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Iva Đikić
- Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina -
Iva comes from Tomislavgrad but resides in Mostar. She holds a bachelor of information science from University of Mostar and has had an entrepreneurial mindset ever since she can remember. In 2016, along with her colleagues, she founded VRET, a startup focused on utilising virtual reality technology to treat anxiety and various phobia.
Merisa Nisic
- New York, USA -
Merisa was born in Sarajevo and raised in Brooklyn, NY. She is a cell biologist by training and earned her PhD in Molecular, Cellular, and Integrative Biosciences from Penn State University. Her research focused on developing novel approaches to enrich and characterize circulating tumor cells (CTCs) to study phenotypic and genetic differences of CTC subpopulations.
Minela Dulic
- Istanbul, Turkey -
Born in Travnik and raised in Novi Travnik. Minela has been living in Turkey for the last 8 years, currently in the city of Istanbul. After graduating from high school as a 100% scholarship holder, she completed her undergraduate studies as an honorary student at Hacettepe University (Ankara), one of the best universities in Turkey, which earned her the title of Child Development Specialist.
We identify and nurture the most talented technical sciences students from Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our goal is to empower over 10.000 through our programs by 2030. The success of our mission relies on partnerships with organisations who share our passion. We work actively with other non for profits, government organisations and most importantly companies, to create valuable opportunities for all. There are numerous way you can partner with our foundation. Below you will find examples of our partnerships and what they are helping do.
Company
Why our partnerships bring value?
Achieving long term success requires collaboration with other organisations. For BH Futures Foundation collaboration with the tech industry is of particular importance. One of our primary goals is to ensure that a large proportion of the talent we identify and nurture over years, stays in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The brain drain which has affected Bosnia & Herzegovina as well as the entire Balkan region, is creating problems for the local economy. However, the ICT industry presents new hope and is creating clusters of excellence throughout the country. Of vital importance are well paid jobs that allow young people to develop globally relevant careers. The foundation relies on the success of tech companies in Bosnia & Herzegovina in order to keep employing our highly talented students. While some of our students may leave their homeland due to career specialisations, a vast majority stay and build long term success in their home towns.
Formal education, especially in Bosnia & Herzegovina due to the lack of reform, is not sufficient to
keep young people on top of global technology trends. Furthermore, in today’s world the average engineer & scientist can not rely on their IQ alone to build incredible careers. Developing a balance of IQ and
EQ (Emotional intelligence), fused with a strong underpinning in enterprise skills (communication, strategic & critical thinking, decision making, commercial awareness etc), leadership and entrepreneurship are vital to the success of any student & young professional. BH Futures Foundation has developed a learning and experience ecosystem that compliments the traditional formal education environment.
Our scholars are well rounded individuals who balance formal and non formal education to become
the tech leaders of tomorrow.
Mentorship Program
We kick-started the largest mentoring program in the region for disadvantaged youth from all over Bosnia and Herzegovina. In partnership with MarketMakers, we offer students industry mentoring through strategic partnerships with IT/STEM companies from Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a company you have an opportunity to partner with us and give your employees an opportunity to mentor high school and university students. The benefit for the entire tech industry is enormous. We will see an increase of students studying technical sciences, more young talent in your company and overall growth in the sector.
Meetups & Business Forums
Bosnia & Herzegovina Futures Foundation’s mission to connect diaspora with homegrown talent has culminated in dozens of meetup/networking events and business forums all over the world. We have partnered up with companies, universities, non for profits and governmental institutions to host these events. Companies use rapid pitches to present their portfolio of work, while individuals present who they are through interactive icebreakers.
To date we have visited these international destinations:
San Jose, Stockholm, Goteborg, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Chicago, Boston, Brno, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Dusseldorf
Why partner with us for meetups and business forums?
Whether you are the host company or a participating company, being part of our meetups and business forums is a fantastic way to grow your brand.
Discover new opportunities for collaboration that can result in one or more of the following:
- Exchange experiences and knowledge with local/international experts
- Develop partnerships and outsourcing cooperation
- Discover and develop joint venture opportunities
- Exchange cultural best practices in business
- Explore new markets and develop new business
- Identify new talent
To date we have also organised and partnered in the organisation of industry/diaspora meetup events in these towns in Bosnia & Herzegovina:
Banja Luka, Tuzla, Sarajevo and Mostar.
JSGuru - Banja Luka Maker Space
JSGuru is a Banja Luka based Software company which has demonstrated outstanding leadership by constantly supporting initiatives that support local communities. We have a long standing partnership in which we have delivered numerous initiatives. JSGuru are partners in the Maker Space projects and in 2020 we are opening a new space at JSGuru’s headquarters in Banja Luka, making it the first of its kind in this big hub.
Maker spaces are open learning spaces where young people can come and play with the latest technologies, develop & test prototypes, interact with like minded individuals and learn from more senior people. They are equipped with the latest technologies such as drones, 3D printers, electronics, measurement technology, laptops, development boards, AR/Technology and much more.
The Banja Luka Maker Space will be a one of a kind as it will have a common space where JSGuru employees will be able to share a cup of coffee or tea with youngsters who are utilising the space. This will provide excellent interactions, resulting in mentorship and guidance.
DKR - German Center for Robotics Tuzla
DKR – German Center for Robotics in Tuzla was initiated by the German Masterwerk GmbH from Munich in 2016. DKR is a training facility for the programming of industrial robotics, as well as consulting company in the process of modernization of regional industries. Special attention is given to education (training and retraining) of local & international participants through with a focus on systems such as ABB, KUKA and FANUC.
BH Futures Foundation has been a partner of DKR for several years and our relationship has expanded on numerous fronts from hosting events together at DKR facilities to partnering at conferences, expos and providing education.
Deloitte BiH - Smart City Sarajevo
Deloitte is one of the big four global consultancies and they are doing incredible work in Bosnia & Herzegovina also. We partnered up with them to work on smart city solutions for Sarajevo.
Deloitte & BH Futures Foundation representatives working together.
Do you have an idea for a partnership?
Click here!
NGO and Non for Profits
Why partner with the BH Futures Foundation?
Bosnia & Herzegovina Futures Foundation is always on the lookout for strategic partners in the NGO and non for profit sector. Of particular interest are organisations which have close alignment to the mission of our foundation “Empowering the youth of Bosnia & Herzegovina through technology, education and leadership”. We are aware that we can make a better impact by joining our forces.
IEEE Innovation Nation
IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organisation and BH Futures Foundation has enjoyed an active collaboration with this institution since our founding. In 2016 we partnered with IEEE to develop and deliver “Innovation Nation” a grassroots innovation & entrepreneurship program for Bosnia & Herzegovina. The program consists of two parts:
Education
Students throughout the country go through 8 modules of training (8 full days or 4 weekends), covering everything from introduction to design thinking all the way to business models and pitching in front of investors. Students who complete the training receive certificates and are eligible to compete in the Innovation Nation finals.
Competition
The Innovation Nation finals invite the best 10 teams who participated in the education program where they compete for start-up funding, attend the IEEE annual congress and receive technical/business mentors.
The program which was started in our homeland in 2016 has since been also run for 2 years in Sri Lanka (2018 & 2019) and will be launched in Central Africa in 2020.
Mozaik Foundation - Social Entrepreneurship
Mozaik Foundation is the leading impact investor in the Western Balkans region, with a mission to identify, empower and invest in value-driven and innovative social entrepreneurs. To date, Mozaik has worked with over 25,000 youth in Bosnia & Herzegovina. We signed a memorandum and partnered up to deliver the 2019 IEEE Innovation Nation. We are also active partners in the Lonac Hubs throughout BH where our scholars actively participate in community orientated projects.
La Terra Nostra - Enabling Learning in Srebrenica
Charity Foundation La Terra Nostra was launched with the intention to help those people from Bosnia and Herzegovina and the world who are eager to study and to accomplish more in their lives to fulfill their dreams. We partnered in our “Srebrenica Maker Space” project where La Terra Nostra gladly provided BH Futures Foundation with a dozen laptops to use and educate youth from the region. We are also working together and other non for profits to help the entire Srebrenica region.
La Trobe University - Australia Education Exchange
La Trobe University is one of Australia’s largest universities. It has consistently been ranked among the top 100 universities under the age of 50 and is recognised as one of the most innovative and forward looking institutions. From 2016 to date, we have partnered with this institution to bring over 100 Australian student on an international study tour to Bosnia & Herzegovina. Together, we have developed one of the most unique programs called the “Global Innovation Program” in which Australian students utilise design thinking methodology to solve problems citizens of Bosnia & Herzegovina face. We have been building bridges between the two countries and will continue to do so.
If you would like to facilitate similar program do get in touch with us.
This work has been well documented in literature and blogs.
Swiss Government and MarketMakers
MarketMakers is a project of the Swiss Government implemented by Helvetas (Switzerland) and Kolektiv d.o.o. (Bosnia & Herzegovina). MarketMakers has been implementing activities in support of sustained youth employment together with the private sector since 2012 and will run until the end of May 2021.
We partnered up with MarketMakers to expand our unique industry mentoring program to over 200 participants. Find out more here.
U.S Government & Global Innovation through Science and Technology initiative (GIST)
In 2020, our Foundation became the official partner of The Global Innovation through Science and Technology initiative (GIST), a U.S. government program on innovation and entrepreneurship. The program assists business people to establish startups. GIST participants in 135 emerging economies can develop skills, build networks, find mentors, and access financing through a combination of in-country training, a pitch competition, interactive online programming, and direct connections to U.S. experts.
Gandel Philanthropy - Joining Forces in Australia
Gandel Philanthropy is one of Australia’s largest independent family philanthropic funds. Gandel recognised our amazing work an partnered with us to host our annual gathering in Melbourne, Australia. Charitable work is admirable and we respect the incredible work this organisation is doing.