3.10 Promotion of entrepreneurship culture
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In Denmark different organisations work to fund and promote entrepreneurship. These organizations are themselves in charge of developing events for their target groups.
Special events and activities
The Danish Foundation for Entrepreneurship is the central actor for entrepreneurship in education. The foundation is responsible for a wide range of activities within the education system, for instance, the Danish Entrepreneurship Award, the National Championship in Entrepreneurship, and the Impact Investor Ball.
See section 3.8 for more information about The Danish Foundation for Entrepreneurship.
Innovation Fund Denmark invests in innovative projects. Innovation Fund Denmark arranges events, competitions, talks, and meetings, for instance, Innotalks, information campaigns at the universities in Denmark, and Morningtalks.
TechBBQ is a large, two-day tech-start-up summit with workshops, networking, and matchmaking and talks for scaleups, start-ups, tech talents, visionary corporates, and investors. The summit is funded by a wide range of private and public partners. Innovation Fund Denmark, the Danish Foundation for Entrepreneurship, Capital Region of Denmark, the Municipality of Copenhagen, and Digital Hub Denmark are among the public actors financing the summit.
Nordic start-up awards are funded by Innovation Fund Denmark, Capital Region of Denmark, and the municipality of Copenhagen.
Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) is a national entrepreneurship week campaign launched by the Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs, Danish Business Authority, and Danish Association of Entrepreneurs (Dansk Iværksætterforening).
Networks and partnerships
Young entrepreneurs in Denmark have numerous opportunities to engage in networking and partnerships that foster entrepreneurship. Innovative office communities provide shared workspaces that encourage collaboration and knowledge exchange among startups. Development parks, organised by the association Danish Development Parks (Danske Udviklingsparker), offer not only office facilities but also structured business development support.
Student incubators, which are now present at most higher education institutions, act as startup hubs, providing young entrepreneurs with mentorship, resources, and access to funding. As a result, the number of university spinouts has been steadily increasing. Additionally, entrepreneurs can join associations such as Danish Entrepreneurs and the Danish Startup Group, which provide networking opportunities and advocacy for startups.
Denmark also hosts twenty-two national innovation networks, which serve as platforms for fostering collaboration, knowledge exchange, and the development of new technologies. Furthermore, Cluster Excellence Denmark acts as a national support unit for innovation clusters, providing access to expertise, funding, and networking opportunities. Digital Hub Denmark, a public-private partnership involving the Danish government, industry organisations, and financial institutions, connects startups, private companies, and researchers through a digital platform that matches entrepreneurial solutions to company-specific challenges.
The Danish Foundation for Entrepreneurship plays a vital role in fostering collaboration among educators and professionals. It supports NEIS, a national network for entrepreneurship teachers, and UNIEN, a network for university staff engaged in entrepreneurial education.