Refugees learn about entrepreneurship in Trampoline House
New course on entrepreneurship makes it easier for refugees and asylum seekers to find a job or start their own business.
By Sara Tatiana Schwartz
Collaboration, creativity and network is on the agenda every Wednesday in Trampoline House’s new workshop on entrepreneurship. “In Trampoline House, we believe in strengthening the individual. We want to develop skills that you can use to create a future, no matter if it’s in the Danish labor market or in another country,” says Simon Christensen, Trampoline House’s Job Coordinator.
Many new job opportunities
One of the participants, who has learned a lot in the course, is Reza from Iran. Reza is a tower crane technician and operator and he has been in Denmark for 4 years. For a long time, he was told that a cleaning job was the only option for him, but through Trampoline House he has learned how to look for other jobs in Denmark:
“I participate in the couse in Trampoline House because I want to get to know the system better. In Iran, you can get a job if you know someone, but here I have learned how to write a cover letter and résumé. I receive a lot of responses, and I have just been to a job interview. “
Reza participates in Trampoline House’s entrepreneurship course to get closer to the job market. Photo: Viktoria Steinhart.
Training for independence
The course is an 8-week long program, where participants develop skills that they can also use to create their own businesses. According to Simon, there is a high demand for the course: “Most people just want to be able to support themselves. They want to earn their own money and support their family. In order to do that, you need to know something about managing supplies, creating motivation or developing a network that can help you. That’s what you can learn in the course.”
Believing in oneself
The idea for the course came from Maral Mahdad, who is a volunteer teacher. According to her, the course brings a lot of value to the participants on a personal level, because they develop skills that they can use to create a new future:
“Many of the refugees live in a world where it is easy to believe that everything is against you. A lot of the time, the focus is on a negative and destructive situation. We help them focus on themselves and the skills they can use to create a future. We don’t just teach business skills, but also "soft skills" like teamwork, trust, confidence and creativity. We show them that entrepreneurship does not have to be rocket science; entrepreneurs address problems in society and contribute to the community. That gives them self-confidence and hope.”
Sjælsmark inspired creativity
There are people with many different backgrounds in the course, and that offers a lot to learn. Today’s topic is creativity, which makes Reza reflect upon his own life:
“The girl next to me said that hard times can inspire creativity. I just thought “YES!”, because when I came to Sjælsmark, I just knew, I had to try something new, so I got the idea to try to look for a job. In that way, the hard period at Sjælsmark inspired my creativity”.
The entrepreneurship course is a part of Trampoline House’s job program Next Practice, which is to bring asylum seekers and refugees closer to the Danish job market in collaboration with Danish municipalities.
Support Trampoline House
Trampoline House’s many activities are possible thanks to donations from almost 300 individuals, who each donate between 50 and 500 kr. every month. If you, your partner or your mother is also able to support our work with a recurring donation, it would really make a great difference to our work.
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