Meaningful Entrepreneurship
Summer School 2025

What does it mean to build a business with meaning – not just growth?

This summer, join a new kind of entrepreneurship program. One that starts with purpose, challenges the status quo and helps you design ventures that are regenerative, inclusive and relevant for the world we live in now.

Whether you're a student, early-stage founder, creative changemaker, or simply exploring whether entrepreneurship is for you — this five-day immersive summer school is your space to reset, rethink and rebuild.

What you’ll learn

Day 1

Reconnect with What’s Meaningful

Unlearn external expectations and uncover what drives you from within. You’ll challenge old narratives of success and explore your purpose using frameworks like Ikigai, storytelling, and peer dialogue.

Day 2

Map Change & Identify Real Opportunities

Shift your lens to the world around you. Learn systems thinking, map structural challenges, and spot meaningful problems worth solving — through tools like the Impact Gap Canvas.

Day 3

Redesign Business for Good

Discover how to build businesses that serve people and the planet — using circular, regenerative, and non-extractive models. Explore business model innovations like platform co-ops, social enterprises, and mutual aid models that challenge the status quo and prioritize long-term impact over short-term profit.

Day 4

Structure for Integrity & Resilience

Explore alternative ownership and funding models, post-growth governance, and bootstrap strategies that enable you to grow with your values intact. We'll look at how the right structures, from steward-ownership to regenerative finance, can protect your mission, foster resilience, and reduce dependency on extractive capital.

Day 5

Share Your Vision

Pitch your ideas in a supportive community space — not to compete, but to connect, collaborate, and celebrate.

Led by a bold mix of educators & founders

Sissel Hansen

Founder, Startup Guide & Impact the Future

Sissel creates platforms, programs, and schools that empower the next generation to build meaningful, impact-driven businesses.

Finn Köhler

Co-founder of Kaospilot+

Finn works at the intersection of learning, design, and systems change, helping schools and organizations reimagine education for a just future.

Veronica D’Souza

Founder, CARCEL & Ruby Cup

Veronica is a serial entrepreneur creating purpose-driven companies focused on sustainability, women’s empowerment, and ethical supply chains.

Riccardo Lauro

Co-Creator, Post-Growth Entrepreneurship Incubator

Riccardo supports founders in building regenerative, inclusive, and socially just ventures beyond the traditional growth paradigm.

Oscar Haumann

Co-Founder, Post Growth Guide

Oscar develops tools and frameworks that help entrepreneurs and educators navigate post-growth futures rooted in care and resilience.

Location and Setting

The summer school takes place at Trifolium – an inspiring creative hub and coworking space in Sydhavnen, Copenhagen. Just steps away from the waterfront, Trifolium provides the perfect backdrop for reflection, collaboration, and bold new ideas.

Every morning, we start the day with an optional ocean dip in Sydhavnen — to reset, recharge, and reconnect with what matters. With bright spaces, room for deep work and group sessions, and a vibrant atmosphere, Trifolium is more than just a venue — it’s part of the experience.

Explore Space

What’s included

When you join the Meaningful Entrepreneurship Summer School, you get more than just a course — you get a full experience:

5‑day immersive program
Hands‑on learning, inspiration, and co‑creation with a diverse group of people.

✓ Lunch, coffee & tea every day
Stay fueled and connected with nourishing meals and good conversations.

✓ Morning swim in the harbour
Start each day with a refreshing dip in Sydhavnen — optional, but highly recommended.

✓ Official diploma
Receive a certificate of participation to recognize your learning journey.

✓ Continued support & pitch opportunity
Five selected ideas will be invited into a 1‑month mentorship program — then invited to pitch at the Impact Festival on September 12, hosted at Trifolium.

What happens after the program?

Your journey doesn’t end on Day 5. After the summer school, five standout meaningful business ideas developed during the week will be selected for a 1-month mentor program designed to help turn them into reality. These teams will also be invited to pitch at the Impact Festival on September 12, hosted at Trifolium, in front of an audience of other changemaker, potential costumers, investors and media.

The course is free, but not unlimited.

This summer school is free to attend, but spots are limited — and we want to make sure each one goes to someone genuinely motivated to build something meaningful.To secure your place, you’ll need to apply and tell us a bit about your background and motivation. If accepted, we’ll ask you to confirm your spot with a refundable no-show fee of 1.000 DKK. This helps us ensure commitment and avoid unused spots.

Application Criteria

To ensure a diverse, engaged, and purpose-driven group of participants, we’re looking for applicants who can briefly reflect on the following:

Background & Current Focus
Tell us a bit about who you are, what you’re working on (or curious about), and what drives you right now.

✓ Motivation for Joining
Why are you interested in the Meaningful Entrepreneurship Summer School? What draws you to this particular experience?

✓ Understanding of Meaningful Entrepreneurship
What does “meaningful entrepreneurship” mean to you? How do you see it being different from traditional approaches?

✓ What You Hope to Learn or Contribute
What do you hope to take away from the program — and what might you be able to contribute to the learning community?

We value curiosity, openness, and a commitment to exploring new ways of creating value — regardless of formal experience or background.

Ready to build something that matters?

Deadline: 22.07.2025
Response latest by: 24.07.2025

Copenhagen | Trifolium
11–15 August 2025 | Daily: 09.00h–16.00h
25 spots only

Apply to the Summer School

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