Applications are open until Tuesday 31st May 2022
Calling for 280 diverse, creative and collaborative women entrepreneurs.
And break your routine. Experience a 28-day transformational retreat to expand your impact through training, community and partnerships.
Take your project to the next level through the latest design and management methodologies, high level alliances and expert mentoring. Experience collaboration and collective learning while focusing on your project.
Forge a more sustainable and participatory women-led business ecosystem for a stronger EU. Let’s break the entrepreneur gender gap. Connect to 280 like-minded business leaders and expand your impact. Our community is both face to face and digital.
Share your expertise, empathy and creativity and help us co-design solutions to 12 key sector challenges linked to unique locations. Group-up in clusters and be hosted by a Local Innovation Community in Spain. Learn from systems thinking and open innovation approaches across very diverse territories.
Applications, interviews and fellows selection and confirmation
Detailed information about destination, logistics, and travel bookings by organization
Remote Opening Event
Online training, community and mentoring sessions
Madrid 2-day
Networking sessions, presentations and debates
24 days
Individual work, training & workshops, field visits, community events and open innovation challenge
Madrid 2-day
Networking sessions, fellows’ presentations, community and next steps
Creative minds opened to co-create and collaborate
Breaking goals: break to accelerate, break to connect, break to reshape
High value specialized training and mentoring on management, design, leadership and innovation
Days retreat in Spain. Break your routine and expand your impact
Global community & networking events with potential business partners
Worth fellowship including travel, accommodation, training and networking events
We are bringing on board some of the most influential entrepreneurs in Spain for an extraordinary collaborative and learning journey
CEO It Will be
EU Innovators 2020 Winner
Arancha has founded It will be NGO to maximise aid and funds by leveraging data, People’s Protection App to identify homeless minors through biometrical recognition and Comgo, the first blockchain-backed platform to measure and report social impact across entire value chains.
CEO Hemper Handmade
BCorporation
Gloria has developed a business strategy, with the goal to position Hemper as a pioneer of sustainability. In 2019 she was chosen as “Women entrepreneur of the year” by Chanel Foundation. She is in the Nova 111 list, among the most talented youth.
Director of Sustainability
at Ecoalf BCorporation
Carol leads the sustainability department of one of the most innovative fashion companies across the globe. Ecoalf is an activist brand that collects sea garbage and transforms it into durable clothes. Among different projects, she’s a partner of Women Action Sustainability (WAS).
Head of Google for Startups
Europe, Middle East and Africa
Sofia Benjumea founded The South Summit as the leading startup conference in Southern Europe. She’s been the head of Google for Startups in Spain and more recently was promoted to expand her impact globally.
The Break is calling for creative, committed and empathetic women entrepreneurs from all sectors who fit in the following categories.
EU resident working on a business with no more than 5 years since constitution
EU resident with an entrepreneurial project with at least a proposal or MVP
Spanish expats in other EU countries wanting to expand their business into Spain
Check our terms below or
The Break is an entrepreneurship Fellowship Programme in Spain for EU resident women worth +7,000 €. The Fellowship is funded by the European Union and powered by Impact Hub Madrid and Escuela de Organización Industrial EOI School. 280 female entrepreneurs will embark on a transformational journey: a two-month entrepreneurship programme, including a 28 day retreat in Spain.
The Break 2022 fellows will work towards three common goals: Goal1: Break to Accelerate: high level training and alliances to take their entrepreneurial projects to the next level, Goal2: Break to Connect: cocreate a more sustainable and participatory female entrepreneur ecosystem across EU borders, Goal3: Break to Reshape collectively co-creating solutions to local challenges while learning and applying open innovation design methodologies.
Expenses covered by The Break are estimated in +7,000 eur and include: transportation costs from the European location of origin to Spain and vice versa, accomodation in Spain, the entire training itinerary (webinars, individual and group mentoring, workshops, program trips and events). Travel insurance and medical insurance. Expenses not covered by The Break: food in Spain and expenses related to trips out of the programmed group visits and medical tests related to covid-19 (antigen tests, PCRs…) Food costs are estimated in 20-30 eur per day.
The Break is part of the EU Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan and is aligned with the Spanish National Entrepreneurship Strategy (España Nación Emprendedora), the long-term governmental vision to make Spain a reference country in innovative entrepreneurship before 2030. For the implementation of the first edition of the program, EOI has launched a public tender in December 2021 which has been awarded to Impact Hub.
All actions within the Spanish National Plan for Recovery, Transformation and Resilience (PRTR) and therefore the Break Programme must comply with the principle of Do Not Significant Harm (DNSH). This applies both to the projects of the participating women entrepreneurs and to the sectoral challenges proposed by the Spanish communities. The DNSH principle implies that no action may go against the six environmental objectives for which the absence of significant harm has been assured: climate change mitigation, adaptation to climate change, sustainable use and protection of water and marine resources, circular economy, pollution prevention and control, protection and recovery of biodiversity and ecosystems.
The program starts in September 2022 (dates to be confirmed). During this first month, you will start your journey remotely. You will enjoy welcoming and networking events, webinars, mentoring and community sessions.
Your community of 280 fellows will then be divided into two cohorts depending on their calendar preferences and availability (October and November). The first group of entrepreneurs (140) will travel to Madrid in the first days of October 2022 and the second group (140) in November 2022.
After two days in Madrid, you will be grouped-up and travel to different unique territories of Spain to be hosted for a period of 24 days, an immersive transformational experience designed to gain knowledge and develop key skills, build strategic alliances, co-create solutions to systemic challenges and discover Spanish culture, nature and business ecosystem.
You will come back from the hosting communities to Madrid for a two day closing event, after which you will travel back home.
Phase 1 – September remote sessions
In September you will initiate your journey working from home. It’s a key moment to plan, think about your expectations, start connections and establish your objectives.
Phase 2- Travel to Spain
Phase 3- Next Steps
After the 28 days retreat you will travel back home to start implementing everything learned during your journey.
Phase 4- Remember the Break
Note that the following requirements are mandatory:
*Please note that this is a women-only event that intends an inclusive definition of women. We are welcoming and respectful of women, including trans women and any others who identify as a woman in a way that is significant to them.
Join female entrepreneur talent and break-to-accelerate your project
Yes, apply as soon as possible. The Break 2022 fellows will be invited to apply from the 5th of May 2022. The period of application is set to one month approximately but this could change if we receive enough applications.
Yes, The Break is calling for 280 creative and diverse women entrepreneurs to build an innovative ecosystem. We consider “entrepreneur” from a broad perspective. If you are working on a project proposal or moving towards MVP, or if you have a leading role in a startup or an established business which is less than 5 years old, you may apply.
Yes, The Break Fellowship is a transformational experience designed to strengthen entrepreneurial projects through training, partnerships and community for active professionals. A work space, wifi and other resources involving work are guaranteed. It is estimated that fellows will dedicate 3h per day approximately to The Break activities. Weekends are free or planned activities are voluntary.
Expenses covered by The Break are estimated in +7,000 eur and include: transportation costs from the European location of origin to Spain and vice versa, accomodation in Spain, the entire training itinerary (webinars, individual and group mentoring, workshops, program trips and events). Travel insurance and medical and insurance. Expenses not covered by The Break: food in Spain and expenses related to trips out of the programmed group visits and medical tests related to covid-19 (antigen tests, PCRs…) Food costs are estimated at 20-30 € per day.
For the welcoming event in Madrid, you will be staying in a hotel for three nights to then travel to your Local Innovation Community for a period of 24 days in which you will be accommodated in a rural house, hotel or coliving space with other fellows from your group (15 members approximately). Upon return to Madrid, you will stay in a hotel for another two nights to then fly back to your EU country of residence.
You will be grouped with other fellows according to different factors: skills, sector of professional activities and other interests and motivations. The Break is designed over the idea of collaboration, creativity, community impact and collective learning.
The cancellation policy will depend on the travel agency that will operate all trips from your location to Madrid and then to your Local Innovation Community and will be communicated to participants further.
The Break is inclusive and understanding of mother circumstances. We are open to considering mothers bringing children but only if the best possible experiences for the little ones can be guaranteed. Please know that a sudden change of setting and language could turn into a difficult experience for them. Therefore, we can consider cases on an individual basis and depending on the resources that the Local Innovation Communities can offer. Note that the fellowship only covers expenses related to the participation of the entrepreneur and therefore other family expenses will have to be covered by her.
Participants will be asked to attend all activities but the organization understands urgent things coming across or unexpectedly that could result in absence. Weekends will be mostly free for participants to travel to the beach, the mountains, the desserts…be ready to experience unique corners of Spain.
The program is based on collaboration and collective learning so we count on your knowledge and skills towards achieving the community goals. In addition to supporting other participants you will have to deliver:
EOI (Escuela de Organización Industrial) is the first business school founded in Spain (1955). As a public foundation attached to the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and co-financed by European Funds, we have promoted +80,000 entrepreneurs and SMEs. More than 84,500 executives and business managers specialized in leadership, internationalization and sustainability have attended our programs.
We are Impact Hub, the largest global network of entrepreneurial communities with impact, +17,000 professionals present in +100 cities from 60 countries around the world. Together with other allied organizations, we create and execute programs to promote innovative proposals and social transformation.
The Break is designed by EOI and powered by Impact Hub
The Break is possible with the support from
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