U.S. Mission to Austria: Young Transatlantic Leader Entrepreneurship Exchange Program

Deadline: 15-Jun-21

The U.S. Embassy Vienna of the U.S. Department of State has announced an open competition for organizations to submit applications to carry out a program to promote and foster entrepreneurship among Austrian young people.

This exchange will be focused on entrepreneurship and innovation and will provide 20-30 Austrian university students and founders under the age of 35 with intensive, hands-on entrepreneurship education and leadership development training. The program should include a start-up boot camp designed to teach participants the nuts and bolts of founding, financing, and growing a startup, before expanding to additional programing and networking opportunities.

This course, which will focus on the entrepreneurial ecosystem of a particular U.S. city or region will last two to three weeks, taking place between July 5-September 30, 2022. Participants could travel to the U.S. in one or two cohorts. In addition to developing participants’ knowledge and skills, the program exposes participants to American culture and values.

Objectives

The Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy is providing maximum flexibility for applicant organizations to offer program models that effectively meet the overall goals of the program. Required or suggested elements of the program in no particular order are as follows:

The program should include an orientation in the U.S., entrepreneurship education and leadership development and significant cultural activities to familiarize participants with the diversity of the cultures and the people of the local area.
The program should include pre-departure virtual activities that prepare participants for the upcoming program and, if applicable, introduce them to work groups. Pre-departure programs could include initial program activities, and/or teambuilding or networking.
Participants should work in teams and develop relationships with other participants, and/or entrepreneurs in the local community.
Participants should learn about the essential elements of an entrepreneurial ecosystem and how these elements inter-relate. Participants should have the opportunity to experience these elements in the local community through interactive, hands-on training, which might include, for example: presentations, meetings with entrepreneurs, social events, or business pitch presentations. Internships or practicums in businesses, NGOs, innovation hubs, or economic/business-related organizations could also be included.
Participants, specifically those with already established start-ups , should have extensive interaction with top companies, founders, incubators, and venture capitalists.
Social entrepreneurship: Participants should learn how entrepreneurial principles can be addressed to remediate social ills, and how entrepreneurial concepts can spur civic action.
The program should include a plan for post-program engagement with the Austrian participants that includes mentoring and supporting participants as alumni of this and other similar programs.
The Recipient will identify their own specific and measurable outputs and outcomes based on the project specifications provided in the solicitation.

Goals

The program goals are to:

Foster entrepreneurship, leadership, and professional skills of young Austrians to become business or social entrepreneurs and/or leaders in their respective fields to support the expansion of entrepreneurial values in Austria. Different types of companies and entrepreneurship projects should be included, such as, but not limited to, entrepreneurship related to climate change, environmental engineering and innovation, food production, technology, design or other innovative fields addressing challenges today and in the future
Promote the awareness of future Austrian entrepreneurs of the entrepreneurial ecosystem as practiced in the U.S.
Encourage identification of the United States as a destination for future business partnerships, investment and ongoing education.
Foster professional and personal ties with local entrepreneurs and U.S. citizens in the local community.
Promote mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of Austria.

Funding Information

Total available funding: $225,000 (pending availability of funds)
Award amounts: awards may range from a minimum of $200,000 to a maximum of $225,000 (pending availability of funds)
Anticipated program start date: September 1, 2021
Length of performance period: 12 to 24 months
Number of awards anticipated: 1 to 2 awards

Participants and Audiences

Target audience and participants are university students and founders (ages 18-29) resident in Austria who are either aspiring entrepreneurs or actively engaged in a start-up.

Eligibility Criteria

The following organizations are eligible to apply: