Entrepreneurship at the heart of conference

Isatou and Paul with the Baotic drink and the baobab fruit which forms a key ingredient.

The University will be a hub of ideas and innovation for the next three days at its hosts the International Entrepreneurship Educators Conference (IEEC) for the first time. 

The 12th IEEC conference, Enabling Enterprise for All, from the 6-8 September, is the leading global gathering of enterprise and entrepreneurship educators. 

Enabling students and graduates to be entrepreneurial will be at the heart of the conference. 

It will also be a forum to discuss start-up and growth in the business community and highlight social innovation and the role of entrepreneurial institutions.

Keynote speakers will include: Dr Mick Jackson, Founder and CEO of WildHearts Group; Elin McCallum, Founder and Director of Bantani Education; Professor Heidi Neck and Jeffry A. Timmons, Babson College, and Professor Brian MacCraith, Dublin City University.  

GCU representatives will include Professors Cam Donaldson, John Lennon, Bruce Wood, Dr Anne Smith and Dr Alec Wersun. 

The University will showcase some of the successful student business start-ups supported by its business incubator; UHatch. Success stories include a healthy beverage produced by Hippo & Hedgehog, a company formed by International Business (Risk Management) graduate Isatou Njai and her business partner, Paul Blackler, which is nominated for a Santander Universities Entrepreneurship Award in October.

Professor John Lennon, Director of the University's entrepreneurial hub said: "Entrepreneurship and creativity is a vital component of the student journey and is at the centre of this conference. Encouraging creativity and innovation are key to the country's economy and its growth, and as a bold, ambitious and internationally-networked University, we are delighted to celebrate with entrepreneurs and educators from across the globe."

GCU’s Professor Bruce Wood added: “GCU is the University for the Common Good, and so the theme of enabling enterprise for all fits well with our mission. Within our Strategy 2020, we are committed to enhancing the personal, professional and employability skills of our students and creating an entrepreneurial environment and mind-set in our staff, which encourages collaborative approaches and a culture of social enterprise and innovation.”

Enactus students, Thomas Bertlome, Jenny Styrman, Laura Hein, and Roma Shafiq, will co-present with Dr Alec Wersun on student learning through social innovation. Enactus students also took part in the opening reception in the Glasgow City Chambers, where they discussed entrepreneurship in action in Glasgow communities.

The IEEC is organised by the National Centre for Entrepreneurship in Education (NCEE) and Enterprise Educators UK.