreneurship Week 2021: November 8-14
One way to do this is by engaging in Global Entrepreneurship Week, an annual initiative hosted by the Global Entrepreneurship Network that features 35,000 events across 125 countries with the goal of celebrating and empowering entrepreneurs in every community around the world—especially those who face systemic barriers. The campaign introduces people to the path of entrepreneurship, creates opportunity for collaboration and facilitates access to capital and other resources that are vital to entrepreneurial success.
Four distinct themes guide activities throughout the week: ecosystems, education, inclusion and policy. While SourceLink specializes in a systems approach to ecosystem building, we believe in the power of sharing ideas and encourage our partners to continually question how they can better support the entrepreneurs in their communities.
Hear Network Building Strategies from Communities Around the U.S.
Join us on Thursday, November 11 at 12:00-1:00 pm CT for the webinar, How to Amplify Your Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Message. You’ll hear directly from affiliates in the SourceLink network on how they’ve leveraged emerging technologies, data and targeted messaging to craft strategies that sustain and bolster their entrepreneurship-led economic development and ecosystem building work.
In addition to this webinar, many of our affiliates and resource partners are hosting events of their own! Check out the list below for ways to engage throughout the week. For a full list of GEW activities, visit https://www.genglobal.org/gew/events
We would love to hear how your community celebrates entrepreneurship. Drop us a note and let’s start a conversation!
