The new EU project will help young people develop their ideas and turn them into reality at a Brussels crowdfunding academy
A new international project by the Foundation for the Promotion of Entrepreneurial Initiatives (FPEI) aims to develop the ideas and projects of young people across Malta and Gozo – and help transform them into reality.
Through INCrowd, an Erasmus+ EU Project, four applicants will receive a fully funded trip to a Brussels crowdfunding academy, following expert training sessions and workshops to develop their idea further. Their projects will also launch on the Malta-
based crowdfunding platform Zaar, while being supported with all the necessary external resources to build their campaign such as video services, photography and marketing.
While those whose projects are not selected for participation will not attend the Brussels academy or receive the extra resources, they will still have the opportunity to launch their campaign on Zaar.
“If you have an idea or a project in mind that you’d like to implement but need a boost to get it off the ground – whether that means motivation, a team to share your ideas with, financial input, or all of the above – then INCrowd can help,” explains Matthew Caruana, Manager at Zaar. “This is an amazing opportunity not only to learn from experts at a crowdfunding academy in Brussels and network with like-minded people, but also to turn your idea into reality.”
INCrowd is eligible for those aged between 18 and 30 years old who are Maltese nationals or hold Maltese citizenship or a residence permit. Applicants should also be ready to follow mandatory in-person daytime training sessions in November and be
eager to share and develop their idea into a feasible project.
The ‘Into the Action’ training sessions and workshops will cover various topics including the skills required to develop and run a crowdfunding campaign and how crowdfunding can help raise the initial capital needed to launch a project. They will also
delve deeper into how to structure, present and manage a project, as well as how to set up a communication plan and use social media for promotion.
Following these workshops, select participants will be invited to travel to Brussels, as funded by the EU project, for a workshop with other young people from Belgium, Italy and Croatia.
Established by the Malta Business Bureau (MBB) and the University of Malta, the FPEI aims to promote all forms of entrepreneurship in Malta through collaborating with local and international partners to create initiatives and provide the tools to succeed.
By introducing crowdfunding to Malta through Zaar, Malta’s only reward-based crowdfunding platform, the FPEI makes accessing funding to start-up and scale-up easier for local entrepreneurs. This popular method of alternative finance supports any project via small donations received from interested members of its target audience, or the ‘crowd’. Campaigns launched on Zaar also benefit from expert knowledge and advice to help project owners reach their funding goals and appeal to the local market.
Interested applicants for the INCrowd project should complete the online form at https://forms.gle/X6Ree2QfQkLGHp8b7 by 30 October 2021 More information can also be found at http://fpei.mt/take-your-project-to-brussels-with-incrowd/.
