Success stories

New entrepreneur:
Giulia Cagol (Italy)
Age: 26
Company name: (Start-up)
Sector of activity: Legal, fiscal and other consultancy services

Host entrepreneur:
Jaap Hamburger (Netherlands)
Age: 71
Company name: A Different Jewish | https://www.eajg.nl/ (12 years of experience)
Sector of activity: Legal, fiscal and other consultancy services

Jaap Hamburger is chairman of a Different Jewish Voice in Amsterdam, a Jewish organization promoting a two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He decided to participate in the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs programme because it was a great opportunity for sharing his unique experience in the field of advocacy for human rights with young personalities in other countries. Giulia Cagol graduated from the University of Trento with a master’s degree in law focusing on international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Specifically she discussed a thesis on the applicability of transitional justice to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with a specific focus on contrasting narratives developed during the conflict by Israelis and Palestinians. Given Giulia’s strong interest for human rights and for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the possibility to start a collaboration with Jaap appeared immediately as an important occasion to further develop her expertise in the human rights field.

According to Jaap, Giulia was able to work independently and successfully deal with stressful situations and tight deadlines from the beginning. She was able to conduct accurate legal research and present the results to the rest of the team. Jaap and his organisation offered her the opportunity to directly contact and build direct connections with their partners. She also got in touch with several lawyers they work with in Europe who focus on human rights. Giulia said that this experience made her aware of the challenges that an organisation dealing with human rights faces on a daily basis. The difficulties and challenges range from the need to build a network with potential partners to the need to be up to date and constantly conducting research on issues of interest to the organisation. Secondly, by participating in the programme, she was able to understand that raising funds for the organisation's activities is a crucial part and requires time and a long-term strategy.

Jaap says that Giulia enabled them to work on more cases and build more collaborations with partners in Germany. Her knowledge of the German language made it easier to build working relationships with German partners. This experience made them realise that knowledge of other languages is crucial for building new partnerships. Giulia, in turn, realised that when defining her business idea, she should also consider what is needed for the business to come to life and survive. Thanks to this exchange, she learned the importance of building a solid network with partners and professionals from different European countries. On several occasions, she has personally contacted digital rights and human rights NGOs, as well as activists and civil society organisations. Building this network is especially important for her planned business idea and motivated her to keep working hard to reach her final goal.

For more information, please contact the local contact points involved in the exchange:

New entrepreneur's contact point:
Fondazione Politecnico di Milano (Milano, Italy)

Host entrepreneur's contact point:
Quarter Mediation (Utrecht, Netherlands)

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