Programme objectives and outcomes AKA What is the purpose?
The BeeEffect Programme aims to gather a diverse group of young professionals with great impact-making potential and to provide a carefully designed experience developed and led by beeEFB alumni members, with the goal to equip them with a unique set of knowledge, skills and networking opportunities and provide avenues for them to create impact in their communities. The keyword of the BeeEffect Programme is impact, which refers to meaningful, measurable changes in the lives of people and their communities as a result of intentional intervention in various domains including education, employment, leadership, health, and civic engagement.
beeEFB, as the alumni network of 400+ senior and mid-career professionals from Western Balkans and wider region offers a contextualized and holistic programme for the new generation of change makers, building on their own experience and by employing and utilizing the capacity and resources built in the past 15 years.
Programme participants have an increased capacity to address complex issues, increased critical thinking, team collaboration and networking capacities, and access and opportunity to engage on meaningful activities and design new ones together with their peers and alumni.
Programme target groups AKA Who is it for?
The BeeEffect Programme aims to gather a diverse group of young professionals with great impact-making potential and to provide a carefully designed experience developed and led by alumni members, to equip them with a unique set of knowledge, skills, and networking opportunities and provide avenues for them to create impact in their communities.
Programme is designed to bring together and enable cross-learning from two distinct target groups:
- Participants - young professionals, impulse providers, and action takers in their own communities
- beeEFB alumni - senior and mid-career professionals coming from different sectors (government, business, development, academia, nonprofit), with diverse backgrounds and fields of expertise
Programme description AKA What is it and
what it consists of, and how will it work?
Overarching theme of the programme is focused on the emerging future and looks to examine how positive impact in communities can be created, shaped, and supported in the most pressing issues of today and tomorrow, by looking at them through three distinct lenses of power, society and digital/tech. Programme aims to:
- Enhance community building between its alumna and future members
- Support contribution to the development of future leaders in Western Balkans and beyond
- Shift power to the people, organizations, and institutions that are driving change in their own countries and communities
Previously mentioned aims should be accomplished by the activities that will Increase awareness about the youth-led positive impact in the WB through the lenses of power, society, and technology. With the successful implementation of these activities, the beeEFB sets an example of regionally developed and led intergenerational and interdisciplinary strengthening of democratic capacities and fostering European integration by affirming the role of the WB people in addressing Europe’s emerging challenges.
Programme methodology
Programme combines in-person and online activities, tailored mentorship, group work and provides both inspiring talks/lectures and skill-building workshops.
Program overview and main blocks
10 June 2024 - 23 June 2024
Programme starts with the launch of the Call for participants and Call for beeEFB alumni. Both target groups have their own specific eligibility and selection criteria and journey in the programme, although they are interconnected through the programme.
24 June 2024 - 7 July 2024
The Selection Committee will first select participants of the programme, and then match them with alumni who are best fit to provide them with tailored mentoring. Results of participant selection will be known by the beginning of July, while the alumni selection will take another few weeks. In case a profile is missing from the alumni applications, the Programme team will head-hunt suitable mentors from the wider alumni pool.
All alumni will receive Guidelines for mentoring and undergo training for mentors, so as to ensure confident and high-quality mentoring to participants.
13 September 2024 - 15 September 2024 Montenegro
Launching event is a weekend intensive in person event for participants and mentors containing inspiring presentations, skill-building workshops, and induction into mentoring and social impact initiative work.
Program of the launching event includes introduction to EFB and beeEFB, embedded networking elements and informal community building activities.
Participants can expect interactive presentations, simulation games, practical analysis, and hands-on workshops, conducted by leading experts in the wider region.
By the time they leave the launching events, each participant will have their mentor and be assigned to a group and advisor for the social impact initiative work.
October 2024 - December 2024
In between Launching and Closing events, participants will have between 8 and 12 weeks to engage in mentoring, social impact initiative and participate in online workshops.
Mentoring: each participant will have a minimum of up to 5 sessions to work with their own mentor on a professional and personal objective which mentor and participant will jointly identify during the launching event. Participants and mentors are also expected to engage in one in-person visit to support the work on mentorship goals and to further develop ideas about the social impact initiative. These visits are called Learning exchanges and have proven to be highly effective in building stronger relationships and achieving mentoring goals defined by the participants.
Social Impact Initiative: Based on their interests, participants will be grouped in teams of up to 4 and work together to come up with a social impact initiative which they will present on the Closing event. Each team will have their additional mentor from the alumni to support them in the process. As the groups develop their social impact initiatives, several online practical workshops on team collaboration, pitching and solution design will be organized to support the groups. Firstly, teams will work intensively on creating the ides for the social impact initiative once they gather for the Lunching event. From that moment each team will have 3 months to develop their own idea and to engage in one in-person meeting during the Learning exchange where they will work on developing ideas about the social impact initiative, and mentorship at the same time. Before the Closing event, tams will attend training for peaching in order to ease their preparation for the presentation of their ideas for the social impact initiative during Closing event.
13 December 2024 - 15 December 2024 Greece
Three-day in-person event dedicated to participants and members showcasing and evaluating results of the programme: social impact initiative, mentoring outcomes and reflections and evaluations of the programme. Programme includes presentations of (next to) immediate ways to implement know-how and skill acquired through a range of beeEFB opportunities for engagement; and allows participants to immerse themselves in the beeEFB community fully.
* Alumni and participants alike need to commit to attending both in-person events and to participate in online activities of the programme (mentoring, social impact initiative)
Programme benefits AKA What’s in it for you?
More information into what the programme brings to participants and alumni can be found in Participant and beeEFB alumni journey, but in short:
- If you are a participant, you will get premium know-how and skill training from renowned experts, tailored to the challenges of today and tailored specifically to your needs and strengthen your critical thinking, team collaboration and gain new perspectives
- If you are an alumni, you will share your expertise with a group of carefully selected young professionals from wider region and acquire mentoring training and experience through mentoring
Impact and sustainability of the programme AKA How it will live on?
This year's programme will gather the third cohort of participants. The programme has been constantly evolving through the last two years and changing to serve its main aims - impact, leadership, and networking. However, the main principles of the program remain the same, and based on the feedback from previous years we are building a strong community of leaders for the changes we want to see in our communities.
The programme builds on the human capital and experience of beeEFB alumni, who have undergone EFB programs in the past and have through these programs and since built their careers and honed their expertise and know-how. They will share and transfer their know-how to the new generations of young professionals and work together with them to come up with solutions to select current societal challenges. The beeEFB through its activities provides several avenues to implement those solutions and encourages participants to engage in the Network’s activities and use their newly acquired know-how in creating change in their communities.
beeEffect Programme Team
Konstantina Karydi
Konstantina Karydi is a Policy and Urban Affairs professional with a background in political science and European affairs. She is holder of the international Executive Masters Innovative Governance of Large Urban Systems from the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland and the MSc on European Public Policy from University College London (UCL), UK. Her recent work is on Global Urban Development and Resilience working as Senior Advisor and Europe Representative to Resilient Cities Catalyst (RCC) and Urban Affairs Expert for the European Commission. In these capacities, she is co-founder and Deputy Head of the Climate Change Hub, an ambitious initiative to accelerate climate transformation through knowledge development, ecosystem building and capacity in Greece and SE Europe.
She has extensive comparative experience on urban development globally with a focus in the Mediterranean and Balkan regions. Previously she worked for 10 years in the areas of civic engagement and civil society growth in the Balkans and the Black Sea. She is co-founder of the regional organisation Balkans Beyond Borders (BBB) focusing on Balkan integration and peace-building through culture. She has participated in the EFB Leadership Development Programme (LDP) 2008/2009 and was mentor in the first edition of the beeEffect programme 2022/2023.
Migena Kalthi Karaj
Migena Kalthi Karaj is an EFB Fellow since year 2008 from the Fellowship Programme for Government officials Supporting Excellence and Leadership in Governance”.
Migena has acquired close to 20 years of experience as staff member of Public Administration in the Ministry of Finance and Economy, Albania. Her experience spans from trade facilitation issues, regulatory reform, risk analyses and recently she is directly involved for the implementation of the EU projects. She possesses knowledge in designing monitoring and evaluation tools, e- commerce and EU financial management and procurement procedures. Currently she serves as Head of Sector for Financial Management for IPA Funds and CBC, Directorate for Financial Management of IPA and First Level Control for ETCP in the Ministry of Finance and Economy.
Migena holds two degrees, a Master of Science in Business Administration and Master of Professional in Public Right from the University of Tirana She also hold a Diploma from World Trade Organisation on Trade Policy field. On October 2022 she obtained the lawyer’s licences by the National Chamber of Advocates. She has attended various traineeship in international institutions such as SEACEN (Malaysia), WTO (Switzerland), RIPA international (England) etc.
Daniel Gjokjeski
Daniel is a dedicated Learning Experience Developer specializing in creating educational opportunities that emphasize community and peace-building. He excels in facilitating the acquisition of 21st-century skills through both online and in-person settings, fostering exchanges and collaboration among individuals from diverse ages, disciplines, and cultures. Daniel holds degrees in Political Science and the Arts, with specializations in Political Management, Public Policy, and International Development. In addition to his formal education, he has extensive informal training in leadership and youth empowerment. His broad-ranging collaborations encompass partnerships with universities, public institutions, international organizations, civil society groups, and private sector entities. He has been part of the EFB's Leadership Development Programe, LDP generation 2011/2012, and was mentor in the first edition of the beeEffect programme 2022/2023.
Bojana Marinkovic
Bojana Marinkovic, (LL.B.) Belgrade, (LL.M.) Newcastle is a fully qualified lawyer, chess player, and activist from Serbia. She received a prestigious Chevening Scholarship, where she has been recognized for outstanding eadership and influencing skills. She is a member of various alumni networks, European Fund for the Balkans' beeEFB Alumni Network (participant in the first edition of the beeEffect programe), Robert Bosch Stiftung Alumni Network, the the American Chamber of Commerce, and The Fund for American Studies. As a Lecturer of Law at the university in the UK, she taught and mentored students on various topics, such as International Commercial Law, Business Law, and Human Rights. She is passionate about analysing the legal aspects of technological developments and has recently conducted research exploring the impact of AI on privacy matters. She has also been involved in various causes, such as advocating and promoting youth activism. She hopes to use her legal expertise to make a positive impact in her community and beyond.
Mariola Çeku
Currently working at the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs at the department of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora. Mariola Çeku holds a Bachelor degree in Political Science from the American University of Athens, and a Master Degree in Democracy and Human Rights from University of Sarajevo and Bologna University. She is a steering board member of European Digital Diplomacy Exchange and part of CEE HER network, advocating for the empowerment of women in foreign policy. Previously engaged with different governmental institutions including the Albanian Embassy in Greece, Prime Minister’s Office and DEI in BiH. Served as Executive Board member of JEF Albania. Main fields of expertise are digital diplomacy, EU integration, security & stability of the WB, and Human rights. Her main objective is the empowerment of women in foreign affairs. Proud BeeEffect Alumna, generation 2022/2023.
BeeEffect programme in the world
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