Partners
Meet our distinguished partners, whose diverse experience and collective expertise ensure the successful implementation of the Green Change Agents project.
Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) – Coordinator
RCCI’s origins date back all the way to the 1890s, when the importance of the city was determined by its rapid industrial development and the traditional trade relations it maintained with the Danube countries thus paving the way for the creation of the first chamber of commerce in Bulgaria. Today, RCCI is an NGO for the public benefit, providing a wide range of quality services to 1500+ member and non-member companies to help develop and expand their businesses, both at home and internationally.
Along with the business support activity, RCCI has an extensive experience in project management and implementation under various EU and other funding programmes (incl. LdV, FP7, Erasmus+, Programmes for territorial cooperation, USAID, COSME, H2020, EEA, and Norway Grants, etc.), all initiatives related with entrepreneurial support and promotion, sustainable business development, environmental awareness for business, favouring, and support of innovation, etc.
RCCI has operated for several years as one of the intermediary points under the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs programme facilitating the exchange of experience, skills, and practical knowledge between entrepreneurs from all over Europe.
The Chamber is among the first business support organizations within the country to provide tools for the improvement of businesses’ environmental performance through reducing their environmental footprint – transferred and adapted toolkit available as an innovative VET tool designed to help train entrepreneurs, managers, and specialists to work with environmental issues in SMEs.
The Chamber also established the first in Bulgaria Business Innovation Center, a full member of the European Business & Innovation Network (EBN) with the aim to support and promote potential and current entrepreneurs and start-ups.
Key Expert Profiles: Driving Progress at RCCI
The leading experts, who are working on the Green Change Agents project on behalf of RCCI are:
Milen Dobrev
Executive Director
Milen Dobrev has over 17 years of expertise in operative management, as well as management of projects with both national and international scope related to entrepreneurship, vocational training provided to the business, business support, cross-border cooperation, and environmental performance of SMEs. Mr. Dobrev is also a member of the Board of Directors of the European BIC Network, as well as the European Digital Learning Network. He also participates as an assessor and evaluator of business proposals at idea pitches & competitions. As of 2019, Mr. Dobrev is also part of the supervisory board of the Danube Chamber of Commerce Federation (DCCF). He is an MBA graduate from Sheffield University-UK, MA in European studies from Ruse University -BG, and INSEAD.
Irena Ivanova
Expert Programmes and Projects
Irena Ivanova has a Master’s Degree in European Studies and Public Administration. She has 5 years of experience in the development, coordination, and implementation of EU-funded projects, especially under the Erasmus+ programme. During her years of active work, she has developed abilities for conducting studies and analyses at national and European levels, encompassing various areas and target groups. Her main expertise is in the development of methodologies and educational materials on various topics, including entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, personal branding, co-creation, sustainability, etc. She also has skills for the organization and coordination of training, seminars, focus groups, and conferences at local and regional levels.
Stela Dionisieva
Expert Programmes and Projects
Stela Dionisieva has 15 years of expertise in project management and administrative implementation of different project activities related to the project’s timeline under different EU-level and territorial cooperation projects. She also possesses key skills and expertise in organizing of different events, B2B forums, and business missions for the business community situated in the RO-BG cross-border area especially. Mrs. Dionisieva has a Master’s Degree in Project management and a Bachelor‘s Degree in Marketing and Management.
Prios Kompetanse AS (Prios) – Partner
Prios is a nationally recognized study center for adult education and lifelong learning. Their main tasks are related to project management, business consulting, innovation processes, training, and software development. Prios, as a research center, aims to implement the idea of lifelong learning, support and conduct development projects. The center is open to all who wish to develop their talents, refresh their knowledge, improve their business, need new and better digital tools, or have ideas in need of support to be fulfilled.
They value innovation and creativity since training content and training methods constantly need to be improved in response to digitalization and the development of society in general. Their courses and assignments are carried out by their own staff or professionals from their large network. Prios receives no government funding. Their main source of income is sales fees from their services. Prios has 17 people on its staff and many teachers, programmers, and consultants engaged in different activities.
The main sectors and activities Prios operates in, are the following:
In all their activities, Prios has a sharp focus on the individual and their needs. This involves giving support for individual workplace training, individual learning processes, market access, and life planning in general. They offer workshops and courses that last from a few academic hours up to a whole semester. Flexibility is important for Prios to offer tailor-made solutions to their customers through courses and training, software development, and consulting activities.
Prios works closely with the formal educational school system to provide innovation and better learning tools. The European KA220 projects “Journalism as a Learning Tool” (www.jlt-project.eu), “RESET” (www.reset-project.eu), and “DIGI-Vet” (https://digi-vet.org/), which Prios developed and coordinates, are examples of how new digital solutions bring new opportunities into the classroom.
Prios is a regional-level member of four chambers of commerce, Namdalskysten Næringsforening, Namdal Næringsforening, Steinkjer Næringsforum, and Innherred Næringsforening, while at the European level, member of the European Forum of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (EfVET), The European Basic Skills Network (EBSN), Pact for Skills, and Connect International.
Leading Experts Spearheading the Green Change Agents Project at Prios
The leading experts, who are working on the Green Change Agents project on behalf of Prios are:
Jo Sakariassen
Senior Expert
Jo Sakariassen has worked with several aspects of youth training and adult learning for over 25 years, including Project management and coordination of International Projects. He graduated in adult pedagogy and andragogy, with extensive experience in all aspects of training, as well as a certified coach. He has experience in educational planning and implementation, as well as providing training in the classroom himself in topics related to basic skills training, digital skills, entrepreneurship training, etc. As a business advisor, he supports businesses with innovations processes management improvements processes. He steps into the role of Senior Expert in project implementation.
Nevena Peeva-Todorova
Junior Expert
Nevena Peeva-Todorova is educated in Innovations Entrepreneurship, Finance Master, and Marketing Management. She has extended experience in (green) business model creation and evaluation, gained both through her work activities and as a volunteering assessor of projects in the “Innovation in Action”, a competition for innovative start-ups. She steps into the role of Junior Expert in project implementation.
Tommy Muledal
Technical Support Coordinator
Tommy Muledal has his initial education in economic and social studies. He has a wide range of experience in management roles in the restaurant and service industry. He has in Prios worked with business clients from the service industry as well as a project manager in several European projects. His main role in the project is to provide and coordinate technical support where and when needed.