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During voluntary work, volunteers acquire valuable new knowledge and skills, but they often do not recognize these newly developed competencies, cannot apply them in further education, and fail to make others, including potential employers, aware of them. The classification and validation of these competencies can help to facilitate the transfer of volunteers' competencies within the volunteer and labor markets; however, the required steps for validation of the acquired competencies are frequently complicated or unclear for volunteers. Additionally, accepted ways of validating are lacking in labor market. This paper starts by presenting the value and benefits of volunteering, especially in a business education context. Thereafter, the authors present a European partnership project--the Grundtvig Learning Partnership's Volunteering Validation Highway (VVH). The partnership aimed to facilitate the validation and transfer of volunteers' experience. The following paper discuss volunteering as important part of society and a business education approach integrating volunteering. To support the idea of integration, the authors present a study concerning volunteers' competencies, the benefits of volunteering, and the usefulness in business education of competencies gained through volunteering. The study used data from a questionnaire and group discussions. Regarding different countries, the partners expected different understandings of volunteering; therefore, the researchers conducted mixed-nationality group discussions to develop a mutual understanding of volunteering. The researchers also developed a questionnaire according to the group discussion categories (inductive) and included both open-ended and multiple-choice questions. The results support the idea of integrating volunteering experiences in business education. First, the results showed benefits for society and for the volunteers themselves. Second, the volunteers gain on the one hand professional competencies that were relevant to the labor market, like delegating tasks to other people. On the other hand, the volunteers mentioned social and process-oriented competencies, including communication and technical skills. Third, the researchers identified two major advantages of volunteering: volunteers learn networking and communicating, and volunteers experience opened new occupational fields. The authors presented in a fourth step opportunities to integrate volunteering into business education. Business education can therefore be a service learning or a social entrepreneurship education course.

The role of university education in providing access to the labour market (employment) is reflected in increased employment opportunities for the educated population. The relationship between the unemployment rate and educational attainment is evident: the unemployment rate decreases as one moves from lower to higher levels of education. It can be seen that the unemployment rate, in terms of its size and dynamics, is inversely proportional to the level of education: it falls as the level of education rises, and vice versa. The aim of the research in this paper is to respond to the need to teach students with practical solutions for getting the skills needed to be easily employable in the labour market after graduation. The paper used a quantitative (questionnaire) and a qualitative (bibliometric) analysis. The data studied through the research shows the need for final-year students to receive additional practical skills training for employability. Entrepreneurship education, in addition to the university curriculum, can provide them with a viable alternative to increase their chances of integrating into the 21st century labour market. The innovative character of the work derives from the concrete practical activities that supported the optional entrepreneurial training of IULS students from Iasi. We can affirm, following the study undertaken, that the development of such additional and adapted educational activities increases young graduates' practical skills needed on the labour market. The access to non-reimbursable European funds, which offer additional educational opportunities to students, must be continued in order to produce the major economic effects expected by the whole Romanian society, with the aim of reducing youth unemployment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents data from two international projects focused on the interaction between changemaking and digital making in university students. The data is drawn from the contributions of 63 university students located in the United States, Romania, Spain, Belgium, Norway, Denmark and England. Using a design thinking methodology and a thematic analysis of student responses, the aim was to understand how the creative use of immersive technologies, such as augmented and virtual reality, might create an environment for changemaking practices in an international context. Findings suggest that students demonstrated not only enhanced digital skills and student engagement but increased cultural competence and global mindfulness. International digital collaboration can create conditions for students to develop changemaker attributes and identify as changemakers within the spheres of entrepreneurship and education, preparing them to be a force for change in the world.

The paper aims to analyze entrepreneurship education in Romania in terms of: concept, European educational policies in the field, actual status in the Romanian educational system and to advance proposals for improvement of entrepreneurial competences in Romanian education. Thus, we will discuss the definition of entrepreneurship education, the most important European documents in the field and its benefits among students, as well as in society in general. We will present an analysis of the curricular documents in the Romanian secondary and high school education referring to entrepreneurhip education in terms of status, competencies, contents and values, discuss the necessity of entrepreneurial education in Romanian schools and identify ways of improving entrepreneurial competencies.

Started in 2008, the new Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) paradigm has brought challenges and innovation at all levels of education, aiming to respond to the most pressing learning needs, generated by the new development policies and the rapid evolution of technology. This paper reports on a project proposed by a group of universities and organizations specialized in training, research and consultancy, with a view to develop and implement an innovative learning system in entrepreneurship. The project is built on a package of MOOCs targeting the learning needs of young entrepreneurs in the context of "Smart cities" policies. The article presents the project concepts, and the development and implementation steps, from MOOCs design, pilot phase, consultancy activities, impact study to proposals for national policies and accreditation. This work could be a starting point for developing new programmes and customized training courses on specific learning needs to support the "Smart cities" interventions.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a new framework for assessing the innovation capacity and efficiency in Romanian small enterprises and start-ups. In this sense, a systematic literature review has been employed in order to obtain a clear understanding of the existing knowledge and to critically evaluate the existing solutions. In addition, considering the European Union objectives regarding innovation and sustainable development, this paper investigates the present situation of Romania by interpreting the official European Commission reports and current research papers. Considering the importance of regional innovation advancement and that of creating economic growth through competitiveness, this paper scrutinizes several concepts from the scientific literature, including regional innovation governance, entrepreneurship and innovation efficiency with the final purpose of developing a framework applicable for Romania. Taking into consideration the relatively low scores of Romanian regions regarding innovativeness and technological advancement, this paper attempts to provide a clearer understanding of the applicable factors that can be used for measuring innovation performance. The proposed framework focuses on the importance of entrepreneurship and the development of new business models in order to efficiently assess the innovative endeavors of enterprises. All things considered, this paper provides both theoretical and managerial contributions and possibility for further investigations addressed at specific Romanian regions and business sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper approaches the issue of higher entrepreneurship education in motivating young people to start their own business as a viable alternative to the successful integration of university graduates on the labour market. The fundamental question of this research is if, currently, entrepreneurship education influences students' entrepreneurial intentions and to what extent. The research results, based on the statistical analysis of data collected through a questionnaire distributed to Romanian business and engineering bachelor students in the final year, highlight that business students assessed the effectiveness of higher entrepreneurship education and its positive influence on entrepreneurial intentions to a greater extent than the engineering students. Furthermore, entrepreneurial intentions of engineering students are influenced positively much more by entrepreneurial family background than by entrepreneurship education. The findings provide important highlights for future research, in order to identify the most effective ways of approaching, modernising and expanding entrepreneurship education, aiming to increase entrepreneurial intentions among students, regardless of the graduated field of study.

The so-called 'sea of plastic' in Almería, Spain, is a 450km2 area devoted to intensive greenhouse farming managed by 10,000 small farmers who employ a labour force of 50,000 workers, mostly immigrants from Africa and eastern Europe. Romanian immigrants arrived at the beginning of 2000s and have occupied various positions within this agro-industrial district. Some started their own businesses in greenhouse reparation and construction employing fellow Romanians. They seized the market, providing more stable jobs through their transnational networks, and extending their businesses nationally and internationally. This paper analyses the global processes 'from below' that explain the occupation of specific economic spaces by transnational migrant entrepreneurs. Based on ethnographic fieldwork and social network analysis, the paper shows how the seasonal mobilization of a workforce through a transnational social field connecting Romania and Spain provided a competitive advantage to these entrepreneurs to start investing in their ventures and acquiring new markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper demonstrates the value of embracing digital technology in order to effect positive change in a non-governmental (NGO) charity organisation, in this case the Irish Charity Crosscause. The outcome of the research was the creation of a charity video, Crosscause: Making a Difference, to showcase humanitarian work in Ireland and Romania with a view to inspiring others to contribute in some capacity to this cause. Video is an important medium to provide connections with a wider audience, as it gives humanitarian workers and marginalised communities an opportunity to tell their story by making a compelling and evocative case to others. Visual media not only makes connections with an audience, but can also positively challenge people to consider what is happening in the world around them. The research process incorporated an entrepreneurial methodology--an Educational Entrepreneurial approach to action research--with four steps: Exploring, Understanding, Creating and Transforming, which is designed to guide practitioner-researchers as they embrace digital technology to resolve an identified need in a workplace context, including people in disadvantaged settings. In this research, there was an identified need for a charity video to link the giving in Ireland to the receiving in Romania, so that viewers could see the tangible effects of their contributions. A further aim of the research was to illustrate how volunteering can inspire solidarity among Irish and Romanian communities.

The present research is focused on the link between entrepreneurship and rural economic growth in the direction and intensity of the net influence of farmers' entrepreneurial activities on rural economic development in Romania. This research delves into land use for grape production, a key element in Romania's wine processing industry. It examines the dynamics between consumption, production, and import in the wine market, noting in particular the increase in imports after Romania accedes to the European Union. In addition, it considers the impact of viticulture on land use amid food competition concerns. The study aims to elucidate the relationships between wine production, import, and consumption and assesses the capacity of domestic production to meet consumption demands. Using regression analysis of data on wine consumption, production, and import, the research uncovers significant findings. It reveals that a one-unit increase in wine consumption correlates with a 0.13-unit increase in both wine production and imports. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the interaction between wine consumption, production, and import, helping predictive modeling and identifying sustainable entrepreneurial paths in the grape processing sector in Romania, given the considerable wine production potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combination of innovation and artificial intelligence (AI), with reference to innovative startups, presents a challenge for firms that start operating in the market. Such a transformation in the entrepreneurial scenario, which is likely to define new business models, has been observed in two European countries: Italy and Romania. In this article, we examine the AI-induced innovations in the regulatory frameworks of both countries. We then provide insights from interviews with CEOs of innovative startups, who discuss the challenges and prospects facing the industry. This paper concludes with some reflections on this evolving framework as a prelude to further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify the existing discrepancy between the educational offers that encourage entrepreneurship and the specific requirements for the development of the maritime cruise industry in Constanta, Romania. Methodology: The authors conducted research on the university educational offers in Constanta, analyzed the specializations and training programs offered, and determined the directions for the training of professional skills within the analyzed faculties. Findings: The authors found that out of 22 faculties in Constanta, only four specializations focused on business management or administration. Additionally, there was a discrepancy between the skills and specializations of the personnel needed in cruise services according to the analysis of customers' feedback on Alezzi Yacht, and the specializations offered by the Romanian educational environment. Research Implications/Limitations: The research findings suggest that there is a need for a better alignment between the educational programs and the specific requirements of the maritime cruise industry in Constanta, Romania. However, the research was limited to the educational programs in Constanta and did not consider the broader national or international context. Practical Implications/Limitations: The practical implications of the research suggest that there is a need for better training and education of personnel in the maritime cruise industry in Constanta, Romania. However, the practical limitations of the research include the need for further investigation and implementation of the suggested changes. Originality: The original contribution of this paper lies in the analysis of the existing discrepancy between the educational offers that encourage entrepreneurship and the specific requirements for the development of the maritime cruise industry in Constanta, Romania. Additionally, the case study of Alezzi Yacht provides a practical example of the challenges faced by the maritime tourism industry in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the beginning of 2020, a virus originating from Wuhan, China, spread throughout the world, which in March of the same year was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. According to scientific studies and specialized publications, the pandemic had positive effects on the pharmaceutical industry and e-commerce, which accelerated the digitization process. The negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic consisted in the reduction of companies' revenues, the reduction of the number of customers, the reduction of investments and the temporary suspension of production. The research of this paper is descriptive, based on statistics and data from the official reports of the National Trade Register Office. The methods used are observation, analysis, data processing and synthesis. The aim is to identify the number of new investment sectors, newly established enterprises, companies that suspended their activity and those that entered insolvency in the period 2020 and 2021, compared to 2019. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on entrepreneurship in Romania was not devastating, the entrepreneurs keeping their confidence in the stability of the market. Thus, in 2020, the company establishment rate was affected, because new entrepreneurs no longer had the courage to invest their money, but the companies already present on the market were not strongly impacted. The year 2021 is the surprise year, being the most favorable for entrepreneurship in the period 2019-2021. The most companies were established, and the rate of suspension and insolvency was the lowest. The contribution in this paper consists in the fact that it is demonstrated that the pandemic did not destroy the entrepreneurial activity in Romania. On the contrary, there was a sector, Information and communications, which experienced rapid development, thus developing the concept of "knowledge economy" in this country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aimed to present some aspects of the development stage of ecotourism activities within and around the natural protected areas in Dobrudgea - a historical province from Romania's South-East extremity, as well as a set of proposals to orient the efforts of putting into value these destinations through ecotourism activities, in agreement with the requirements of the national legislation and the international conventions to which Romania adhered. The whole volume of information presented in this paper was obtained by bibliographic documentation and field visits. The analysis of data suggested that the development of ecotourism areas should be based on empowering local communities by education, social entrepreneurship and cultural preservation programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generation Z is a cohort of contrasts - youth growing with a life fuller of possibilities than ever before, but also into a world filled with challenges. Born between approximately the mid-1990s and 2010s, they are no longer children, but emerging as today and tomorrow's leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs. Studies have already revealed that this generation has a high affinity and strong abilities towards entrepreneurship. Digitally-savvy and with a global mindset, yet troubled by anxiety and inexperienced, Zoomers have a starting point which, depending on one's perspective, can be either troublesome or advantageous. The paper includes a review of the current state of research on the topic, followed by owned research examining how Zoomers position themselves in regards with entrepreneurship, ending with conclusions, observations, and recommendations. As both the authors either identify as, or teach, Generation Z ourselves, this topic holds professional, academic and personal dimensions. Youth is history in the making. Understanding, on a deeper level, the reasons and goals, the challenges and opportunities which make up Generation Z's professional ecosystem will ensure the best management of the economic force represented by Generation Z's entrepreneurial intent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A startup can be categorized as a company with a business model that supports innovation and is also scalable. The growing importance of free enterprise and entrepreneurship as a driver of economic regeneration and progress has imprinted new characteristics on the obstacles that Romanian entrepreneurs face in terms of long-term development and competitiveness. This research aimed to investigate the importance of startup hubs for the business sectors, identifying the value it projects for startup owners. By conducting empirical research, the authors used mixed data collection to capture the complexity of the topic and to provide an objective context for the research. The analyzes carried out showed that from 151 questionnaires collected, 69.54% of the startup owners are interested in enrolling in a startup hub for guidance and counseling. The main constraint startup owner face concerns the financial aspect where 60% prefer to take loans from banks and 6.6% would consider accessing European funds. Even though 2 out of 3 startups are young, 64% believe their business is innovative, whereas 78.1% believe that business turnaround is a major benefit of using innovation in their business. The qualitative data revealed that in Romania startup hubs are considered a less-known concept, different from the ones overseas. Unanimously, all respondents stated that a startup hub must support newly formed startups and consider innovation as a driving force for economic growth. In conclusion, startup hubs should work closely with startup owners to ensure the success of both businesses. This paper manages to provide an in-depth analysis that should allow all parties involved to create a business environment that can support the Romanian economic sector, thus contributing to the existing research on the role of startup hubs and the way they can bridge the gap between a business idea and reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovation is the top topic of the public agenda. Policy makers and business representatives are looking for innovative solutions to modern issues. Therefore, the research question is whether Romania’s agrofood sector has strong conditions in order to run and implement eco-innovation. The main objectives of the paper are to emphasize the real conditions for eco-innovation in Romanian agrofood sector. The descriptive analysis proves that Romania’s agrofood sector needs innovation and this may be a strategic approach for sustainable development of agrofood companies. On one hand, the findings proves that the Romanian small enterprises are quite vulnerable to market exchanges as they need further skills in order to face them. On the other hand, the small enterprises are not ready to implement digital activities, neither eco-innovation in their operations, even if this objective is on the short list of public policies agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social economy is a recent subject of interest for public agenda mainly due to its capacity to support sustainable jobs especially but not exclusively for vulnerable people. The paper explores the profile of Romanian social entrepreneurs with a particular attention paid to social economy area. The research hypothesis is that the empowerment of vulnerable people towards social economy through entrepreneurship is rather an exception than a general sustainable employment solution. The second research hypothesis is that the employment of vulnerable people in social economy area is supported by social insertion enterprises rather than social enterprises. The first part of the paper is focused on international and national regulations as well as institutional framework with an impact on social economy and vulnerable groups. The second part of the paper explores the profile of Romanian entrepreneurs from an international comparative perspective. The third part of the paper assesses outputs of the European Social Fund (ESF) financed projects towards employment of vulnerable people. As methodology, the article is based on desk research on international and national regulations, primary and secondary analysis of EUROSTAT 2000-2012 Eurobarometer databases, and the database of Romanian volumes dedicated to social economy research. Our forecast is that successful implementation of ESF financed projects, especially priority axis 6 "Promoting social inclusion", main domain of intervention 6.1. Development of social economy depends on the ex-ante assessment of employability of vulnerable groups both as entrepreneurs and employees in social enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Quality of Life (1018-0389) / Calitatea Vietii is the property of Romanian Academy Publishing House / Editura Academiei Romane and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper examines the importance of risk management within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and investigates the specific situation in Romania. SMEs represent a vital component of the European economy, making significant contributions to the generated value added and beyond. Effective risk management is essential for the survival and success of these enterprises. A correct understanding of the context, without actually facing the same challenges, is particularly important for guiding and advising other entrepreneurs. The utility of this paper lies in offering a comprehensive perspective on the importance of risk management in SMEs and proposing directions and solutions for its improvement. The paper highlights the need for implementing effective risk management internally at the SME level to protect and sustainably develop them. By identifying and assessing risks, developing risk management plans, and continuously monitoring and updating these plans, SMEs can become more resilient to changes and challenges in the business environment. To achieve this, the paper proposes a risk assessment checklist for evaluating and accurately planning the directions of action and development for SMEs. This evaluation is valuable for any SME in different stages of its existence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Quality of Life (1018-0389) / Calitatea Vietii is the property of Romanian Academy Publishing House / Editura Academiei Romane and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The aim of this paper is to examine the level and determinants of financial inclusion in Latin America and Europe and especially in Brazil and Romania based on the Global Findex database. We found that income and education contribute to greater financial inclusion as they are positively related to having a formal account and this finding supports the view that policies favoring financial inclusion should target certain groups of population such as women and young people. Our main conclusions found that the level of financial inclusion in Brazil and Romania is high relative to comparable countries. Financial inclusion, as measured by the ownership of a formal account, does not create a major problem in both countries. Brazilian and Romanian authorities could nonetheless improve the ownership of a formal account by dismantling obstacles related to income and education, all of which found more long-run issues. In summary, our work contains findings of particular interest to design policies to improve financial inclusion in Brazil and Romania. It stresses the role of policies targeting groups of population particularly affected by financial Inclusion and identifies the main obstacles they face. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This scientific article aims to highlight the importance of the transition from the linear economy to the circular economy and the business opportunities that can be developed based on the principles of this new type of economy. At the same time, the paper tries to determine the role of ICT's in developing such innovative and sustainable long-term entrepreneurial initiatives. Based on an empirical analysis, the results of the research showed that the circular economy produces positive effects on the medium and long term both from an economic point of view, as well as for the environment and health. Also, the results showed that Romania is at the beginning in the process of transition to the circular economy and it takes time, financing, regulations and state support for companies that have or want to start businesses based on certain strategies specific to the circular economy. On the other hand, the exhibitions in this scientific paper have shown that digital technologies are one of the main pillars that stands up the development of an innovative and inclusive long-term entrepreneurial initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the results of research into entrepreneurship in the context of globalization, its capacity to cope with economic and social changes, which sometimes have negative effects on the environment and the population, i.e. the educational process by which people are primitive in their way of thinking and action, the lifestyle of each individual, to maintain a balance between society, the environment and the economy. The paper also analyzes the attractiveness of entrepreneurship in Romania, the diverse challenges of the world specific to dynamic societies, with high uncertainty for future entrepreneurs, the introduction of teaching methods in the educational process that would develop the potential of young people to critically analyze economic phenomena, social and environmental impacts with a view to integrating them into a society of the future, economic growth through successful businesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic development of the tourism in disadvantaged mountain areas has the role of sustaining their development and economic growth. The premise of a successful development of tourism in these areas is given by the authenticity of resources. This paper aims to highlight the strategic perspectives/outlook of tourism in disadvantaged mountain areas through the evaluation of strategic alternatives using the concerted analysis SWOT-AHP. The aim of this study is to support communities and actors involved in the phenomenon of tourism in disadvantaged mountain areas in order to achieve positive results and as much as possible with awareness and avoidance of risks, and prevention or combating negative consequences. During the research and analysis, in accordance with the literature, the issue of entrepreneurship was treated as a dependent variable, and the phenomenon of tourism as an independent variable. The vision of tourism planning in disadvantaged mountain areas must focus on its sustainable development that contributes to increasing entrepreneurial initiatives by diversifying and ensuring the complementarity of tourism services calibrated to the needs of tourists and adapted to new social challenges. The strategic planning in the area of the tourism of disadvantaged mountain areas represents a topical challenge in the context of promoting sustainable tourism. Currently, there is a strategy at national level for developing tourism, but there is no strategy for developing tourism in disadvantaged mountain areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to identify the ways in which visible learning can be used in entrepreneurial education, both in universities and in secondary school. Thus, the first part of the paper presents a brief introduction on the concept of entrepreneurship and the necessity of entrepreneurial education in Romania. The second part of the paper highlights the concept of visible learning as a modern and effective tool of entrepreneurial education. At the end of the paper I emphasized the role of the four variables of the scholastic activity, namely the teacher, the student, the subject and the didactic management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supporting entrepreneurship development within the SME sector is a priority at both European Union and national level, as this category can contribute to the sustainable development of the economic sector both economically, financially and especially socially. The number of SMEs at both national and European level is very high, i.e. over 90% of the number of economic agents. Encouraging SMEs through financial and fiscal measures and financial incentives to boost entrepreneurship can contribute to a more dynamic and flexible economy, with the role of SMEs being larger than large companies, which are considered to be the backbone of any modern economies. Moreover, as the family is the basic cell of society, we believe that SMEs are the basic cell of the economy. Through this paper, we aim to make an entrepreneurial radiography among SMEs in Romania, especially in the current European context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For any start-up, adhering to an entrepreneurial ecosystem is an engine for business innovation. The specific objectives of this paper are to address themes and characteristics (also comparing organizational structures and services provided in different national contexts: Italy vs. Romania) in terms of selection mechanisms adopted by business incubators, to analyse and deepen the contribution that incubators make to new business initiatives. From a methodological point of view, the comparative analysis of the incubator activities in Italy and Romania was performed by collecting relevant information outlining selection mechanisms that provide a qualitative magnitude to the start-ups' selection criteria. Findings reflect different perspectives regarding the approach of selection mechanisms in these two European countries. Furthermore, Romanian start-ups could learn practices from the Italian start-up ecosystem, enabling them to better perform in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the involvement of Romanian and Hungarian young villagers in the local agriculture and entrepreneurial activities. The first part of the article is providing an outlook on the historical evolution and current situation of agriculture and rural development in Romania and Hungary, from the perspective of theoretical positions formulated within Rural Sociology, Economics and the Sociology of Entrepreneurship. The second part is discussing the results of a cross-border research and social intervention project conducted in the period 2012- 2013 in ten rural localities from the shared Hungarian - Romanian border region. The last part of our paper is dedicated to conclusions and recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the mutual relationship among the concepts of entrepreneurship, training personnel and business start-up and development. From our point of view, Romania shall encourage as much as possible entrepreneurship so as to create SMEs, the most flexible and numerous in number in the Romanian total number of companies. Hence, the main objective of this paper is to highlight the importance of accessing European funds in increasing the number of Romanians properly trained so as to become successful entrepreneurs and to manage successful businesses. At the same time, another main objective is to present the need of entrepreneurship training and support in business start-up and development by using the descriptive method of research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper makes an analysis of the economic and social resources involved in the rural entrepreneurship development in Romania. The methodology used is based on the analysis and synthesis of information on the social and economic coordinates of the rural entrepreneurship development. The statistical data were completed with information from articles and studies published in specialty journals as well as in Government's documents. The results allow us to conclude that the natural resources, the social capital, the rural governance and the business development have a direct influence upon entrepreneurship development in the countryside. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows the economic development of the South-East Region of Romania, since 2007 until present. The research questions are the following: which are the main indicators that can determine the economic development on the level of Region and, also, which are the predictions about economic development of the Region? In this order were identified and analyzed significant economic indicators, such as gross domestic product at regional level; gross domestic product by category of resources; GDP per capita; number of private entrepreneurs; the number of active local units; staff of active local units; gross and net investments. Economic development of the South-East Region is possible because of foreign investments that contributed to replace old technologies with new technologies, to create jobs and increase productivity. For this study data were taken from the National Institute of Statistics and the National Forecast Commission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main focus of this paper is the entrepreneurial education, by analyzing the impact of training on the entrepreneurial success in Romania. We chose to approach this subject, given that education is considered by literature, as one of the five components of the environment that affect entrepreneurial activity in a country. The analysis undertaken for Romania was based on the international statistics in the field. Given the observed results, the paper recommends a restructuring of entrepreneurial education courses depending on the motivation, educational background and the extent to which the student is suitable for entrepreneurial activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is an empirical analysis of determinants for new companies' formation and uses data from 42 Romanian counties (including Bucharest municipality) that belong to the 2010-2019 year interval. The exogenous here picked are found by the literature to be influential on new companies' formation. Results come out of a PVAR model applied (unrestricted vector autoregressive model applied on panel data). Granger causality results between regional GDP, unemployment rate, density of regional population, and entire entrepreneurial activity in Romania, on the one hand, and new companies' formation on the other, as endogenous. Stationarity and cointegration tests as well as lags criteria were done previously of estimating that PVAR model. All variables are found to be stationary of order one I(1), but test for co-integration was inconclusive. So, in absence of a certain cointegration, a VAR (and not a VECM) was chosen for estimations. Results confirm a relationship between almost all variables, tests for stability confirm that no root lies outside the unit circle and VAR satisfies the stability condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context when tourism has become a widespread phenomenon, there are many global concerns in this regard, with reference to the plans to protect the world's cultural and natural assets, and to stimulate the sustainable development of this sector. Touristic, cultural and scientific bodies develop comprehensive strategies, initiating Conventions, drawing up plans and periodically preparing reports. Romania has a large number of tourist attractions, ranking 46th in the top based on this criterion, distinguishing itself also grace to the attractiveness of natural objectives, the total number of protected areas, the number of cultural objectives and the number of objectives in terms of oral and intangible heritage. Taking into account all these indicators, Romania may be proud of a vast touristic potential, which offers wonderful premises for starting a business in tourism, for the expansion of entrepreneurship and for the development of natural, cultural and anthropic resources. Each region and area of Romania has diverse and special particularities and characteristics, and we have to underscore their ability to become true business poles grace to the high level of their attractiveness, being capably of developing actual hospitality industries. The recognition of their existence and value obviously contributes to a very large extent to the promotion and inclusion of cultural objectives into various global rankings, actions that lead to an increased interest among tourists, and implicitly contribute to attracting a large number of visitors and generally have a significant media impact. In this respect, this paper highlights international and domestic coordinates related to the sizing and capitalization of tourism potential, analysing theoretical coordinates and statistical data. In addition, we also forward the results of a survey carried out in order to identify the prospects for capitalizing on the Romanian tourist heritage and the manner in which the highlighting of the Romanian touristic and cultural objectives can be a starting point for generating prosperous future business and can develop the business milieu in all areas, including in the regions experiencing a steep decline, like Caraş-Severin county. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our paper findings are based on official statistical data provided from the National Office of the Romanian Trade Register (ONRC) regarding the legal active entities and authorized individuals in Romania. Data will describe how Romanian business environment was affected in 2020 by the Sars-Cov-2 health crisis which also had a major impact on the international business environment. We will search for those statistical data better highlights what is happening in the business environment, given company registrations, insolvencies, plus legislation improvements. We will equally take into account the responsibility of the companies' shareholders face to: expectations, options for financing their own businesses, solutions of resistance in difficult periods, plans and strategies for the near future. The impact of some measures taken by government authorities to support the business of entrepreneurs will also be taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this paper is to study the importance of entrepreneurship in the tourism industry. Tourism is in a continuous development, both in size and content, niche tourism annually enriching its forms. The notion of entrepreneurship is associated with the new and innovative economic activity, and innovation is very broad including entrepreneurial principles. Innovation materializes in new products, new services, new raw materials, new processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Regional Science Policy & Practice is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Romanian rural area faces a violent lack of entrepreneurship initiatives, which can generate negative economic and social phenomena, with medium and long-term effects, such as: the decreased living standards of people in rural areas, the migration of young people from rural areas, which generates psychosocial problems among children who have to stay with their grandparents, the sharp decrease of interest for agriculture and, thus, the decrease of GDP ratio from agricultural activities, the lack of education among rural people etc. Under these circumstances, the paper tries, through documentation, analysis and processing statistical data, to quantify the development level of entrepreneurship in rural areas in Romania, compared with developed EU countries (such as: Germany, Great Britain, France etc.), in order to reveal the gaps in this sector. To increase the relevance of the analysis, the paper also analyzes the possible causes that can stimulate or repress the expression of entrepreneurship and its implementation in Romanian and European rural areas, such as: different levels of fiscal pressure, the existence, effectiveness and efficiency of programs implementation for stimulating and supporting entrepreneurship in general and in rural areas, in particular, the different business culture etc. These results generated from the research will finally create a set of premises for adopting international best practices and develop pragmatic solutions and programs to increase entrepreneurship, which can leads to new business initiatives in the Romanian rural area. In conclusion, for a quality of life growth and a decrease of negative social and economic phenomena with medium and long-term impact, it is necessary an increase of the living standards, done by increasing the opportunities for entrepreneurship in agriculture and rural areas. Specifically, there are needed investments in the development of human resources in rural areas and in supporting its entrepreneurial efforts and activities in order to generate profitable activities that can ensure motivating financial and social rewards for medium and long terms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This paper aims to debate the possibility of creating a social enterprise in a certain region of Romania. Design/methodology/approach - In the first section there is a theoretical approach of some aspects of societal change processes and seven trends which indicate the change processes within the working environment. From the same point of view, there are also mentioned different types of entrepreneurial activities. The paper ends with a case study which is dealing with the study of the potential to create social enterprises to support rural communities in Bistrita Nasaud county. Findings - The data provides an array of social problems that are facing the people of this region: the lack of jobs, of qualifications required by the market, poverty, social exclusion of vulnerable groups. Practical implications/originality/value - The presentation of a case study specific to social entrepreneurship within a larger theoretical framework triggers a complex approach in compliance with the specified theoretical aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper approaches an important topic in the field of insolvency, a present field, considering that bankruptcy threatens the development in good conditions of the activity of companies. Our approach concerns the analysis of the insolvency of Romanian trading companies in the context of the economic-financial crisis. Considering the current economic crisis, the problem of insolvency is very present. From an economic and financial perspective, insolvency is a reality of entrepreneurship, with a negative impact: it is conditioned and triggers inopportune and inappropriate management of the patrimony of economic units. Our aim is to perform a comparative analysis in time and space of the evaluation of the insolvency of trading companies, in order to grasp the common and specific elements in defining and presenting insolvency. In the practical part of the paper, for processing the data collected from the financial statements, we will use the SPSS software - Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. The database includes 30 insolvent companies in Romania, analyzed over a 5-year period. For a rigorous structure of the database, we will select the companies that perform their activity in several activity branches. The results of the research show the crisis that affects the analyzed Romanian companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women entrepreneurship is an important area being globally recognized as one of the most important measures of economic growth and, implicitly, of decreasing the level of poverty. Incentivizing women to start their own business is essential for the development of women entrepreneurship and it's also a strategic objective at European level, assumed by Romania as an EU member state. In order to have access to the same opportunities as men, women have to go beyond a series of obstacles, one of which is family responsibility, which often returns to their care. Therefore, this paper approaches a wide variety of themes that correspond to the present, such as motivation, obstacles encountered and also the advantages and disadvantages that come with the entrepreneurial profession, using as a research method the interviews with women entrepreneurs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Industria Textila is the property of Institutul National de Cercetare-Dezvoltare pentru Textile si Pielarie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A study regarding the importance of personal abilities in entrepreneurship was conducted in France, Romania, and Lithuania on several 204 peoples with higher education. The applied methodology was that of opinion polls, in which the subjects were asked to give information regarding the importance in entrepreneurship, of some personal skills such as ''To quickly analyze the data and make decisions'', or ''To direct and lead R&D activity''. The importance of these skills was quantified in the questionnaire by granting notes from 1 to 6, notes whose value was directly proportional to the importance give it to the respective ability. Regarding the assessment of the importance of the ability "To quickly analyze the data and make decisions", from the total respondents, 29% gave the maximum mark (note 6), and 24% gave mark 5. Regarding the respondent's position for ability entitled ''To direct and lead R&D activity'', the overall answers have the same values (29% of the respondents gave mark 6 and 24% of them gave mark 5). Regarding the distribution of the answers by countries, it is found that the maximum score (6) was granted by 58% of the Romanian respondents, by 31% of the French respondents, and by 8% of the Lithuanian respondents. In conclusion, the study achieved regarding the importance of personal skills in the entrepreneurial process carried in the three countries, showed the conditioning of the success of a business by personal entrepreneurial qualities, like: "To quickly analyze the data and make decisions", "To persuade others", ''To be oriented to achieve'' and' 'To direct and lead R&D activity''. These answers placed Romania on the first because its own participants agreeing that these qualities are the personal skills of a successful entrepreneur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The significant role played by youth entrepreneurship for the economic growth of countries has shift the attention of researchers to the potential entrepreneurs, and how to stimulate the enter on the market of new and innovative individuals which might have positive effects on economic development. The present research is conducted to identify the influence of some characteristics of business environment and of access to financial resources on entrepreneurial intentions of faculty students from one of the largest universities of Romania. We conducted the study on a sample of undergraduate and master students, by applying a questionnaire. The main objectives of this paper are to analyze how the young potential entrepreneurs perceive the access to finance for start-ups and if this factor would be a significant predictor of the decision to become entrepreneurs of the students. In addition, our study discusses how policy makers could provide support for young people to create innovative businesses, from a financial perspective. Our findings show a high level of entrepreneurial intentions among the interviewed students, but also that easy access to financial resources is the most important obstacle identified by the students with entrepreneurial intentions. Young entrepreneurs encounter significant obstacles in trying to obtain the necessary financial resources, because they do not have a market history or sufficient guarantees. Access to information and fewer business regulations were also identified as factors with a significant contribution on entrepreneurial orientation of youth. The implications of the study are significant for potential policy intervention, because emphasize the need of the policy makers to stimulate young entrepreneurs by promoting policies that allow young entrepreneurs greater access to finance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to contribute to the better knowledge and understanding on entrepreneurship education and its role in supporting the development of entrepreneurial intentions in Romania. Analyzing the role of entrepreneurship education on influencing decision to of starting up a business is on the rise worldwide, a lot of importance being put on the importance of entrepreneurship education in supporting diversification of careers and transitions from unemployment or inactivity to self-employment. The empirical evidences for Romania, even if they are already addressed by several papers mainly focused on entrepreneurship education in universities still provide a lot of food for quantitative and qualitative analyses. The paper uses the data provided by Flask Eurobarometer 354 to depict the profile of Romanians that were involved in entrepreneurship education, but also to define an index on perceived effects of education in order to link the participation to entrepreneurial programs to the decision of individuals to start-up their own business. The findings on the profile of those ever engaged in entrepreneurship education in Romania points out to the structural inequalities embedded in the Romanian educational system, but also emphasize the rapid extension of the curriculum in this direction. Education is perceived as very important in building up attitudes and knowledge that support entrepreneurial intentions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Present paper is devoted to the youth entrepreneurship in the field of Creative Business trough the comparative analysis between situation in Bulgaria and Romania as member states of the European Union. For Creative Business the most important and key element is the creative idea – therefore it is possible that start-up company could equally compete with the company having global reputation and popularity. Our findings show that both countries have to develop special policy supporting focusing the youth entrepreneurship in the field of Creative Business. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public-private partnerships are one of the most debated issues at EU-27 level nowadays. The experience of the past two decades has shown that this European Union initiative has delivered results below expectations despite the opportunities for improved absorption of European funds based on setting up such partnerships. In our paper we argue that by investigating main definitions and institutional-regulatory frameworks, public-private partnerships could turn into a key tool for promoting and supporting sustainable development at both national and rural level (that is, at the level of the regions of development) by interacting and best suited to sustain the activities of start-ups and innovative SMEs. Romania's experience is still at its very beginnings, but the current economic, social and political climate is an argument for considering how public-private-partnerships and entrepreneurship might be interlinked for generating economic growth, and creating platforms even for encouraging social entrepreneurs who, due to their 'not-for-profit' objectives are more flexible in applying new perspectives and innovations faced with new opportunities, thus gaining experiences transferable to changing and improving the 'for profit' sector and contributing to improved perceptions about public-private partnerships, not as an objective per se, but as operational tool in ensuring economic growth, social development and increased sustainability and resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Businesses in the field of commerce have developed greatly in recent decades, being one of the most profitable sectors of activity. The purpose of this paper was to identify the opportunities of development for the field of trade, in Resita, from the perspective of young people, and also to determine the level of interest in opening a business in this area of activity in the future. The present paper thus presents a study carried out on the young people's perception regarding the development of business opportunities in the field of trade in the city of Resita. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Worldwide, entrepreneurship is perceived as providing a high social status, and based on the Global Entrepreneurship Research Association's Report about two-thirds of adults consider that it is a good choice for a future career. Scholars have wondered over the time whether: entrepreneurs are born or educated, which are the factors that influence their decision to start a business, are they: individual (motives, preferences, social identity), familial (family structure, family relationships), cultural or institutional (educational system, entrepreneurial institutions and organizations correlated with the political environment) and so on? In this paper, we have presented the results of the Entrepreneurial spirit Survey conducted among students of the Organizational Management and Entrepreneurship Master's Degree Program, of the Faculty of Law and Economics, Constanta, Spiru Haret University, Romania, during 2016-2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]