08.11.2024
The 22nd edition of the European Entrepreneurship Day took place on November 7, 2024, hosted by the Representation of the European Commission in Bulgaria. The forum was organized by the Technology Transfer Center within the Research Sector of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, led by Engineer Bozhil Dobrev, in partnership with the University Entrepreneurship Center, headed by Prof. Dr. Tsvetan Davidkov, and the “Innovation Starter” agency, managed by Dr. Leona Aslanova. The forum was opened by Academician Toni Spassov, Vice-Rector of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
The long-standing forum was first initiated by Prof. Rumen Nikolov at Sofia University in 2003 under the patronage of Mrs. Lidiya Shuleva, then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy.
This year’s forum panelists included Assoc. Prof. Dr. Todor Yalamov, Vice-Dean for Research, Innovation, and Projects at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Raya Kanazireva, who gave an insightful lecture on entrepreneurship in public institutions, and Dr. Kiril Velichkov, in his role as a financial expert, Director of European Projects and Financial Instruments at UBB Bank.
At the forum's close, Engineer Dobrev awarded the winners of the third edition of the “Young Scientist Entrepreneur” competition. Awards went to EcoHunt (involving a student from the Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics) and Concept Space (involving a young researcher from the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration). The jury, chaired by Academician Spassov, awarded two second prizes, each worth 5,000 BGN.
Researcher Zlatan Dimitrov, an R1 researcher in the “Young Scientists and Postdoctoral Researchers” program of the Ministry of Education and Science at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration of Sofia University, presented his startup, Concept Space. The project offers a software service for recommendations and 3D model visualizations of furniture.
The awarded entrepreneurs, Zornitsa Naydenova and Zlatan Dimitrov, and Engineer Bozhil Dobrev.
EcoHunt previously won an award from the “Academy of Innovation” by Innovation Starter in 2023, and Zornitsa Naydenova participated in last year’s European Entrepreneurship Day. At that time, the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration was represented by Prof. Dr. Anton Gerunov. EcoHunt provides a mobile gamification platform for waste collection aimed at children and teenagers, along with a platform for engaging socially responsible businesses.