A school to help researchers, scientists, teachers and PhD students become entrepreneurs. It's called “Reactor” and it's an initiative promoted by the Golinelli Foundation which is divided into various phases: classroom sessions, coaching by mentors and experts and meetings with entrepreneurs. The project is also carried out with the support of the Fondazione del Monte.
For the 2018 edition, 12 teams will be selected for a total of 60 participants, connected to the four scientific partners of the project: Unibo – University of Bologna, UniMoRe – University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, IOR – Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute, CNR – Area of the Research of Bologna.
"Universities and research centers have evolved in recent decades under the sign of a verticalization of knowledge and on a very strong principle of specialization - he says the president of the Golinelli Foundation, Andrea Zanotti – The present time, on the other hand, seems to reveal the need for a return to contamination, to a circulation between different knowledge that today seems to be the most fertile ground for innovation. This initiative tries to interpret this new trend”.
After 11 weeks of training at Opificio Golinelli, for the teams with the highest potential (from 4 to 6 selected), thanks also to a prize of 10 euros each, there will be a stay in major international entrepreneurial ecosystems, in Great Britain, Silicon Valley, North America.
"A few years ago we understood how important it was to design a school of entrepreneurship and innovation at the service of male and female researchers interested in exploring their entrepreneurial potential - he adds Simone Ferriani, scientific director of the project – This choice requires a real change of mentality that the participants in the program are able to achieve thanks to the assiduous interaction for 11 weeks with a group of highly qualified international mentors and various moments of classroom training”.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE
From 20 November to 20 February, teachers, researchers, research fellows, post-docs and PhD students can present their business ideas by consulting Golinelli Foundation website. Groups of researchers belonging to all scientific-disciplinary fields and without age restrictions can apply.
WHEN
The training activities will start in April 2019, for the duration of twelve weeks in the weekend formula; the teams will have the opportunity to present their business idea to a group of experts, potential business angels and investors. The best projects will then access a three/five-week period in incubators in the United States and the United Kingdom, to immerse themselves in the entrepreneurial culture of the most innovative contexts, deal with successful realities, participate in networking events and make international contacts.
WHERE
The lessons take place at Opificio Golinelli, in via Paolo Nanni Costa 14, Bologna.
THE FINANCERS
Reactor is also created thanks to the economic contribution of local foundations and businesses: in addition to the Golinelli Foundation which provides 60 thousand euros in infrastructure, financial and organizational resources, the Del Monte Foundation and the Imperial Group support the Bio-On project and other partners that are being added.
