The kick-off meeting of the Central Baltic project "HeritageHunters&Business " will take place on September 8-9, in Viljandi
Young people from lake Peipsi and South Karelia region explore entrepreneurial opportunities in cultural heritage.
On 1 August 2025, a new cross-border cooperation project HeritageHunters&Business – Using the Local Nature and Cultural Heritage for Entrepreneurship was launched with the support of the Central Baltic Programme. Running until October 2027, the project connects young people from Estonia and Finland, encouraging them to turn the unique natural and cultural values of Lake Peipsi and South Karelia into viable business ideas.
The project aims to inspire rural youth to take on professional challenges through entrepreneurship by offering 72 participants a hands-on training programme. The curriculum covers topics such as business idea generation and planning, cultural heritage marketing and branding, basics of finance and fundraising, networking, and mentoring. From the Estonian side, the programme will be delivered in cooperation with the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy.
“We want to equip young people with ideas, practical skills, and confidence to create business concepts rooted in the natural and cultural heritage of their home region—concepts that they themselves, local residents, or communities can implement. This could mean a cultural heritage-themed board game for a museum or visitor centre, unique regional souvenirs, or other innovative products and services,” said project manager Ederi Ojasoo.
The kick-off meeting of the project will take place on 8–9 September 2025 in Viljandi, where the partners will agree on the initial activities and start preparing the training programmes. The youth training programme consists of several modules covering, among other topics, business idea generation and planning, cultural heritage marketing and branding, basics of financing and financial management, as well as networking and mentoring.
The total project budget is 637,692 euros, of which 80% (510,153.60 euros) is covered by the Central Baltic Programme 2021–2027.
More information about the project:
https://ctc.ee/activities-and-projects/running/heritagehunters-and-business
https://centralbaltic.eu/project/heritagehuntersbusiness/
Ederi Ojasoo, project manager
NGO Peipsi Center for Transboundary Cooperation
ederi.ojasoo @gmail.com
Young people from lake Peipsi and South Karelia region explore entrepreneurial opportunities in cultural heritage.
On 1 August 2025, a new cross-border cooperation project HeritageHunters&Business – Using the Local Nature and Cultural Heritage for Entrepreneurship was launched with the support of the Central Baltic Programme. Running until October 2027, the project connects young people from Estonia and Finland, encouraging them to turn the unique natural and cultural values of Lake Peipsi and South Karelia into viable business ideas.
The project aims to inspire rural youth to take on professional challenges through entrepreneurship by offering 72 participants a hands-on training programme. The curriculum covers topics such as business idea generation and planning, cultural heritage marketing and branding, basics of finance and fundraising, networking, and mentoring. From the Estonian side, the programme will be delivered in cooperation with the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy.
“We want to equip young people with ideas, practical skills, and confidence to create business concepts rooted in the natural and cultural heritage of their home region—concepts that they themselves, local residents, or communities can implement. This could mean a cultural heritage-themed board game for a museum or visitor centre, unique regional souvenirs, or other innovative products and services,” said project manager Ederi Ojasoo.
The kick-off meeting of the project will take place on 8–9 September 2025 in Viljandi, where the partners will agree on the initial activities and start preparing the training programmes. The youth training programme consists of several modules covering, among other topics, business idea generation and planning, cultural heritage marketing and branding, basics of financing and financial management, as well as networking and mentoring.
The total project budget is 637,692 euros, of which 80% (510,153.60 euros) is covered by the Central Baltic Programme 2021–2027.
More information about the project:
https://ctc.ee/activities-and-projects/running/heritagehunters-and-business
https://centralbaltic.eu/project/heritagehuntersbusiness/
Ederi Ojasoo, project manager
NGO Peipsi Center for Transboundary Cooperation
ederi.ojasoo @gmail.com
